Infield: First baseman Carlos Delgado (1993-2009) was a monstrous hitter, and he was still fearsome in his late 30s – pursuing 500 career home runs – when hip problems derailed his career. He finished with 473 home runs and 1,512 RBI. He had a career average of .280, and he drew plenty of walks. He came up as a catcher but couldn’t stay there, so he moved to first and was a barely adequate defensive player there. His career slugging percentage (.546) is among the top 30 of all time, but keep in mind that more than a dozen guys ahead of him played in the same era as Delgado. Third baseman Charlie Deal (1912-21) was a light-hitting infielder who played on the Miracle Braves who won the 1914 World Series. He didn’t contribute much, batting .210 in the regular season and .125 in the World Series, but still, being a part of that famous underdog championship team counts for something. Second baseman Crash Davis (194-42) has nothing to do with the character played by Kevin Costner, other than the fact that he gave the filmmakers permission to use his name. This Crash Davis wasn’t a minor-league slugger (he hit a total of 51 home runs), and he spent more than a couple of weeks in the majors (148 games with the A’s, spread out over three years during World War II). Shortstop Claud Derrick (1910-14) played for the first great Philadelphia A’s dynasty. He was a backup for the guys in the famed $100,000 Infield (which makes him, what, the Nickel-and-Dime Utility Guy?). He played for two World Series champions but never appeared in a World Series game.
Outfield: Center fielder Chili Davis (1981-99) was a good and consistent hitter who was generally good for an average in the .270s and 20-30 home runs. His 350 home runs rank fourth all-time among switch-hitters. Davis developed a bad back in his 20s and spent the second half of his career as a designated hitter. He won a World Series title with the Twins and two more with the Yankees. Left fielder Chris Duncan (2005- ), son of catcher/pitching coach Dave Duncan, had a big (partial) rookie year at age 25, hitting .293 with 22 home runs in just 280 at-bats for the Cardinals. That raised expectations to a level beyond what he was able to accomplish. His hitting tailed off, and neck and back injuries kept him out of the lineup, and pretty soon the fans turned on him and made him a scapegoat for anything that went wrong with the Cardinals. Still trying to make his way back to the majors – he’s a lefty with power, so he’s got that going for him – but he’s got a long way to go. If he is done, his career numbers would include a .257 average and 55 home runs. Right fielder Cozy Dolan (1895-1906) bounced around the National League for a decade before he died of typhoid fever at age 34. He batted .269 in his career.
Catcher: Clay Dalrymple (1960-71) was a solid defensive catcher but a light hitter. He was a starter on the 1964 Phillies, who blew a big lead and lost the NL pennant to the Cardinals, and a backup on the 1969 Orioles who lost in the World Series to the Miracle Mets.
Rotation: Curt “Coonskin” Davis (1934-46) had a rather amazing career. He didn’t pitch in the minors until he was 24 years old, and he had to win more than 100 games – mostly with San Francisco in the Pacific Coast League – before a major-league team gave him a contract. As a 30-year-old rookie in 1934, he won 19 games for a seventh-place Phillies team, finishing fourth in the NL in ERA and landing in the top 10 of the MVP voting. He pitched into his 40s, winning 158 games in the majors despite the late start. Chuck Dobson (1966-75) was a durable but fairly ordinary starter for the Oakland A’s, but his career ran out of steam just as the A’s were preparing to win three straight World Series titles. He won 46 games for Oakland between 1969-71, but he missed the entire 1972 season and then pitched briefly and ineffectively in ’73 and ’74. Finished h is career with 74 victories. Chubby Dean (1936-43) was a lefty who came up as a 20-year-old first baseman but shifted to the mound. He was a decent hitter – for a pitcher – but his career record was just 30-46, pitching mostly for weak teams. Clise Dudley (1929-33) went 17-33 as a swingman for the Dodgers and the Phillies. Carl Doyle (1935-40) had a career record of 6-15.
Bullpen: Closer Carlos Diaz (1982-86) was a hard-throwing lefty who had a good year for the Mets in 1983 and another good year for the Dodgers in ’85. His career record was 13-6 with four saves. Chad Durbin (1999- ) has occasionally pitched well and is still in mid-career. Craig “Ding Dong” Dingman (2000-05) had the dual problem of putting too many runners on base and giving up too many home runs. Lefty Clem “Steamboat” Dreiswerd (1944-48) won 150 games in the minors but just six in the majors. Cot Deal (1947-54) – not to be confused with Coot Veal – won three games in the majors but had a long career coaching in the minors and majors. Lefty Chick Davies (1914-26) was an outfielder who couldn’t hit, so he made the move to the mound and had slightly more success. Cory Doyne (2007) had a 98 mph fastball but never got anyone out in the majors with it.
Bench: Corner infielder Chris Davis (2008- ) made a big splash at age 22, batting .285 with 17 home runs and 55 RBI in a half-season with Texas. Since then, he has moved backward rather rapidly. He is not old yet, but he needs to reestablish himself. He’s not going to move Delgado off of first base on this team, but he could theoretically take over the starting job at third base (though he was a poor glove man there). Corner infielder Chris Donnels (1991-2002) came billed as a prospect who could hit .300, but he never developed into that. He was a marginal role player who batted .233. Outfielder Chuck Diering (1947-56) batted .249 for his career with 14 home runs. Cozy Dolan (1909-22) – that’s Albert James “Cozy” Dolan, not to be confused with unrelated Patrick Henry “Cozy” Dolan, who starts in right field – had a .252 career batting average before he was banned for life for attempting to fix games. Backup catcher Charlie Dexter (1896-1903) was a nondescript utility player at the turn of the century.
