The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
team based in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. The Dodgers compete in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB) as a member club of the
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
(NL)
West Division. Founded in 1883 in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, New York, the team joined the NL in 1890 as the Brooklyn Bridegrooms and used other monikers before settling as the
Brooklyn Dodgers
The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...
in 1932.
From the 1940s through the mid-1950s, the Dodgers developed a fierce crosstown
rivalry
A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
as the two clubs faced each other in the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
seven times, with the Dodgers losing the first five matchups before defeating them to win the franchise's first title in
1955. The Dodgers made history by breaking the
baseball color line
The color line, also known as the color barrier, in American baseball excluded players of black African descent from Major League Baseball and its affiliated Minor League Baseball, Minor Leagues until 1947 (with a few notable exceptions in the 1 ...
in 1947 with the debut of
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
, the first African American to play in the Major Leagues since 1884. Another major milestone was reached in 1956 when
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and en ...
became the first player ever to win both the
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Commissioner of Baseball ( ...
and the
NL MVP
The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. The award has been presented by the Baseball Writers ...
in the same season.
After 68 seasons in Brooklyn, Dodgers owner and president
Walter O'Malley
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he br ...
moved
the franchise to Los Angeles before the 1958 season.
The team played their first four seasons at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...
before moving to their current home of
Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
in 1962. The Dodgers found immediate success in Los Angeles, winning the
1959 World Series. Success continued into the 1960s; their ace pitchers
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
and
Don Drysdale were the cornerstones of titles in and . In , rookie Mexican phenom pitcher
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
became a sensation and led the team to a championship; he is the only player to win the Cy Young and
Rookie of the Year awards in the same season. The Dodgers were once again victorious in , upsetting their heavily favored opponent in each series and becoming the only franchise to win multiple titles in the 1980s. Next came a 32-year championship drought, despite 12 postseason appearances in a 17-year span and eight consecutive division titles from 2013 to 2020. It was broken when the Dodgers won the World Series. The Dodgers signed global sensation
Shohei Ohtani
is a Japanese professional baseball designated hitter and pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Shotime", he has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels and in Nippon Professional Basebal ...
in 2024, who set league and franchise records with the team en route to their
eighth World Series title that season.
One of the most successful and storied franchises in MLB, the Dodgers have won eight
World Series championships and a record 25
National League pennants. Eleven NL MVP award winners have played for the Dodgers, winning a total of 14. Eight Cy Young Award winners have pitched for the club, winning a total of 12—by far the most of any Major League franchise. The Dodgers boast 18 Rookie of the Year Award winners, twice as many as the next club. This includes four consecutive Rookies of the Year from 1979 to 1982 and five consecutive from 1992 to 1996. From 1884 through 2024, the Dodgers' all-time record is (). Since moving to Los Angeles in 1958, the Dodgers have a win–loss record of () through the end of 2024.
Today, the Dodgers are among the most popular MLB teams, enjoying large fan support both at home and on the road;
they are widely seen as one of National League's most dominant teams. They maintain a fierce
rivalry
A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
with the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
dating back to the two clubs' start in New York City, as well as a more recent rivalry with the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
's
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
due to the controversy over the
Astros' sign stealing scandal in the
2017 World Series. As of 2024, ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' ranked the Dodgers second in MLB franchise valuation at $5.45 billion.
History
Although the team had no official nickname until 1932, they were informally nicknamed the Bridegrooms in the team's earliest years, then the Superbas around the turn of the century, and then the Robins (named after manager
Wilbert Robinson
Wilbert Robinson (June 29, 1864 – August 8, 1934), nicknamed "Uncle Robbie", was an American catcher, coach and manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for the Philadelphia Athletics (American Association) ...
). In the early 1900s, sportswriter
Charles Dryden nicknamed the team the Trolley Dodgers after the Brooklyn pedestrians who dodged streetcars in the city, and the Dodgers nickname was used contemporaneously with Superbas and Robins. In 1932, the team allowed the Brooklyn baseball writers to select a permanent name, and the writers chose Dodgers on January 22, 1932. The only other nickname seriously considered by the writers was Kings.
