In the shadows of Petco Park, Steve Garvey was hailed as a hero for the Padres, playing alongside baseball legend Tony Gwynn and helping the team reach its first World Series.

In Los Angeles, voters' eyes lit up as they posed for photos with the former All-Star Dodgers first baseman who anchored the team's legendary infield in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Few people knew that Garvey, a Republican, was running for the U.S. Senate. But they all remembered his steel forearms – “Hey.” Popeye” one exclaimed — and found success on the diamond in two baseball-mad towns.

“Is he a Republican?” Kenneth Allen, 56, asked a reporter as Garvey toured the San Diego homeless shelter where Allen works. “I'm a Democrat, but if he was the best person for the job, I would consider it.”

Mr. Garvey's baseball reputation has been central to his U.S. Senate campaign, but at best it's been a huge success in California, where Republican candidates running across the state are often snubbed by left-leaning voters. It seems that there is no hope. He says that what drives him to controversy is nostalgia for his playing days, a heavy criticism of the declining quality of life in California and the scourge of illegal drugs flowing into cities, and a less specific political message. I hope it is.

That excitement among older fans followed the 75-year-old first-time politician as he traveled through Southern California last week on a listening tour about homelessness. Last fall, he joined a Senate race that was already dominated by prominent Democrats such as Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, Katie Porter of Irvine and Barbara Lee of Oakland.

“Once we get through the primaries, we'll start digging deeper.” [issues]'' Garvey said Thursday outside a homeless shelter in San Diego.

“Give us some leeway here because we haven't been here long. But that doesn't mean we're not moving full speed ahead on policy and coming up with ideas that will make a difference.”

Since joining the contest, Garvey has offered a variety of perspectives. supported In addition to closing the U.S.-Mexico border, he also takes decidedly more liberal positions on topics such as same-sex marriage and abortion rights, both of which he supports.

“The people of California have spoken out. They have spoken out in support of abortion. My responsibility as an elected official is to protect the voices of the people, and I am committed to doing so.” I swear,” Garvey told the Times Thursday in Compton on a one-way stop on a listening tour.

Garvey has quickly risen to the top of the Republican Party since entering the race, finishing in the top two in the March primary and increasing his chances of advancing to the general election in November.recently University of California, Berkeley Institute of Government Garvey finished third in the poll, co-sponsored by the Times, with 13% of likely voters. He trailed Mr. Porter and Mr. Schiff, who received 17% and 21% support, respectively.

Garvey's approval ratings have nearly doubled since August, helping him consolidate the Republican vote and attract some independent voters to perform well in the March 5 primary. This shows that it may have sufficient momentum.

That's why Mr. Porter and Mr. Schiff have stepped up their criticism of Mr. Garvey's political affiliation and support for former President Trump. The first Senate debate will be held this month, with Democrats on stage expected to pursue late-comer Republican candidates.

“President Trump's MAGA supporters voting for him in the presidential primary on the same day as ours could give Garvey the boost he needs,” Schiff's recent fundraising email said. It was written, “There is a gender.”

Garvey told the Times that he voted for Trump twice because he was the best choice in both 2016 and 2020. There were some good things about Trump, he said, but he wouldn't pinpoint them. He previously said he had no opinion on who was responsible for the violent insurrection by pro-Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol three years ago.

News cameras follow Dodgers great Steve Garvey as he visits Skid Row in Los Angeles on Thursday. Garvey is campaigning to represent California in the U.S. Senate, a seat previously held by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

(Luis Cinco/Los Angeles Times)

For Mr. Garvey to do well in the March primary, he will need the support of California Republicans loyal to the former president. But doing so risks angering even more voters who despise Mr. Trump.

On Thursday, he dodged a question about whether he would vote for or accept Trump's endorsement this fall, smiling and saying: If he calls, I'll let you know. ”

“I’m a moderate conservative,” he said. “I have never run for office as a Democrat, Republican, or an independent candidate. I can’t say that.”

