It is only fair that when choosing an All-Time team, we separate Brooklyn from Los Angeles. The Brooklyn Dodgers came into existence in 1890. They won a championship that year. They left Brooklyn after 67 seasons in 1957.
They came to Los Angeles in 1958, but had to wait until their second year for a championship. As of now, they have been in Los Angeles for 63 seasons. They have six championships there. Many try to say two of them do not count. But all the teams played under the same rules, so that argument is moot.
The only stipulation I will use for selecting these teams is that a player must have played at least 6 years in each city.
I will make this easy by choosing a full 26-man roster for Los Angeles, and a 25 man for Brooklyn. I will also pick a second choice.
Brooklyn
C- Roy Campanella, Babe Phelps: Campy is a no brainer. Best offensive catcher in Brooklyn history, and a pretty decent defender. Still the all-time leader for the Dodgers in caught stealing pct. Back-up is a little tougher but based on his offense and time as a Dodger, 7 years, Phelps makes a lot of sense. Phelps was a .310 career hitter, he hit .315 as a Dodger and caught 581 games.
1st Base- Gil Hodges. Hodges is a Hall of Famer and should have been in a long time ago. He and Duke Snider were 1-2 in homers during the 50’s Gil earned the first three gold gloves awarded for a first baseman in the NL. He is second on the all-time Dodger home run list with 361. 91 more than the Los Angeles leader, Eric Karros. Second choice is Dolph Camilli. Camilli was the NL MVP in 1941, something only Steve Garvey and Cody Bellinger have achieved as first baseman for LA.
2nd Base- Jackie Robinson. Another Hall of Famer, and a pioneer. The first Negro player in MLB has a ROY and MVP under his belt. He was a team leader and the team’s spark plug. As Jackie went, so went the Dodgers. I cannot imagine what he went through. Second on the list by default, Jim Gilliam. Gilliam was only in Brooklyn 5 seasons, but spent his entire career with the Dodgers, and he is # 1 on the list with the most games played at second base. Member of 55, 58, 63 and 65 Champs.
SS- Pee Wee Reese. Hall of Famer, along with Bill Russell and Zack Wheat, tied for the most seasons as a Dodger with 18. Known as the Captain, or the little colonel, Pee Wee was a key member of the Boys of Summer. Second is Ivy Olson who played in the early 20’s. Spent 10 years with Brooklyn. Longer than any SS except Reese in Brooklyn history.
3rd Base- Billy Cox. Cox gets the nod because of his glove, and the fact that he is one of less than a handful of players who played 3rd base more than four seasons in a row. There were some decent bats, but none with Billy’s defense. Second-Cookie Lavagetto. Lavagetto spent 7 seasons with Brooklyn. Most known for breaking up Bill Bevens no-hitter in the 1947 World Series. A member of Dodger coaching ranks also.
Left Fielder- Zack Wheat. Another easy choice. 18 years a Dodger, one of the better hitters to ever wear the Dodger uniform. Hall of Famer. Played in two World Series, 1916-1920. Second: Jimmy Sheckard. Sheckard is the only other Brooklyn Dodger who started in left for five seasons or more. .295 career hitter.
Center Fielder- Duke Snider. Hall of Famer, hitter with the most homers in the 1950’s, yes, more than Mays, Mantle, Williams or any other power hitter you can think of. Outstanding fielder. Second: Hi Myers. 11-year Dodger, .282 career hitter. Played from the late teens to early 20’s.
Right Fielder- Carl Furillo. The Reading Rifle. Great throwing arm and a good bat. Furillo is one of the very few Dodgers in history to win a batting title with a .344 mark in 1953. Tommy Davis is the last player to win one as a member of the Dodgers. Trea Turner won the title in 21, but spent the first half with the Nats. Second: Dixie Walker, The Peeples Cherce. Walker spent 9 years with the Dodgers and was a very popular player. .311 average in Dodger blue.