In 1941, the Dodgers captured their third
National League pennant, only to lose to the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
. This marked the onset of the
Dodgers–Yankees rivalry, as the Dodgers would face them in their next six
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
appearances. Led by
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
, the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era; and three-time National League Most Valuable Player
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella (November 19, 1921 – June 26, 1993), nicknamed "Campy", was an American professional baseball player, primarily as a catcher. The Philadelphia native played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering ...
, also signed out of the Negro leagues, the Dodgers captured their first
World Series title in 1955 by defeating the Yankees for the first time, a story notably described in the 1972 book ''
The Boys of Summer''.
Following the
1957 season the team left Brooklyn. In just their second season in Los Angeles, the Dodgers won their second World Series title, beating the Chicago White Sox in six games in 1959. Spearheaded by the dominant pitching style of
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
and
Don Drysdale, the Dodgers captured three pennants in the 1960s and won two more World Series titles, sweeping the Yankees in four games in 1963, and edging the Minnesota Twins in seven in 1965. The 1963 sweep was their second victory against the Yankees, and their first against them as a Los Angeles team. The Dodgers won four more pennants in 1966, 1974, 1977, and 1978, but lost in each World Series appearance. They went on to win the World Series again in 1981, thanks in part to pitching sensation
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
.

The early 1980s were affectionately dubbed "
Fernandomania". In 1988, another pitching hero,
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
, again led them to a World Series victory, aided by one of the most memorable home runs of all time by their star outfielder
Kirk Gibson coming off the bench, despite having injuries to both knees, to pinch-hit with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning of game 1, in his only appearance of the series. The Dodgers won the pennant in 2017 for the first time since their world series victory in 1988, aided by a
Justin Turner walk-off home run on the same night of Gibson's iconic walk-off home run 29 years earlier. They went on to face the Houston Astros and lost in 7 games; however, the series became embroiled in controversy due to the
Houston Astros sign stealing scandal
The Houston Astros sign stealing scandal in Major League Baseball (MLB) broke in November 2019. Several members of the Houston Astros were disciplined for illegally using a video camera system to Sign stealing, steal signs from opposing teams ...
. The Dodgers won the pennant in 2018 for a second year in a row, moving on to lose to the Boston Red Sox in 5 games. They went on to win the World Series again in 2020 by defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in 6 games, after playing a season shortened to 60 games due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. The Dodgers would go back to win the World Series again in 2024, defeating the New York Yankees in 5 games. This became their second championship in 5 seasons, and the first championship in a full season since 1988.
The Dodgers share a fierce
rivalry
A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
with the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
, dating back to when the two franchises played in New York City. Both teams moved west for the 1958 season. The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers have appeared in the World Series 22 times, while the New York/San Francisco Giants have appeared in the World Series 20 times. The Dodgers and Giants are tied with (8) World Series titles. When the two teams were based in New York, the Giants won five World Series championships, and the Dodgers one. After the move to
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, the Dodgers have won seven World Series while the Giants have won three.
In Brooklyn, the Dodgers won the NL pennant twelve times (
1890
Events
January
* January 1 – The Kingdom of Italy establishes Eritrea as its colony in the Horn of Africa.
* January 2 – Alice Sanger becomes the first female staffer in the White House.
* January 11 – 1890 British Ultimatum: The Uni ...
,
1899
Events January
* January 1
** Spanish rule formally ends in Cuba with the cession of Spanish sovereignty to the U.S., concluding 400 years of the Spanish Empire in the Americas.''The American Monthly Review of Reviews'' (February 1899), p ...
,
1900
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15 ...
,
1916
Events
Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January 1 – The British Empire, British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that has been stored ...
,
1920
Events January
* January 1
** Polish–Soviet War: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20.
** Kauniainen in Finland, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its ow ...
,
1941
The Correlates of War project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 3.49 million. However, the Uppsala Conflict Data Program estimates that the subsequent year, 1942, wa ...
,
1947
It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Events
January
* January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...
,
1949
Events
January
* January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025
* January 2 – Luis ...
,
1952
Events January–February
* January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses.
