TABLE OF CONTENTS The Dodgers Begin in Brooklyn 4 Jackie Robinson Breaks the Color Line 6 The Dodgers Finally Hit the Target 8 Vin Scully Brings the Dodgers to Fans 10 The Dodgers Move to the West Coast 12 Sandy Koufax Shines in 63 14 Tommy Lasorda Bleeds Dodger Blue 16 Garvey and His Group Give It All 18 Kirk Gibson Saves the Day 20 Orel Hershiser Shuts Out Everyone 22 Great Latin Players Wear Dodger Blue 24 Kershaw Becomes the Next Great Lefty 26 12 Key Dates 28 Glossary 30 For More Information 31 Index 32 About the Author 32
1 THE DODGERS BEGIN IN BROOKLYN The Dodgers are one of baseball’s oldest teams They joined the National League NL in 1890 The team wasn’t always called the Dodgers though And it wasn’t always based in Los Angeles The team began in Brooklyn That’s a borough of New York City Early on the team had many nicknames One nickname was the Bridegrooms The team was also known for a time as the Superbas and the Robins The squad was first called the Dodgers in 1911 The name came from a new type of transportation at the time Trolley cars roared down the street much faster than the horse and carriage Brooklyn residents were forced to Members of the 1916 Brooklyn Robins 4
Ebbets Field in 1913 dodge the trolleys So the team called itself the Trolley Dodgers or Dodgers But still it was not until 1932 that the nickname stuck The Dodgers had a colorful history in Brooklyn By 1913 they were playing their home games at charming Ebbets Field The cozy little ballpark made fans and players feel like they were all one big family But people began moving away from Brooklyn Attendance dropped Ebbets Field became run down Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley tried to keep the team in Brooklyn All his attempts failed So in 1957 he moved the Dodgers to Los Angeles 12 NL pennants won by the Brooklyn Dodgers before moving to Los Angeles The Dodgers date back to 1884 They played in the American Association another major league from 1884 to 1889 The NL began in 1876 while the American League AL started in 1901 5