Starting Pitchers- 1. Dazzy Vance 2. Don Newcombe 3. Burleigh Grimes 4. Carl Erskine 5. Preacher Roe. Vance is a Hall of Famer and so is Grimes. Grimes was the last active pitcher allowed to legally throw a spitball. Newcombe had one of the best seasons ever as a pitcher in Brooklyn winning the inaugural Cy Young award and an ROY. Grimes won 240 games in his career, 158 of them with the Dodgers. Carl Erskine is the only Dodger besides Koufax to throw more than one no-hitter. Roes 22-3 campaign still has the record for the highest winning percentage by a 20 game winner in the majors.
Relief Pitchers- Since the closer did not really come into being until later, and saves were a stat added in the 60’s, we shall concentrate on the more prolific pitchers who worked mostly relief for the Dodgers in Brooklyn. 1. Clem Labine 2. Hugh Casey 3. Jim Hughes 4. Joe Black 5. Whit Wyatt 6. Ralph Branca 7. Van Lingle Mungo. Labine is well known as a reliever, and he went to LA when the Dodgers moved. Casey did most of his work in the 40’s and also was a spot starter. Hughes was a reliever for the team in the early 50s. Black was ROY in 1952, Arm problems ended his career. Whit Wyatt was a veteran who started and relieved in the late 30’s through the 40’s. Branca is most known for allowing Bobby Thompson’s homer in 51. Van Lingle Mungo was mainly a starter, but he had 51 relief appearances in his career for the Dodgers.
Bench- Since there were no limits to how many pitchers they could carry, I will list a few guys who were with the team, and were part time players: Billy Herman, Spider Jorgenson, Sandy Amoros, Cal Abrams, Rube Walker.
Los Angeles
C- Mike Piazza. Piazza is simply the best offensive catcher the Dodgers have ever had. ROY and now a Hall of Famer. His falling out with the Dodgers has upset many fans, but his trade to the Marlins by the FOX ownership infuriated the fan base even more. Second. Mike Scioscia. Caught more games for LA than any other catcher. Decent hitter and excellent defender and plate blocker. His homer in the top of the 9th in New York against the Mets in the 88 playoffs, kept the Dodgers from being down 3-1.
1st Base- Steve Garvey. Freddie isn’t eligible yet. Garvey moved to first base because of his throwing from third. He became a perennial All-Star. He was a hit machine, topping 200 hits six times as a Dodger. 1974 MVP. Second- Eric Karros. All time LA Dodger home run leader. ROY in 1992. Topped 30 homers 5 times as a Dodger.
2nd Base- Davey Lopes. Part of “The Infield”, with Cey, Garvey, Bill Russell, he spent 10 years with the team and 8 as the starting second baseman. One of the better base stealers in Dodger history. Second: Steve Sax. The 1982 ROY took over for Lopes and became a solid player. Hit .282 as a Dodger and stole 290 bases.
3rd Base- Adrian Beltre. Beltre was just elected to the Hall on his first ballot, but unfortunately, he will not go in as a Dodger. But he had some very good years as a Dodger and still holds the record for homers by a RH hitter as a Dodger, 48. Second: Ron Cey. Just a wee bit ahead of Justin Turner. Cey came along when third base was basically a revolving door for the Dodgers and stayed as the starter for 10 years. More HR power than JT had, and a very good fielder. Had one of the best April’s in LA history with 29 runs driven in.
SS- Maury Wills gets the nod here over Bill Russell. Russell played more games at SS than anyone except Pee Wee Reese. But Wills has an MVP to his credit and was part of three championship teams. Plus, he changed the face of the game with his base stealing. Second: Bill Russell. Russell spent 18 years as a player and a couple as coach and then manager. He was a steady player who made the plays and came up big in a couple of playoff games. Note: Had Corey Seager not been injured so much and missed so much time, he would have slid into this slot because of his heroics in the 2020 playoff run. Corey just misses.