* February 6
** Princess Elizabeth, ...
,
1953
Events
January
* January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma.
* January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo.
* January 14
** Marshal Josip Broz Tito ...
,
1955,
1956
Events
January
* January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years.
* January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, E ...
) and the World Series in 1955. After moving to Los Angeles, the team won National League pennants in
1959
Events
January
* January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...
,
1963
Events January
* January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...
,
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...
,
1966
Events January
* January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko.
* January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...
,
1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
,
1977
Events January
* January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
,
1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...
,
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
,
1988,
2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
,
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
,
2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
and
2024
The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
with World Series championships in
1959
Events
January
* January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...
,
1963
Events January
* January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...
,
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...
,
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
,
1988,
2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
and
2024
The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
. In all, the Dodgers have appeared in 22 World Series: nine in Brooklyn and 13 in Los Angeles.
Team history
Brooklyn Dodgers
The Dodgers were founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Atlantics, borrowing the name of a
defunct team that had played in Brooklyn before them. The team joined the
American Association in 1884 and won the AA championship in 1889 before joining the
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
in 1890. They promptly won the NL Championship in their first year in the League. The team was known alternatively as the Bridegrooms, Grooms, Superbas, Robins and Trolley Dodgers, before officially becoming the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1930s.
Jackie Robinson
For most of the first half of the 20th century, no Major League Baseball team employed an African American player.
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
became the first African American to play for a Major League Baseball team when he played his first major league game on April 15, 1947, as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. This was mainly due to general manager
Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...
's efforts. The deeply religious Rickey's motivation appears to have been primarily moral, although business considerations were also a factor. Rickey was a member of
The Methodist Church, the antecedent denomination to
The United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...
of today, which was a strong advocate for
social justice
Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...
and active later in the
American Civil Rights Movement.
This event was the harbinger of the integration of professional sports in the United States, the concomitant demise of the
Negro leagues
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...
, and is regarded as a key moment in the history of the American Civil Rights Movement. Robinson was an exceptional player, a speedy
runner who sparked the team with his intensity. He was the inaugural recipient of the
Rookie of the Year award, which is now named the Jackie Robinson Award in his honor. The Dodgers' willingness to integrate, when most other teams refused to, was a key factor in their 1947–1956 success. They won six pennants in those 10 years with the help of Robinson, three-time MVP
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella (November 19, 1921 – June 26, 1993), nicknamed "Campy", was an American professional baseball player, primarily as a catcher. The Philadelphia native played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering ...
, Cy Young Award winner
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and en ...
,
Jim Gilliam and
Joe Black. Robinson would eventually go on to become the first African-American elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...
in 1962.
Move to California

Real estate investor
Walter O'Malley
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he br ...
acquired majority ownership of the Dodgers in 1950 when he bought the 25 percent share of co-owner
Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...
and became allied with the widow of another equal partner,
Mrs. John L. Smith. Shortly afterwards, he was working to buy new land in Brooklyn to build a more accessible and profitable ballpark than the aging
Ebbets Field
Ebbets Field was a Major League Baseball stadium in the Flatbush, Brooklyn, Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It is mainly known for having been the home of the History of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn Dodgers baseball tea ...
. Beloved as it was, Ebbets Field was no longer well-served by its aging infrastructure and the Dodgers could no longer sell out the park even in the heat of a pennant race, despite largely dominating the National League from 1946 to 1957.
O'Malley wanted to build a
new, state-of-the-art stadium in Brooklyn. But City Planner
Robert Moses
Robert Moses (December 18, 1888 – July 29, 1981) was an American urban planner and public official who worked in the New York metropolitan area during the early to mid-20th century. Moses is regarded as one of the most powerful and influentia ...
and New York politicians refused to grant him the eminent domain authority required to build pursuant to O'Malley's plans. To put pressure on the city, during the 1955 season, O'Malley announced that the team would play seven regular-season games and one exhibition game at Jersey City's
Roosevelt Stadium in 1956.
Moses and the City considered this an empty threat, and did not believe O'Malley would go through with moving the team from New York City.
