Dodgers Blues
The Dodgers were in Chicago this past week, ugh. Every baseball fan has a right to be a fanatic, someone who passionately roots for his or her favorite team. Sometimes that passion carries over to dislike for your team’s rival or your least favorite team. The team of my disdain is the Los Angeles Dodgers, plain and simple. I clearly have the Dodgers Blues.
I grew up as a fan of the Big Red Machine of the 1970s. Cincinnati’s nemesis during that era was the Dodgers, and the two teams dominated National League play. I would stay up late listening to every game between the Reds and Dodgers on my transistor radio. It was us (Rose, Morgan, Bench, and Perez) against them (Garvey, Cey, Lopes, and Russell) with the gentlemanly Sparky Anderson matching wits against the arrogant Tommy Lasorda. For me, it was my hometown heroes against their bitter rivals, good vs. evil.
Okay Coach, take a deep breath. Do you dislike the Dodgers that much? Yes, it carries over to rooting against the Dodgers in World Series play, even though I am a lifelong National League fan. In the classic Yankees vs. Dodgers matchups (there have been a record 11 World Series between the two teams), I would even don a New York cap. I cheered when Reggie Jackson and the Yankees won titles in ’77 and ’78. In the last two World Series I became Astros and Red Sox fans as they won the World Series against LA. Take that, Dodger Blue!
Ironically, two storied players in baseball who I revere wore Dodger Blue. Jackie Robinson is one of them. I have always marveled at watching film clips of Jackie gracefully stealing bases. Over a 10-year career, Jackie Robinson had a lifetime batting average of .311. His number, 42, is retired throughout baseball. On April 15 each year all players wear his jersey number in memory. His number flies on the right field foul pole at Wrigley Field, the only MLB park that exists today where Jackie played.
One of my all-time favorite pitchers is Sandy Koufax. His pinpoint control and biting curve ball were his trademarks. With a lifetime ERA of 2.76, he led a Dodgers team in the 1960s featuring pitching and team defense. While his career was shortened due to arthritis in his left elbow, Koufax won the Cy Young award in the ’63, ’65 and ’66 seasons. Also, of significance, on an October day in 1965, he did not take the mound in a World Series game against the Twins due to observance of Yom Kippur.
With Robinson and Koufax wearing the Dodgers script proudly across their uniform fronts, how can I possibly justify such an intense dislike for the Dodgers team? An easy answer is that they played prior to the 1970s Reds-Dodgers rivalry. But more to the heart of the point, they played before the height of my baseball passion. Good or bad, each of us is grounded in the baseball era we found our love for the game.
The Dodger Blue invaded Wrigley Field this past week for a three-game series against the Cubs. The Dodgers of today are an offensive force, boasting a lineup with two 10 + home run sluggers, Cody Bellinger (14) and Joc Pederson (10). Together with Max Muncy and shortstop sensation Cory Seager, the Dodgers’ everyday lineup is as formidable as you face from the left side of the plate.
One chink in the Dodgers’ armor though is this left-handed hitting predominance. Since 2016, the Dodgers have struggled against left-handed pitching, especially on the road. The trend has continued this season. While the Dodgers are league leaders against right-handing pitching in 2019, they are in the middle of the pack against lefties.
Much to my delight, the Cubs are one of the few teams in baseball who can roll out three lefty starters in a series. With a little pre-series tinkering by Joe Maddon (and his bench coach!), they did just that with Quintana, Hamels, and Lester pitching in the 2-1 series win for the Cubs. Take that (again), Dodger Blue!
Will my Dodgers Blues ever go away? Never, and never will my love for the game.
Until next Monday,
your Baseball Bench Coach