Left Fielder- Dusty Baker gets the nod due to the fact he is the only left-fielder who started at the position more than three years in a row. Dusty was solid both defensively and offense wise. He had a terrible first year in LA when he came over from the Braves. But after that, he was a steady presence in the lineup. Second- No real choice here, but the two best were probably Gary Sheffield and Tommy Davis. If not for Davis’s injury in 65, he would have been a clear choice with 2 batting titles. Sheffield had a monster year in 2000 with 43 homers and 109 driven in. Honorable Mention- Simply for the fact that he became the first Dodger since Garvey to win an MVP award, and his dramatic World Series homer, Kirk Gibson gets mentioned here.
Center Fielder- Willie Davis. The 3-Dog. Willie was the starting center fielder for the Dodgers for 13 years, 3 more than Duke Snider was. He was fast, had decent power, and he was one of the more exciting players to ever wear the Dodger uniform. Second: Matt Kemp. Kemp was a very good hitter with excellent defense and power until he was injured in 2012. After that, his skills deteriorated. But he still was feared at the plate.
Right Fielder- Andre Ethier. This could have been Mookie Betts if it were not for his move to second base. But Ethier played the position and played it well for six of his 12 seasons in Los Angeles. Called Captain Clutch for his many walk-off hits, he along with Matt Kemp formed a solid defensive outfield. Second- Sorry if this offends some, or surprises others, but since Betts moved, and a couple others were not here long enough, I am going with Yasiel Puig. Outside of Raul Mondesi, the best throwing arm from right field I have ever seen. Power, speed, and played the game with what seemed reckless abandon. Had he been more disciplined, he would have probably never been traded.
Starting Pitchers- Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Don Sutton, Clayton Kershaw, Orel Hershiser. Apologies to Fernando, those guys are the five best starting pitchers in Dodger history. Three of them are in the Hall of Fame, one more, Kershaw, is likely a first ballot Hall of Famer. Orel had one of the better single seasons in Dodger history. Fernando never really came close to what he accomplished in his rookie year becoming the only pitcher to ever win the Cy Young and the ROY in the same season. But this is about careers. Only Sutton did not win a Cy Young, but he won 230 games in LA and 300 in his career.
Relief Pitchers- Kenley Jansen, Ron Perranoski, Eric Gagne, Jim Brewer, Todd Worrell, Jonathan Broxton. Jeff Shaw. Jansen is well known to everyone. Over 350 career saves. Far and away the most in LA. Gagne had 161. 88 of those came in a row. Shaw had 129, Worrell, 127, Brewer, 126, Perranoski, 100, Broxton, 84. Honorable mention goes to Phil Regan, “The Vulture”, He had a season to remember with 14 wins and 21 saves.
Bench Players
The LA version of the Dodgers has been very fortunate to have had several players who were very valuable as subs. Gilliam was a starter, but he moved all around the diamond. Chris Taylor and Kike from the current team are very valuable for their versatility.
Chuck Essegian was a spare outfielder who got his name in the record books hitting 2 pinch-hit homers in the World Series.
My choices for the 5-man bench, which includes what is now the DH, Taylor, Kike, Derrell Thomas, Manny Mota, and Dave Hansen. Honorable mention to Lenny Harris who came over from the Reds.
Well, there you have it. I know I probably left off someone’s favorite player, but that is my story and I am sticking to it! Have a great day!!!!
Solid choices.
As I recall it, Beltre had one great season as a Dodger, while Cey delivered for several years. It’s a pity Beltre didn’t stay with the Dodgers. (What a screwup!) So I’d opt for the Penguin.
Would it be cheating to select a player, based on one great MVP season and one magical swing, instead of Willie D? Are there any rules here? And weren’t some rules made to be broken? Kirk Gibson really bring fire back into the fire, so he gets my nod for his impact.