After teams began to travel to and from games by air instead of train, it became possible to include locations in the far west. Los Angeles officials attended the
1956 World Series
The 1956 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1956 Major League Baseball season, 1956 season. The 53rd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff that matched the American Leagu ...
looking to the
Washington Senators to move to the West Coast. When O'Malley heard that LA was looking for a club, he sent word to the Los Angeles officials that he was interested in talking. LA offered him what New York would not: a chance to buy land suitable for building a ballpark, and own that ballpark, giving him complete control over all revenue streams. When the news came out, NYC Mayor
Robert F. Wagner, Jr. and Moses made an offer to build a ballpark on the World's Fair Grounds in
Queens
Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...
that would be shared by the Giants and Dodgers. However, O'Malley was interested in his park under only his conditions, and the plans for a new stadium in Brooklyn seemed like a pipe dream. O'Malley decided to move the Dodgers to California, convincing Giants owner
Horace Stoneham to move to San Francisco instead of Minneapolis to keep the Giants-Dodgers rivalry alive on the West Coast.
They were the first MLB teams both west and south of
St. Louis
St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
.
The Dodgers played their final game at Ebbets Field on September 24, 1957, which the
Dodgers won 2–0 over the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...
.
New York remained a one-team town with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
until 1962, when
Joan Payson founded the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
and brought National League baseball back to the city. The blue background used by the Dodgers was adopted by the Mets, honoring their New York NL forebears with a blend of Dodgers blue and Giants orange.
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers were the first Major League Baseball team to ever play in Los Angeles. On April 18, 1958, the Dodgers played their first Los Angeles game, defeating the former New York and now new
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
, 6–5, before 78,672 fans at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...
. Catcher
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella (November 19, 1921 – June 26, 1993), nicknamed "Campy", was an American professional baseball player, primarily as a catcher. The Philadelphia native played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering ...
, left partially paralyzed in an off-season accident, was never able to play in Los Angeles.

Construction on
Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
was completed in time for Opening Day 1962. With its clean, simple lines and its picturesque setting amid hills and palm trees, the ballpark quickly became an icon of the Dodgers and their new California lifestyle. O'Malley was determined that there would not be a bad seat in the house, achieving this by
cantilever
A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is unsupported at one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a cantilev ...
ed grandstands that have since been widely imitated. More importantly for the team, the stadium's spacious dimensions, along with other factors, gave defense an advantage over offense and the Dodgers moved to take advantage of this by assembling a team that would excel with its
pitching.
Since moving to Los Angeles, the Dodgers have won twelve more National League Championships and seven more
World Series rings. The Dodgers have had only three
top-five draft picks since the
MLB Draft was introduced in
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...
, and have had one top-ten pick (
Clayton Kershaw
Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...
, No. 7) since 1985.
Other historical notes
Historical records and firsts
*First baseball team to win championships in different leagues in consecutive years (1889–1890)
*First television broadcast (1939)
*First use of batting helmets (1941)
*First MLB team to employ and start an African-American player in the 20th century (
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
, 1947)
*First MLB team to have numbers on the front of their uniforms (1952)
*First West Coast team (1958) – along with the San Francisco Giants
*First Western team to win a World Series (1959)
*First MLB team to allow a female sports journalist into a locker room (
Anita Martini, 1974)
*First MLB team to establish a baseball academy in the Dominican Republic when they opened the doors to Campo Las Palmas (1987)
*Largest home-opener attendance: 78,672 (1958) (since broken by the
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...
in 1993)
*Largest single-game attendance: 93,103 (1959) and 115,300 (2008) *World Record
*First MLB team to open an office in Asia (1998)
*Longest MLB record for home start going 13–0 (2009)
*North American record for the buying of a sports team ($2 billion, 2012)
*Most
no-hitters (26)
*Most
Cy Young award
The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Commissioner of Baseball ( ...
