LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The Official History of the Brooklyn Dodgers & Los Angeles Dodgers | Baseball Almanac

The Brooklyn Dodgers started out modestly enough, playing as the Brooks, the Atlantics and the Bridegrooms in minor league competition before graduating to the National League in 1890. A century later, the Dodgers had become one of baseball's best managed and most successful franchises with a model ballpark, fanatic fans and a history of innovation second to none in the game.

Entering the 20th century, Brooklyn's team was dubbed the Superbas after a traveling acrobatic troupe popular at the time. They would also be known as the Robins before settling officially on the Dodgers in 1933.

When the National League's Baltimore franchise folded at the turn of the 20th Century, a number of Orioles' stars came to Brooklyn, including manager Ned Hanlon, and won back-to-back pennants in 1899-1900.

Hanlon wanted to buy the team and return it to Baltimore, but a front office employee named Charles Ebbets went into monumental debt to buy the team and keep it in Brooklyn. He built a new ballpark — Ebbets Field — which opened in 1913. For the next 46 years the intimate and unique contours of this ballpark would help to define the franchise and the team's intimate relationship with an equally unique group of fans.

Brooklyn knew mostly lean years until one of Hanlon's old Baltimore teammates, Wilbert Robinson, became the manager in 1914. Robinson forged Brooklyn into a contender and won pennants in 1916 and 1920, mostly with veteran pitching staffs and Hall of Fame outfielder Zack Wheat (.312 and .328 those two years). The Dodgers slipped from contention shortly thereafter, but colorful characters like Babe Herman earned the team the nickname the "Daffiness Boys" and kept them beloved in Brooklyn.

While things on the field were a bit silly, the front office was growing and cultivating a crop of serious young players. Soon Ebbets Field would be home to a litany of legends, none more so than Jackie Robinson.

When the Dodgers promoted Robinson in 1947, they were poised for greatness. Led by manager Leo Durocher, they won the 1941 pennant. After slipping during the war years, they finished second in 1946. With Robinson as a sparkplug, the Dodgers took the flag by five games over the Cardinals the following year.

Robinson was the first African American on a major league team in the 20th century. He endured the pressures, the taunts and threats commiserate with a society not fully ready to accept him, and the fact he hit .297 and stole 29 bases to lead the league changed the game and began to change the country.

Robinson was joined by fellow Hall-of-Famers-to-be Duke Snider, Pee Wee Reese, Roy Campanella, and near-Hall of Famers Gil Hodges and Carl Furillo. The rise of the Dodgers refueled the team's bitter rivalry with the cross-town Giants — a rivalry that reached volcanic proportions when, in 1948, Durocher committed the most unpardonable of acts — he left Brooklyn to manage the Giants. For the next decade these two teams would be at each other's throats, and the winner would more often than not match up against the Yankees in the World Series, ushering in a decade known as the golden age of baseball in New York City.

The Dodgers won the 1949 pennant led by Robinson's .342 average, league-high 37 steals and 124 runs batted in. Hodges had 115 RBI and Furillo 106. The team then endured two seasons of heartbreak. In 1950, they lost the pennant to the Phillies on the last day of the season, and in 1951, they committed their legendary collapse, losing a 13½ game lead and finishing the season in a tie with the hard-charging and hated Durocher-ites from the Polo Grounds. The Giants won the immortal playoff series on Bobby Thomson's ninth inning home run in the third and deciding game.

Losing forged a toughness that manifested itself in the Dodgers' most glorious run of all - pennants in 1952-53, 55-56. The 1953 team was most impressive, with Snider (.336, 42 HR, 126 RBI), Campanella (.312, 41 HR, 142 RBI), Furillo (.344, 21 HR, 92 RBI) and Hodges (.302, 31 HR, 122 RBI) in peak form.

The only black cloud darkening the franchise's door was the team's historical lack of success in the World Series. Up through 1953 it had lost all seven World Series in which they played. These, plus the difficult endings to the 1950 and 1951 seasons, left Dodgers fans with an empty feeling and a constant cry of "wait until next year."

Next year finally came in 1955, when the Dodgers beat the Yankees in seven games for the franchise's only world championship in Brooklyn. It took them seven games, but the victory set off a wild celebration in the New York borough matched only by the V-E Day celebration a decade earlier.