And yet, and yet… I tend to agree that Freddie and Mookie don’t qualify, just not yet. But I don’t think Mookie should be penalized for the team-first move to the infield. He should be applauded. I know I’m being inconsistent, but a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.
As for the pressing matters of today….
–I’m glad Mookie got called for interference on that play at second. I think the new rule is a good rule. It was a valuable teachable moment for new permanent-for-now shortstop.
–Grove certainly raised his stock, which was nice to see. Still not sure if he makes the roster or gets packaged in the blockbuster for Devin Williams and Adames.
–McFarland had another clean inning with a K, helping his chances to stick as a lefty RP. Except for Feyereisen, the bullpen was great, allowing zero hits and walks while striking out 8. (Perhaps AF can put Feyereisen in that blockbuster with the Brewers.)
–Too bad Lux isn’t having the kind of spring that Chris Owings is having. From what I’ve read, he is likely to opt out of his Dodgers deal and get major league from another team. But it would be great to have him as the first-infielder-up in OKC.
–But maybe Okey goes to OKC and is another obstacle preventing Feduccia from reaching the majors.
Excellent choices Bear. I’ll take Cey and a 6 man rotation with Fernando in it. I would also include Tommy Davis as my left fielder, he won a batting championship and changed my hitting approach. Bill Buckner has to be in there somewhere. Loved the way he played outfield. Yes, Baker was better but he played for and managed the giants and the Astros so he’s off my favorite list. And I’ll add here I think he and/or Scioscia should have managed the Dodgers.
Yes Duke, the obstruction was a good call. The rule reads clear, no foot in front of the bag. It’s also an E-6. Mookie won’t make that mistake again. And your Grove to Milwaukee idea is fine with me though I doubt Milwaukee trades that guy.
The bullpen is shaping up nicely and I think Lux will eventually be a standout second baseman. As long as his knee holds up, his confidence will improve. And he will hit.
WRT all this drama about Lux and SS, I’m not buying into the negativity. We have a large and deep pool of talent at the major & minor league levels and 162 games to figure it all out. Who will be the SS in Game 1 of the NLDS? Betts, Lux, Rojas, Sweeney, Taylor, Keekay, Luscious [sp?], someone new . . .
Betts just showing his HOF stripes in taking one for the team. I’d do the same if I were him. Upshot is Lux better hit like an All-Star though.
I know Plaschke isn’t a favorite of some here, and some who left here, but his column today sums up how I felt about the Betts/Lux move.
Good article Bear! A lot of great Dodger players on your list.
The Gavin Lux fielding problems need to be addressed but moving Betts to SS makes the Dodgers infield defense questionable at 3 positions. I don’t think Mookie will be an above average fielding SS this year. His fielding percentage was 935 at SS in his 16 games last year. Credit to Mookie for taking on the challenge, but I would prefer Rojas, Taylor and/or Kike to fill in at SS from the current roster.
Ideally, the Dodgers could keep Lux’s bat in the lineup by playing him some at DH. However, after spending $700 million for a full time DH, the Dodgers have limited their lineup flexibility for the next 10 years. Ohtani has been very impressive in spring training and I am learning to appreciate his work ethic and immense talent. But investing so much money into a long term, full-time DH has consequences. A combination of Lux, Muncy, and Will Smith at DH would allow Dodgers to keep 3 solid hitters in the lineup more often while improving the defense. The combination would not match Ohtani’s output, but the team would save $70 million a year and improve their defense. The Dodgers could have considered Matt Chapman as a gold glove 3B option while moving Muncy to DH or 2B. Plus both Freeman and Betts are aging players who will need rest in future years and ideally would be able to DH periodically to stay fresh and healthy. The Ohtani signing has been incredibly popular and he has been as good as advertised so far. But having the DH spot filled everyday by Ohtani reduces the options for the other Dodgers.
Not watching. Did Stone look as good as his line.
Gowdy and Rooney are pretty fun to watch
And you left Babe Herman off your list how?