Draft Day Joy for Dominic Smith

After being drafted by the Mets, Dominic Smith has his moment interviewing with Sam Ryan of the MLB Network

What an amazing seven days for Serra High School's Dominic Smith. Last Friday, he pitched his school to their first ever CIF Division championship. Thursday, he became the newest member of New York Mets as the No. 11 overall selection of the 2013 MLB First-Year Player Draft.

This Friday? He graduates from Serra. Not bad for a 17-year-old who's living his dream. Even better that former Mets All-Star and Crenshaw High School standout Darryl Strawberry was at the draft to welcome Smith to the team. If anybody understands the adjustment moving from L.A. to N.Y., it's Strawberry.

This was a great day not just for Southern California, but the Black baseball community in Los Angeles. Smith hopefully represents a rebirth of Black kids enjoying baseball and I know that many will see him as think, I can do that do. Especially as they watch his high school team continue to succeed with mostly Black players.

Congrats to Dominic! Congrats to Serra, who has a rare honor of having an high-round NFL (Robert Woods) and MLB Draft selection in the same year! I'm working on arranging an interview with Smith so if that develops, I'll keep you posted.

Also congrats to Oaks Christian pitcher Phil Bickford going No. 10 to Toronto and J.P. Crawford (cousin of Carl Crawford) going No. 16 to Philadelphia. Even bigger props to my alma mater's latest star Kris Bryant, who was drafted No. 2 overall by the Chicago Cubs.

Prep Report: Serra HS Baseball Playing for (and Chasing) History

Serra High School here in Gardena is an athletic powerhouse. You might have heard of a few football guys who went there. Marqise Lee, the No. 1 college WR in the country, and NFL rookie-to-be Robert Woods. One of the top female track-and-field athletes in the country, UCLA's Turquoise Thompson, also spent her senior year at Serra, where her mother is the head track-and-field coach.

Their football team remains one of the best in Southern California and their 2013 squad will be one of the favorites to win state. Their basketball team is one of the better small schools in Southern California and their boys and girls track program ranks among the best in the state and nation.

Just this school year, they've won state titles in football and girls' basketball. Their track team heads north to the state track-and-field meet this weekend as the favorites to win several events and the boys' team title.

But also this weekend, another Serra team is poised to win a division championship. Their baseball heads to Dodger Stadium on Friday for the chance to win the program's first CIF title. Yet, they're also playing for much more than just that. They're perhaps the first predominantly Black team to be this close to a CIF title in three decades, although that has not been confirmed.