Unbeknownst to Brooklyn fans, as they celebrated the 1955 championship and rooted the team on to the 1956 pennant, Walter O'Malley, now the team's owner, was unhappy with the small and antiquated Ebbets Field facility. Even in the best of times, the Dodgers had a tough time selling out the park.

By 1957 O'Malley had negotiated, pleaded and threatened New York City officials to help him find a new location to build a better ballpark. Without the cooperation he felt he needed, O'Malley heeded the invitation of the Los Angeles city fathers who offered him everything he wanted. The era of baseball in Brooklyn came to a sad end as only 6,700 came to see Ebbets Field's swan song in September, 1957, as the Dodgers defeated Pittsburgh 2-0.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The Dodgers led the geographic expansion of baseball west of the Mississippi, starting the 1958 season at the Los Angeles Coliseum. They moved to Dodger Stadium in 1962. Some of the veterans of the Ebbets Field era were wearing out and the team was rebuilt around an incomparable pitching staff led by Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale and veterans Claude Osteen and Ron Perranoski.

Koufax, whose career was cut short by an arthritic elbow, might well have put together the best six-year span any pitcher has ever had. From 1961-66 he went 129-47, leading the league in wins in 1963, 65-66, ERA from 1962-66, and strikeouts in 1961, 63, 65-66.

The Dodgers rode this era of pitching and defense to world titles in 1959, 63 and 65, plus the pennant in 1966. Their next trip to the World Series came in 1974, but they lost to Oakland. Walter Alston, who had managed the team for 23 seasons, retired in 1976 and handed the reins to Tommy Lasorda. Supported by a star-studded infield (Steve Garvey, Dave Lopes, Bill Russell and Ron Cey) that played together for eight seasons, longest in the game's history, and along with sluggers Reggie Smith and Dusty Baker, the Dodgers won consecutive pennants in 1977-78 but lost to the Yankees in the World Series.

The Dodgers took a measure of revenge against New York with a six-game win in the 1981 World Series. It was the year of "Fernandomania" in Los Angeles, when the fans' adulation was directed at a 20-year-old Mexican rookie named Fernando Valenzuela, who won his first eight decisions, wound up winning 13 games (in the strike shortened season) and copped both Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Awards.

The Dodgers had one more magical season in 1988. They had little offense, but they did have Orel Hershiser, whose pitching exploits matched those of his dominating Dodgers predecessors. He went 23-8 with an ERA of 2.26. He set a major league record with 59 consecutive scoreless innings, pitching eight shutouts, including six in a row in his last six starts.

The Dodgers won the National League West and beat the heavily favored New York Mets in the National League Championship Series. They capped the season with a near sweep (four games to one) of heavily favored Oakland in the World Series, with Kirk Gibson's memorable game winning pinch-hit home run setting the tone in Game One.

Since then postseason appearances have dwindled, although they did make the NLCS in 2008-09. Despite the sluggishness since the mid-1990s, this is still a franchise that has earned its reputation for success with six world championships, 21 pennants, nine Cy Young Award winners, 10 MVPs and an incredible 16 Rookie of the Year recipients.

They are also innovators of the first order, having led baseball's move to the west coast, broke the color barrier with Jackie Robinson, televised the first baseball game (at Ebbets Field in 1939) and introduced the batting helmet in 1941.

Baseball Almanac Top Quote

"The City of Angels offered him (Walter O'Malley) more than the keys to the city - it gave him the keys to the kingdom. New York balked at twelve acres and Los Angeles enthusiastically proffered three-hundred acres. This is the biggest haul since the Brinks robbery." - Sportswriter Tim Cohane

Los Angeles Dodgers History

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Los Angeles Dodgers Franchise Facts

Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers Rosters (AA) | 1884 - 1888
1884 1885 1886 1887 1888  
Brooklyn Bridegrooms Rosters (AA) | 1889 - 1889
  1889
Brooklyn Bridegrooms Rosters | 1890 - 1898
1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898  
Brooklyn Superbas Rosters | 1899 - 1910
                  1899
1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909
1910 1911 1912 1913            
Brooklyn Robins Rosters | 1914 - 1931
        1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
1930 1931                
Brooklyn Dodgers Rosters | 1932 - 1957
1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957
Los Angeles Dodgers Rosters | 1958 - Current
1958 1959
1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020 2021 2022 2023            
Bold Seasons : Uniform Numbers Worn
Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers Schedules (AA) | 1884 - 1888
        1884 1885 1886 1887 1888  
Brooklyn Bridegrooms Schedules (AA) | 1889- 1889
                  1889
Brooklyn Bridegrooms Schedules | 1890 - 1898
1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898  
Brooklyn Superbas Schedules | 1899 - 1910
                  1899
1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909
1910 1911 1912 1913            
Brooklyn Robins Schedules | 1914 - 1931
        1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
1930 1931                
Brooklyn Dodgers Schedules | 1932 - 1957
    1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957    
Los Angeles Dodgers Schedules | 1958 - Current
                1958 1959
1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020 2021 2022 2023            
Bold Seasons : Box Scores Online
Brooklyn Dodgers 100-Win Seasons
Year Record Manager
1899 101-47 Ned Hanlon
1941 100-54 Leo Durocher
1942 104-50 Leo Durocher
1953 105-49 Chuck Dressen
Los Angeles Dodgers 100-Win Seasons
Year Record Manager
1962 102-63 Walt Alston
1974 102-60 Walt Alston
2017 104-58 Dave Roberts
2019 106-56 Dave Roberts
2021 106-56 Dave Roberts
2022 111-51 Dave Roberts
2023 100-62 Dave Roberts
Brooklyn Dodgers 100 Loss Seasons
Year Record Manager
1905 48-104 Ned Hanlon
1908 53-101 Patsy Donovan
Los Angeles Dodgers 100 Loss Seasons
Year Record Manager
n/a n/a n/a
Brooklyn Dodgers No-Hitters
Name IP Date
Sam Kimber 9.0 10-04-1884
Adonis Terrry 9.0 07-24-1886
Adonis Terrry 9.0 05-27-1888
Tom Lovett 9.0 06-22-1891
Mal Eason 9.0 07-20-1906
Nap Rucker 9.0 09-05-1908
Dazzy Vance 9.0 09-13-1925
Tex Carleton 9.0 04-30-1940
Ed Head 9.0 04-23-1946
Rex Barney 9.0 09-09-1948
Carl Erskine 9.0 06-19-1952
Carl Erskine 9.0 05-12-1956
Sal Maglie 9.0 09-25-1956
Los Angeles Dodgers No-Hitters
Name IP Date
Sandy Koufax 9.0 06-30-1962
Sandy Koufax 9.0 05-11-1963
Sandy Koufax 9.0 06-04-1964
Sandy Koufax 9.0 09-09-1965
Bill Singer 9.0 07-20-1970
Jerry Reuss 9.0 06-27-1980
Fernando Valenzuela 9.0 06-29-1990
Kevin Gross 9.0 08-17-1992
Ramon Martinez 9.0 07-14-1995
Hideo Nomo 9.0 09-17-1996
Josh Beckett 9.0 05-25-2014
Clayton Kershaw 9.0 06-18-2014
Walker Buehler 6.0 05-04-2018
  Tony Cingrani 1.0 "
  Yimi Garcia 1.0 "
  Adam Liberatore 1.0 "
Bold = Perfect Game
Brooklyn Dodgers Cycle Hitters
Name Inn. Date
Tom Burns 9.0 08-01-1890
Jimmy Johnston 9.0 05-25-1922
Babe Herman 9.0 05-18-1931
Babe Herman 9.0 07-24-1931
Dixie Walker 9.0 09-02-1944
Jackie Robinson 9.0 08-29-1948
Gil Hodges 9.0 06-25-1949
Los Angeles Dodgers Cycle Hitters
Name Inn. Date
Wes Parker 10.0 05-07-1970
Orlando Hudson 9.0 04-13-2009
Cody Bellinger 9.0 07-15-2017
Bold = Natural Cycle