Manager: Charlie Dressen was as good a third baseman as the other guys on this roster, but we’re going to let him focus on managing the team. He had a reputation as a smart in-game strategist, and he had a career record of 1,008 -973 with two pennants. He took over the great “Boys of Summer” Dodgers in 1951 and managed them to 97, 96 and 105 victories in the next three years – but he was ousted from Booklyn when he demanded a three-year contract instead of the standard one-year deal that the team always offered. Dressen’s job went to Walt Alston, who managed the team for more than 20 years, winning the World Series in Brooklyn in 1955, moving to L.A. and managing the team from the Koufax Era on through the Steve Garvey Era. Dressen was a successful manager, but his career is largely defined by what he might have done if he hadn’t tried to strong-arm the Dodgers.
Outfield: Center fielder Chili Davis (1981-99) was a good and consistent hitter who was generally good for an average in the .270s and 20-30 home runs. His 350 home runs rank fourth all-time among switch-hitters. Davis developed a bad back in his 20s and spent the second half of his career as a designated hitter. He won a World Series title with the Twins and two more with the Yankees. Left fielder Chris Duncan (2005- ), son of catcher/pitching coach Dave Duncan, had a big (partial) rookie year at age 25, hitting .293 with 22 home runs in just 280 at-bats for the Cardinals. That raised expectations to a level beyond what he was able to accomplish. His hitting tailed off, and neck and back injuries kept him out of the lineup, and pretty soon the fans turned on him and made him a scapegoat for anything that went wrong with the Cardinals. Still trying to make his way back to the majors – he’s a lefty with power, so he’s got that going for him – but he’s got a long way to go. If he is done, his career numbers would include a .257 average and 55 home runs. Right fielder Cozy Dolan (1895-1906) bounced around the National League for a decade before he died of typhoid fever at age 34. He batted .269 in his career.
Catcher: Clay Dalrymple (1960-71) was a solid defensive catcher but a light hitter. He was a starter on the 1964 Phillies, who blew a big lead and lost the NL pennant to the Cardinals, and a backup on the 1969 Orioles who lost in the World Series to the Miracle Mets.
Rotation: Curt “Coonskin” Davis (1934-46) had a rather amazing career. He didn’t pitch in the minors until he was 24 years old, and he had to win more than 100 games – mostly with San Francisco in the Pacific Coast League – before a major-league team gave him a contract. As a 30-year-old rookie in 1934, he won 19 games for a seventh-place Phillies team, finishing fourth in the NL in ERA and landing in the top 10 of the MVP voting. He pitched into his 40s, winning 158 games in the majors despite the late start. Chuck Dobson (1966-75) was a durable but fairly ordinary starter for the Oakland A’s, but his career ran out of steam just as the A’s were preparing to win three straight World Series titles. He won 46 games for Oakland between 1969-71, but he missed the entire 1972 season and then pitched briefly and ineffectively in ’73 and ’74. Finished h is career with 74 victories. Chubby Dean (1936-43) was a lefty who came up as a 20-year-old first baseman but shifted to the mound. He was a decent hitter – for a pitcher – but his career record was just 30-46, pitching mostly for weak teams. Clise Dudley (1929-33) went 17-33 as a swingman for the Dodgers and the Phillies. Carl Doyle (1935-40) had a career record of 6-15.
Bullpen: Closer Carlos Diaz (1982-86) was a hard-throwing lefty who had a good year for the Mets in 1983 and another good year for the Dodgers in ’85. His career record was 13-6 with four saves. Chad Durbin (1999- ) has occasionally pitched well and is still in mid-career. Craig “Ding Dong” Dingman (2000-05) had the dual problem of putting too many runners on base and giving up too many home runs. Lefty Clem “Steamboat” Dreiswerd (1944-48) won 150 games in the minors but just six in the majors. Cot Deal (1947-54) – not to be confused with Coot Veal – won three games in the majors but had a long career coaching in the minors and majors. Lefty Chick Davies (1914-26) was an outfielder who couldn’t hit, so he made the move to the mound and had slightly more success. Cory Doyne (2007) had a 98 mph fastball but never got anyone out in the majors with it.
Bench: Corner infielder Chris Davis (2008- ) made a big splash at age 22, batting .285 with 17 home runs and 55 RBI in a half-season with Texas. Since then, he has moved backward rather rapidly. He is not old yet, but he needs to reestablish himself. He’s not going to move Delgado off of first base on this team, but he could theoretically take over the starting job at third base (though he was a poor glove man there). Corner infielder Chris Donnels (1991-2002) came billed as a prospect who could hit .300, but he never developed into that. He was a marginal role player who batted .233. Outfielder Chuck Diering (1947-56) batted .249 for his career with 14 home runs. Cozy Dolan (1909-22) – that’s Albert James “Cozy” Dolan, not to be confused with unrelated Patrick Henry “Cozy” Dolan, who starts in right field – had a .252 career batting average before he was banned for life for attempting to fix games. Backup catcher Charlie Dexter (1896-1903) was a nondescript utility player at the turn of the century.
Manager: Charlie Dressen was as good a third baseman as the other guys on this roster, but we’re going to let him focus on managing the team. He had a reputation as a smart in-game strategist, and he had a career record of 1,008 -973 with two pennants. He took over the great “Boys of Summer” Dodgers in 1951 and managed them to 97, 96 and 105 victories in the next three years – but he was ousted from Booklyn when he demanded a three-year contract instead of the standard one-year deal that the team always offered. Dressen’s job went to Walt Alston, who managed the team for more than 20 years, winning the World Series in Brooklyn in 1955, moving to L.A. and managing the team from the Koufax Era on through the Steve Garvey Era. Dressen was a successful manager, but his career is largely defined by what he might have done if he hadn’t tried to strong-arm the Dodgers.
No comments:
Post a Comment