Los Angeles Dodgers: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 05:05, 27 August 2005

Revision as of 05:07, 27 August 2005

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==Vin Scully==

[[Vin Scully]] has served as the [[play-by-play]] [[announcer]] for the Dodgers for 55 years, having joined the team eight years before they even moved from Brooklyn. It is hard to overstate the affection of Dodger fans towards Scully and his smooth radio voice. Perhaps his most replayed call is the one he made on NBC Television after the limping [[Kirk Gibson]] circled the basepaths following his legendary home run in Game 1 of the [[1988 World Series]]: "In a year that has been so improbable, the <i>impossible</i> has happened!" (emphasis his). Despite the almost universal praise Scully has received, there have been some not-so-wonderful moments. The night before the 1980 strike, with baseball fans knowing that the season might come to a halt, Scully ignored even the possibility of a work stoppage. He was even promoting tickets to future Dodger games. Meanwhile many other announcers at least mentioned the possibility of a strike. Still he is generally considered the best baseball announcer ever. At age 78, Scully's radio and TV activity is now limited to the first three innings of home games, with some West Coast away games.

== Franchise history ==

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In [[2004]], News Corp. sold the Dodgers to real estate developer [[Frank McCourt (executive)|Frank McCourt]], who hired [[Paul DePodesta]] to be general manager. Shortly before the start of the regular season, DePodesta engineered the acquisition of volatile yet talented outfielder [[Milton Bradley (baseball player)|Milton Bradley]]. The Dodgers played an exciting, competitive brand of baseball during the first half of 2004, yet DePodesta felt something else was needed to vault the team into the postseason. To this end, he executed a blockbuster series of mid-season trades, sending away three starting players (including popular catcher and team leader [[Paul LoDuca]]) and two key pitchers, while obtaining several new players. While the Dodgers did win the [[NL West]] in 2004, they lost in the Division Series to the eventual NL champion [[St. Louis Cardinals]]. Only a masterful performance by journeyman [[Jose Lima]] kept the Dodgers from being swept out of the playoffs.

The winter of 2004-2005 saw several more popular players exit, including Lima, third baseman [[Adrian Beltre]], and slugger [[Shawn Green]]. Their replacements included starting pitcher [[Derek Lowe]], outfielder [[J.D. Drew]], and hard-hitting second baseman [[Jeff Kent]]. In 2005, the Dodgers initially silenced their many doubters by winning 12 of their first 14 games. But then they came back to earth, playing well below .500 baseball. In August, 2005, two of the Dodgers bigger names got involved in a nasty dispute which raced the nasty spector or race. Milton Bradley accused Jeff Kent of not being able to "deal with African-American people." The comments came after Kent accused Bradley of not hustling on a Kent double. Kent was also famously at odds with [[Barry Bonds]] when the two were teammates on the Giants.

==[[Baseball Hall of Fame]]rs==

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*[http://www.dodgerplace.com/ Sarah's Dodger Place]

*[http://www.pigsandfishes.org/filks/mikefilk/whendodgerswalked.html When Dodgers Walked] a [[filk]] song about the [[New York Giants]] and [[Brooklyn Dodgers]]' departed glory.

*[http://www.dodgerblues.com DodgerBlues.com] Fan site frequently critical of the way the team has been run since the ownership of News Corp.