Brooklyn Dodgers Cy Young Winners
Year Name Position
1956 Don Newcombe RHP
Los Angeles Dodgers Cy Young Winners
Year Name Position
1962 Don Drysdale RHP
1963 Sandy Koufax LHP
1965 Sandy Koufax LHP
1966 Sandy Koufax LHP
1974 Mike Marshall RHP
1981 Fernando Valenzuela LHP
1988 Orel Hershiser RHP
2003 Eric Gagne RHP
2011 Clayton Kershaw LHP
2014 Clayton Kershaw LHP
Brooklyn Dodgers MVP Winners
Year Name Position
1941 Dolph Camilli 1B
1949 Jackie Robinson 2B
1951 Roy Campanella C
1953 Roy Campanella C
1955 Roy Campanella C
1956 Don Newcombe P
Los Angeles Dodgers MVP Winners
Year Name Position
1962 Maury Wills SS
1963 Sandy Koufax P
1974 Steve Garvey 1B
1988 Kirk Gibson OF
2014 Clayton Kershaw P
Brooklyn Dodgers Rookies of the Year
Year Name Position
1947 Jackie Robinson 1B
1949 Don Newcombe P
1952 Joe Black P
1953 Jim Gilliam 2B
Los Angeles Dodgers Rookies of the Year
Year Name Position
1960 Frank Howard OF
1965 Jim Lefebvre 2B
1969 Ted Sizemore 2B
1979 Rick Sutcliffe P
1980 Steve Howe P
1981 Fernando Valenzuela P
1982 Steve Sax 2B
1992 Eric Karros 1B
1993 Mike Piazza C
1994 Raul Mondesi OF
1995 Hideo Nomo P
1996 Todd Hollandsworth OF
2016 Corey Seager SS
2017 Cody Bellinger 1B
Dodgers Retired Numbers
# Name Position
1 Pee Wee Reese SS
2 Tommy Lasorda M
4 Duke Snider OF
14 Gil Hodges 1B
19 Jim Gilliam 2B-3B
20 Don Sutton P
24 Walt Alston M
32 Sandy Koufax P
34 Fernando Valenzuela P
39 Roy Campanella C
42 Jackie Robinson 2B
53 Don Drysdale P
Brooklyn Dodgers Batting Champions
Year Name #
1892 Dan Brouthers .335
1913 Jake Daubert .350
1914 Jake Daubert .329
1918 Zack Wheat .335
1932 Lefty O'Doul .368
1941 Pete Reiser .343
1944 Dixie Walker .357
1949 Jackie Robinson .342
1953 Carl Furillo .344
Los Angeles Dodgers Batting Champions
Year Name #
1962 Tommy Davis .346
1963 Tommy Davis .326
2021 Trea Turner * .328
* Also Played With Nationals
Brooklyn Dodgers ERA Champions
Year Name #
1924 Dazzy Vance 2.16
1928 Dazzy Vance 2.09
1930 Dazzy Vance 2.61
1957 Johnny Podres 2.66
Los Angeles Dodgers ERA Champions
Year Name #
1962 Sandy Koufax 2.54
1963 Sandy Koufax 1.88
1964 Sandy Koufax 1.74
1965 Sandy Koufax 2.04
1966 Sandy Koufax 1.73
1980 Don Sutton 2.20
1984 Alejandro Pena 2.48
2000 Kevin Brown 2.58
2011 Clayton Kershaw 2.28
2012 Clayton Kershaw 2.53
2013 Clayton Kershaw 1.83
2014 Clayton Kershaw 1.77
2015 Zack Greinke 1.66
2017 Clayton Kershaw 2.31
2019 Hyun-Jin Ryu 2.32
2022 Julio Urías 2.16
Brooklyn Dodgers Home Run Champions
Year Name #
1890 Oyster Burns 13
1903 Jimmy Sheckard 9
1904 Harry Lumley 9
1906 Tim Jordan 12
1908 Tim Jordan 12
1924 Jack Fournier 27
1941 Dolph Camilli 34
1956 Duke Snider 43
Los Angeles Dodgers Home Run Champions
Year Name #
2004 Adrian Beltre 48
2011 Matt Kemp 39
Brooklyn Dodgers Strikeout Champions
Year Name #
1921 Burleigh Grimes 136
1922 Dazzy Vance 134
1923 Dazzy Vance 197
1924 Dazzy Vance 262
1925 Dazzy Vance 221
1926 Dazzy Vance 140
1927 Dazzy Vance 184
1928 Dazzy Vance 200
1936 Van Mungo 238
1951 Don Newcombe 164
Los Angeles Dodgers Strikeout Champions
Year Name #
1959 Don Drysdale 242
1960 Don Drysdale 246
1961 Sandy Koufax 269
1962 Don Drysdale 232
1963 Sandy Koufax 306
1965 Sandy Koufax 382
1966 Sandy Koufax 317
1981 Fernando Valenzuela 180
1995 Hideo Nomo 236
2011 Clayton Kershaw 248
2013 Clayton Kershaw 232
2015 Clayton Kershaw 301
Dodgers Wild Cards
Year Record Manager
1996 90-72 Tommy Lasorda
" " Bill Russell
2006 88-74 Grady Little
2021 106-56 Dave Roberts
Dodgers West Division Series Titles
Year Record Manager
1974 102-60 Walt Alston
1977 98-64 Tommy Lasorda
1978 95-67 Tommy Lasorda
