Dodgers Most of Us Have Forgotten
I like going back and looking at old baseball cards I have. Sometimes you see one and go, oh yeah, I remember seeing that guy play a time or two. We remember the stars and the fringe guys are often just not even thought about. Even though they might contribute at a critical…
I like going back and looking at old baseball cards I have. Sometimes you see one and go, oh yeah, I remember seeing that guy play a time or two. We remember the stars and the fringe guys are often just not even thought about. Even though they might contribute at a critical moment to the team’s success.
Beyond their moving to LA, I do not have many memories of those kinds of players. I would have to go back and check the teams’ stats to even remember most of their names. A couple do stick out who factored at a critical time. One, Sandy Amoros, I profiled on this site a while ago. Another, whom I did not profile, was Al Gionfriddo. A journeyman outfielder who for one shining moment, was the poster boy for a game saving catch. His catch off of Joe DiMaggio in the 6th game of the 1947 World Series was spectacular.
Just one of the many players over history who have contributed without being that super player. Some have done far less. But at least they can say, hey, I made it to the show. Now, I realize most of these guys were never going to be stars, but at some point, in time, they made some sort of contribution. More well know of course is a guy like Charlie Culberson. His shining moment came on the day Vin Scully broadcast his last game at Dodger Stadium. And it helped the Dodgers clinch the division.
It was one of the most memorable moments in Dodger history. And a journeyman player, a guy who played in 34 games for the Dodgers that year. He actually hit pretty good that season for them, .299. He was 27 then, he is 34 now and still trying to hang on in the majors. One of the highlights of his career no doubt. He even had Scully autograph the bat.
Some of us remember Larsen’s perfect game in the 56 World Series. But how many without checking the box score remember the guy who made the final out? Dale Mitchell was in his 10th year in the majors. He was also nothing more than a pinch hitter most of the time. He appeared in 19 games for the Dodgers after he was purchased from the Indians on 29th of July. Mitchell through most of his career was a very good hitter. His career line was .312/41/403. He also did not strike out much, 119 times in 3984 at bats. Pretty impressive. He walked over 340 times.
He played exactly 2 games for Brooklyn in the outfield. At 34 years old, he just did not have the range anymore. In the 1956 World Series, Mitchell appeared in 4 games, and was 0-4. But it was that final at bat when he struck out that he is most remembered for. He was Larsen’s last out of 27 in a row. A ignominious end to a very good career.
Look up and down Dodger rosters since 58. And you will find many familiar names, and every now and then, a name pops up and you go, dang, I forgot he wore the Dodger uni. Many just had a cup of coffee. Some spent a year or maybe a little more than a year. One of those guys for me was John Hale. Hale was an outfielder drafted by the Dodgers in the 14th round in 1971.
He climbed slowly up the ladder and then in 1974 he was called up from AA Waterbury and had 4 at bats and got 4 hits with a double and a run batted in. At Albuquerque in 75, he was called up and played in 44 games hitting 6 homers and driving in 22. He went back to the Dukes in 76 and was tearing the league up with a .321 average. He played in 44 games for LA but only hit .154. Still, the team thought he had value and could help the big club. He went back to AAA to start the 77 season. Again, he lit up the PCL hitting .340 in 15 games. He was called up again, getting into 79 games and hitting .241 with a couple of homers. That September he was picked up on waivers by the Blue Jays. 12 days later they sold him to the Mariners. John would stick in baseball until 1981. But other than 42 games with the Mariners in 79, he never made it back to the majors. The main reason I remember him so well is that he hit homers in two of the games I went to in 1975.
I also remember the guys who were supposed to be these real hot prospects and they never made it. Orlando Alvarez, an outfielder who could hit. He handled pitching well in AAA and had some pop in his bat. He was close to a .300 hitter in the minors. He was from Puerto Rico. But with all they hype, he only got 51 at bats in the majors. 9 of those came with the Dodgers, the other 42, with the Angels. He hit two homers as an Angel. But he was out of American baseball at the age of 26 after playing with AA Oklahoma City in 1978. He continued to play in Puerto Rico until 1983. He died at age 64 in 2016.
Another supposed can’t miss player, was infielder, Nate Oliver. He was a second baseman most of the time. He hit around .300 most of his time in AAA in the Dodger system. His assets were speed and a great glove. But none of that showed up at the major league level. His fielding was decent, but he was caught almost as many times as he stole a base. 17-15. After playing parts of five seasons in LA, he was sent to the Giants along with Ron Hunt for Frances Kasheta and Tom Haller. After a year with the Giants, he was traded to the Yankees for Charley Smith. After only one at bat as a Yankee he was traded to the Cubs for Lee Elia a pitcher. He had two homers in his career, one as a Dodger and one as a Cub. Little side note, Lee Elia, the pitcher he was traded for, went on to manage the Cubs for two years and also the Phillies for two more.
