Adrian Robert Ortiz

Adrian Ortiz was born on January 10th, 1981. He, as well as his mother, take a lot of pride in the fact that he was delivered into this world by Dr. Abdul, who was in fact the father of famous pop singer Paula Abdul. Sadly, this was as close as Adrian ever got to super stardom. However, if the last few days of his life proved nothing else, they proved that Adrian was loved, he was admired, and he will always have his adoring fans. Here is some of the roar from that crowd if fans. Adrian’s father, Dennis Ortiz, left this earth when Adrian himself was still a young child, but he will always, always, be Adrian’s number one fan. I dare anyone to try to steal that spot from him. Adrian’s mother, Susan Ortiz, who widely regarded Adrian as her favorite child, raised her son with love, support, caring, and understanding that surpassed those other relatives around him that had less patience for him at times. Adrian’s younger brother, Eric Gomez, had to live with Adrian all his life, and despite that fact, still loved him fiercely and loyally until the day he died. Adrian’s younger brother Jerry, who sadly, passed away himself within days of Adrian, could never have found the words, but he would have said that Adrian was a constant force and presence in his life that could not have been easily replaced. Adrian’s younger brother, Kevin, who is writing these words, will never be the same, as a piece of him is no longer living. Adrian’s wife, Silvia Romero-Ortiz never left his side from when he was hospitalized to when he passed away, and really that says everything you need to know about her. 

Adrian’s adoptive son, Angel Romero, was drafted into Adrian’s life from a different team, but Adrian never made him feel like he didn’t belong, and always reminded him that he had a father and a home. 

Adrian’s sons, Odin and Greyson, are two flowers picked from the garden of Adrian. They are pieces of him, and so are one and the same, and yet they will grow to be their own unique versions of what their father could have been. There are others, too many to mention, that were fans of Adrian Ortiz, and will proudly carry that title until they themselves pass. In that way, the legend of Adrian Ortiz will grow and grow, and if I know my brother, he would have loved that. At this point, there are statistics that I am supposed to review in regards to Adrian Ortiz, such as where he went to school, the type of work he did, when he was married, and other important moments and dates in his life. However, the most poignant and important statistic that feels most relevant to me at this moment is the date, July 28, 2023. This is the day that a son, a brother, a husband, a father, and a friend, was taken out of the game way too early. There was still so much more for him to do, still so much more for him to discover about himself, still so many changes for him to make, and still so many moments for him to share with his three boys. In the same way that a piece of me died with my brother, 3 pieces of him live forever in his sons Angel, Odin and Greyson. They are the future. They are the franchise. They will go on to play the game while Adrian’s jersey forever hangs in the rafter over their heads. We may no longer have Adrian here with us, but I truly believe that if we think about him, we remember him, and we never forget that even when we hated him, we loved him, that his legend will never die. His highlight reel will play on in our minds and we will laugh, we will cry, and we will continue to live for ourselves and for him, because what else can we do. In conclusion, if you did not get all the sports references in this obituary, then let’s pretend I wrote something spiritual or poetic, that was closer to your expectation. I am cool with that. My feeling is that Adrian would have loved all the sports references, and really, I wrote it for him. I love him, I miss him, and I will always be a fan.

Please join us in Adrians Hall of fame ceremony. Detailes are Listed below for service details.