1981 63-47 Tommy Lasorda
1983 91-71 Tommy Lasorda
1985 95-67 Tommy Lasorda
1988 94-67 Tommy Lasorda
1994 58-56 Tommy Lasorda
1995 78-66 Tommy Lasorda
2004 93-69 Jim Tracy
2008 84-78 Joe Torre
2009 95-67 Joe Torre
2013 92-70 Don Mattingly
2014 94-68 Don Mattingly
2016 91-71 Dave Roberts
2017 104-58 Dave Roberts
2018 92-71 Dave Roberts
2019 106-56 Dave Roberts
2022 111-51 Dave Roberts
2023 100-62 Dave Roberts
Brooklyn Dodgers A.A.Pennants
Year Record Manager
1889 93-44 Bill McGunnigle
Brooklyn Dodgers N.L. Pennants
Year Record Manager
1890 86-43 Bill McGunnigle
1899 101-47 Ned Hanlon
1900 82-54 Ned Hanlon
1916 94-60 Wilbert Robinson
1920 93-61 Wilbert Robinson
1941 100-54 Leo Durocher
1947 94-60 Clyde Sukeforth
" " Burt Shotton
1949 97-57 Burt Shotton
1952 96-57 Chuck Dressen
1953 105-49 Chuck Dressen
1955 98-55 Walt Alston
1956 93-61 Walt Alston
Los Angeles Dodgers N.L. Pennants
Year Record Manager
1959 88-68 Walt Alston
1963 99-63 Walt Alston
1965 97-65 Walt Alston
1966 95-67 Walt Alston
1974 102-60 Walt Alston
1977 98-64 Tommy Lasorda
1978 95-67 Tommy Lasorda
1981 63-47 Tommy Lasorda
1988 94-67 Tommy Lasorda
2017 104-58 Dave Roberts
Brooklyn Dodgers World Championships
Year Opponent M.V.P.
1900 Pittsburgh n/a
1955 New York Johnny Podres
Los Angeles Dodgers World Championships
Year Opponent M.V.P.
1959 Chicago Larry Sherry
1963 New York Sandy Koufax
1965 Minnesota Sandy Koufax
1981 New York Ron Cey
" " Pedro Guerrero
" " Steve Yeager
1988 Oakland Orel Hershiser
Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers Team Statistics Tool
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Brooklyn Bridegrooms (AA) Team Statistics Tool
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Brooklyn Superbas Team Statistics Tool
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Brooklyn Dodgers Team Statistics Tool
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Brooklyn Robins Team Statistics Tool
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Brooklyn Dodgers Team Statistics Tool
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Brooklyn Robins Standings & Managers
Brooklyn Superbas Standings & Managers
Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance Analysis
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Team-vs-Team Wins & Losses
Los Angeles Dodgers Franchise Facts At-A-Glance
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baseball almanac fast facts

The National League Bridegrooms kept their American Association team name then changed their name to the Superbas after the 1898 season. After twelve less than superb seasons they tried the Dodgers names in 1911, then settled on the Robins for an eighteen year period. In 1932 they went back to their origins and remained the pride of Brooklyn through 1957.

Brooklyn Dodgers World Series Appearances
1916 World Series 1952 World Series
1920 World Series 1953 World Series
1941 World Series 1955 World Series
1947 World Series 1956 World Series
1949 World Series --
Bold = Brooklyn Dodgers World Series Wins
LosAngelesDodgersWorldSeries Appearances
1959 World Series 1977 World Series
1963 World Series 1978 World Series
1965 World Series 1981 World Series
1966 World Series 1988 World Series
1974 World Series 2017 World Series
Bold = Los Angeles Dodgers World Series Wins

Did you know that the Los Angeles Dodgers have had more Rookie of the Year recipients than any other franchise and hold the record for most consecutive honorees with five (1992-1996)?

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