When I want to get a little nostalgic, I go to old Dodger media guides. They have a section that lists all of the former Dodger players by the number they wore, they also list them alphabetically. For instance, I did not know Don Demeter wore # 7 in 1961. I always remember him as #2, But then I remembered that Leo Durocher returned to the Dodgers as a coach in 61. Leo always wore #2. Another nice feature is that they list all of the Dodgers trades from 1958 on.
Their first deadline deal on June 15th, 1958, brought Steve Bilko and Johnny Klippstein to LA for Don Newcombe. But one of their most important trades that year came in December when they sent Gino Cimoli to the Cardinals for Wally Moon and a minor league pitcher. That turned out to be highway robbery. Cimoli lasted one season in St. Louis before he was sent to the Pirates. Moon helped the Dodgers win the 1959 championship and was a part of the 63 and 65 champs. For me, it is always fun to look back and remember those days.
Some name players spent time with the Dodgers as their careers wore down, including Rocky Colavito, Wes Covington, Ken Boyer, Jim Bunning, Moose Skowron, Jim Thome, Boog Powell and of course, Tio Albert Pujols. It was only fitting that last season Pujols hit HR’s #699 and 700 at Dodger Stadium where the fans had come to really love the guy. Who will be remembered down the road as having spent a short time as a Dodger, but is forever in Dodger lore.
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Discussion (136)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Heck of a win last night!
Lets make it 2 in a row today!!!
AND that folks is why you DONT bunt with the gifted runner….
This was an incredible shock to wake up to today. Went to bed after top of the ninth. What, how, and WOW! Huge win!
Here’s our very own Watford Dodger with the newest Dodger:
Heck of a win. Blue Jays can sure put up some runs and will be a tough out in the AL.
Heard a crazy stat last night on MLB Network from Dan Plesac. Julio Urias has never thrown a pitch in the 8th inning or later in regular season. We all know he closed out the World Series but that was post season.
I have a hard time thinking Julio will be a Dodger next year. He needs some cardio conditioning in the offseason to slim down a little bit so he can go longer into games.
Nice to have an early game for us in the mid-west who have a hard time staying up and watching the games to completion.
I use it with the laptop, no spoiler.
For me they leave out the between inning stuff on the archived gameGo Dodgers!
Great win, and they needed it. Giants, Dirtbags, and the Padres all won. Sox and Rays discussing a deal for Lance Lynn who supposedly has agreed to waive his no trade to go to Tampa. Padre’s rebuffing offers for Hader and Snell. Kike will most likely start today’s game and will be uniform # 8. Deluca most likely to IL. If he was not hurt, I think Hernandez gets sent down. Trayce Thompson haters, last night at OKC Trayce was 3-5 with two doubles and a homer. Feduccia was 4-5 with double and a homer and two driven in. He is now hitting .297. OKC won 13-6. Knack pitched 4.1 innings giving up 6 runs, 5 earned. Washington got the win.
Not bad for the rookie…
Outman is hitting .247 this season through 300 at-bats. He’s got 12 home runs, 43 RBI and 11 stolen bases in total – while posting a .768 OPS.
How does Outman matched up against Bellinger this year on both offense and defense?
This Dodger team can score a lot of runs. This should be instructive for Roberts. This team is not out of many games. His pitchers should be kept on a little shorter leash when they are getting shelled.
Not too excited about having Kike back. I’d rather see the youngsters get the ABs and find out what they can do. If they don’t perform get Kike in to tune up for the playoffs.
Meant to say
How does he match up
or How has he matched up?
Thanks Bear. I guess Cody has the edge but seems like Dodgers did ok nonetheless with James . Seems like he will make a pretty decent outfielder.
Does anyone have or know where to find a list of all the potential Dodgers players who are going to be exposed in the next Rule 5 draft?
Yup, Cody is special, probably an elite talent.
He was fun to watch in Dodger Blue at the beginning. Wish him well wherever he goes except if it’s with Astros. And likewise for Outman. Let’s get a win today boys. Do something special today Kiki.
My friend Kike is disappointed with the lack of love from the LADT readership (especially you Bear).He loves Mark tho, and says Cassidy has good taste.
He says he’s gonna prove you all wrong and help the team win another Ring.
He also agrees with me that we should trade for Blake Snell quickly.
See what I did there DodgerRam!!