Lanhee Chen, a public policy lecturer at Stanford University and a Republican who ran unsuccessfully for president in 2022, said Garvey is starting with an advantage that many Republican candidates lack. If Chen advances to a runoff, which he claims is possible, he will face a major challenge in overcoming the Democratic Party's huge voter registration advantage.

In the general election, Mr. Garvey, who has said he wants to serve only one term, has strengthened his support among Republicans by appealing to moderate voters, especially Latino voters, and has narrowed his support from Democrats and no-party voters. They will be hoping to seize the difference. He may be drawn to the Catholic faith and focus on economic issues.

Chen said some questions about Trump need to be faced head-on in the general election. A recent Berkeley poll found that 34% of likely voters have a favorable view of Mr. Trump, while 63% have an unfavorable view of him, including 58% who are the most Republican president. He has a very unfavorable view of potential candidates.

“All Republican candidates have to address these questions, regardless of where they fall on the spectrum. This is why Trump poses such a unique challenge to Republicans in places like California. That's part of the reason,” Chen said.

Bill Carrick, a Democratic political consultant, said Garvey's rise reflects the weakening of Republican candidates. He said the state has a long history of these types of candidates, starting with Hollywood action star Arnold Schwarzenegger being elected governor of California in 2003 and Democratic Gov. Gray Davis. He mentioned that he had been dismissed.

Steve Garvey (center) visited Los Angeles' Skid Row on Thursday with executives from the Downtown Center Business Improvement District.

(Luis Cinco/Los Angeles Times)

In this election, Carrick said voters, especially in Los Angeles, see Schwarzenegger as more than just a movie star. They saw someone who was doing philanthropic work in the community and was known to voters on a very human level.

Mr. Garvey, who lives in the Coachella Valley, has flirted with politics for decades after a successful baseball career that included a World Series championship and a 10-time National League All-Star selection that ended in the late 1980s.

“Right now, the Republican Party doesn't have a farm system, so no one can move up the ladder,” Carrick said, referring to the Republican minority in the state Legislature.

“That leaves room for people with unique abilities to come in, like Garvey.”

Still, Carrick said the general election will be a tough one, with 47% of voters identifying as Democrats, 24% as Republicans and 22% as unaffiliated.

While campaigning last week, Garvey toured a shelter in downtown San Diego and then visited Skid Row in Los Angeles with the head of the Downtown Industrial Improvement District. estela lopez and a local business owner named Sergio Moreno. He posed for a photo with five uniformed Los Angeles police officers and said that if elected, he would “make sure that the people we arrest before they go through their paperwork don't go back on the streets.”

After Moreno explained the challenges of owning property near Skid Row, Garvey talked about the joy he felt getting a ball autographed at an event at J.C. Penney at the Glendale Galleria in the mid-1970s. told.

Dodgers and Padres great Steve Garvey (right) visited Ruben Ramirez Jr., owner and operator of Ruben's Bakery and Mexican Food in Compton, on Thursday.

(Luis Cinco/Los Angeles Times)

Garvey heard a similar message when he arrived at the final stop on his tour, Reuben's Bakery and Mexican Restaurant in Compton.

The inside of the store was basically destroyed after a crowd of over 5 people. 100 people were robbed A bakery was illegally occupied on the street this month.

But on Thursday, the 48-year-old establishment reopened, with 83-year-old Ruben Ramirez Sr. and his 76-year-old wife Alicia behind the counter wearing Dodgers gear.

They both recalled watching games with their families and the joy Garvey brought to their families, including Ruben Ramirez Jr., who now runs the store.

“I've wanted to meet him all my life,” Alicia said in Spanish, wearing a Dodgers scarf around her neck. “He's a very handsome man.”

She clutched the ball he signed and took a photo to send to her family. Ramirez Jr. said his family is not political, they just work hard. They had little interest in talking about politics, he said.

Neither did Garvey. He just smiled and shook hands with them.