David Vassegh
@THEREAL_DV
#Dodgers Lineup vs #BlueJays LHP, Yusei Kikuchi:
Betts RF
Freeman 1B
Martinez DH
Taylor LF
Muncy 3B
E. Hernandez 2B
Outman CF
Rojas SS
Barnes C
Tony Gonsolin P
DODGERS PRESS RELEASE
DODGERS ACTIVATE KIKÉ HERNÁNDEZ & RECALL TYSON MILLER
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers activated infielder/outfielder Kiké Hernández, recalled right-handed pitcher Tyson Miller, optioned left-handed pitcher Justin Bruihl and placed outfielder Jonny DeLuca on the injured list with a right hamstring strain.
Hernández, 31, joins the Dodgers after spending the last three seasons with Boston. The Puerto Rican native batted .222 (66-for-297) with 11 doubles, six homers and 31 RBI in 76 games with the Red Sox. With Boston, he slashed .234/.308/.382 with 32 homers and 136 RBI. Prior to joining Boston, he spent six seasons with the Dodgers, hitting .240 (400-for-1670) with 68 homers and 213 RBI in 648 games. He was originally drafted by the Houston Astros in the sixth round of the 2009 First Year Player Draft out of the American Military Academy out of Toa Baja, Puerto Rico.
Miller, 27, was acquired from Milwaukee on July 12 via trade and has made two appearances for Triple-A Oklahoma City, going 0-0 with five strikeouts in 3.0 innings. He posted a 5.79 ERA (6 ER/9.1 IP) and seven strikeouts with Milwaukee this season and has been in the Majors parts of three seasons with Chicago (2020), Texas (2022) and Milwaukee (2023), posting a 1-2 mark with a 7.92 ERA (22 ER/25.0 IP) and 15 strikeouts against 14 walks. In his minor league career, he has appeared in 154 games (100 starts), recording a 4.02 ERA (265 ER/592.2 IP) and 576 strikeouts against 198 walks. He was originally drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the fourth round of the 2016 First Year Player Draft out of California Baptist University.
Bruihl, 26, pitched last night, allowing three runs in 1.0 inning of work. On the season, he is 1-0 with a 4.07 ERA (11 ER/24.1 IP) and 19 strikeouts in 20 games for the Dodgers. He has been with the Dodgers parts of three seasons and he is 2-2 with a 3.65 ERA (27 ER/66.2 IP) and 43 strikeouts while limiting left-handed hitters to a .181 (21-for-116) batting average with 22 strikeouts in 65 games (two starts). The southpaw was originally signed as non-drafted free agent on July 15, 2017 after finishing his collegiate career at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
DeLuca, 25, left the game last night in eighth inning after going 0-for-2 in the contest. He has appeared in 24 games for the Dodgers, hitting .262 (11-for-42) with one double, two homers and six RBI. With Triple-A Oklahoma City, he hit .315 (23-for-73) with three doubles, one triple, four homers and 19 RBI in 17 games. He began the season with Double-A Tulsa, hitting .279 (34-for-122) with 10 homers and 18 RBI. The Southern California native was originally drafted by the Dodgers in the 25th round of the 2019 First Year Player Draft out of the University of Oregon.
Oh no
It’s Barnes Day
Tuesday scores
Oklahoma City 13, Reno 6
Tulsa 5, Springfield 3
Dayton 3, Great Lakes 2
Rancho Cucamonga 10, San Jose 7
Wednesday scores
4:05 p.m. PT: Great Lakes (Ronan Kopp) vs. Dayton (Chris McElvain)
5:05 p.m.: Tulsa (Nick Nastrini) vs. Springfield (Connor Lunn)
6:30 p.m.: Rancho Cucamonga (Chris Campos) vs. San Jose (Dylan Cumming)
6:35 p.m.: Oklahoma City (Ryan Pepiot) at Reno (Blake Walston)
Manfred extended until 2029 by owners. Well, there goes the neighborhood.
BTW, Miguel Vargas was 2-4 with 2 RBI and 2 SBs yesterday.
The Kike Unbelievers are going to be sorry they ever doubted him!
Watch!
Does Jessica Mendoza get paid by the word? If so she has to be a billionaire! Might switch over to bluejays broadcast!
If Barnes goes 0-4 he will be right at the “Barnes Line”. .100
Gonsolin is nibbling and looks afraid to throw a strike!
Anybody who doesn’t think we need AT LEAST ONE MORE SOLID SP has a lot more faith in our present guys than I do.
Kershaw….if healthy, I believe
Urias….not consistent this year, which one shows up?
Gonsolin…..not consistent this year, and probably close to breaking down
Miller…..playoff pressure probably too much, best chance of all the kids
Grove, Sheehan, Stone…….not your time yet
Thor…..are you really asking me?