winners (12)
*First MLB team to employ a female lead trainer (Sue Falsone, 2012)
*Longest World Series Game (Game 3 vs the Boston Red Sox (2018)) (7 hours and 20 mins, 18 innings)
*Three straight rookies walk off homer (2019)
*11,000 franchise wins Aug 30, 2020 (vs Texas)
*Most runs scored in a single inning of a postseason game (11 runs in 2020 NLCS Game 3, 2020)
*Most Rookie of the Year awards (18)
*First team to draw 3 million fans
*First team to have a pair of two-slam games in a season (2021)
*First Walk-off Grand Slam in World Series history (2024)
*Largest comeback in a clinching World Series Game (2024)
*MLB record for the best start for a defending champion going 8-0 (2025)
Origin of the nickname
The Dodgers' official history reports that the term "Trolley Dodgers" was attached to the Brooklyn ballclub due to the
complex maze of trolley cars that weaved its way through the borough of Brooklyn.
In 1892, the city of Brooklyn (Brooklyn was an independent city until annexed by New York City in 1898) began replacing its slow-moving, horse-drawn trolley lines with the faster, more powerful electric trolley lines.
Within less than three years, by the end of 1895, electric trolley accidents in Brooklyn had resulted in more than 130 deaths and maimed well over 500 people. Brooklyn's high profile, the significant number of widely reported accidents, and a trolley strike in early 1895, combined to create a strong association in the public's mind between Brooklyn and trolley dodging.
Sportswriters started using the name "Trolley Dodgers" to refer to the Brooklyn team early in the 1895 season. The name was shortened to, on occasion, the "Brooklyn Dodgers" as early as 1898.
Sportswriters in the early 20th century began referring to the Dodgers as the "Bums", in reference to the team's fans and possibly because of the "street character" nature of Jack Dawkins, the "Artful Dodger" in Charles Dickens' ''Oliver Twist''. Newspaper cartoonist
Willard Mullin used a drawing of famous clown
Emmett Kelly to depict "Dem Bums": the team would later use "Weary Willie" in promotional images, and Kelly himself was a club mascot during the 1950s.
Other team names used by the franchise were the Atlantics, Grays, Grooms, Bridegrooms, Superbas, and Robins. All of these nicknames were used by fans and sportswriters to describe the team, but not in any official capacity. The team's legal name was the Brooklyn Base Ball Club. However, the Trolley Dodger nickname was used throughout this period, simultaneously with these other nicknames, by fans and sportswriters of the day. The team did not use the name in any formal sense until 1932 when the word "Dodgers" appeared on team jerseys.
The "conclusive shift" came in 1933, when both home and road jerseys for the team bore the name "Dodgers".
Examples of how the many popularized names of the team were used are available from newspaper articles before 1932. A New York Times article describing a game in 1916 starts out: "Jimmy Callahan, pilot of the Pirates, did his best to wreck the hopes the Dodgers have of gaining the National League pennant", but then goes on to comment: "the only thing that saved the Superbas from being toppled from first place was that the Phillies lost one of the two games played". What is interesting about the use of these two nicknames is that most baseball statistics sites and baseball historians generally now refer to the pennant-winning 1916 Brooklyn team as the Robins. A 1918 New York Times article uses the nickname in its title: "Buccaneers Take Last From Robins", but the subtitle of the article reads: "Subdue The Superbas By 11 To 4, Making Series An Even Break".
Another example of the use of the many nicknames is found on the program issued at Ebbets Field for the
1920 World Series
The 1920 World Series was the championship series for Major League Baseball's 1920 season. The series was a best-of-nine format played between the American League (AL) champion Cleveland Indians and the National League (NL) champion Brookly ...
, which identifies the matchup in the series as "Dodgers vs. Indians" despite the fact that the Robins nickname had been in consistent use for around six years. The "Robins" nickname was derived from the name of their Hall of Fame manager, Wilbert Robinson, who led the team from 1914 to 1931.
Uniforms

The Dodgers' uniform has remained relatively unchanged since the 1930s. The home jersey is white with "Dodgers" written in script across the chest in royal. The road jersey is gray with "Los Angeles" written in script across the chest in royal. The word "Dodgers" was first used on the front of the team's home jersey in 1933; the uniform was then white with red pinstripes and a stylized "B" on the left shoulder. The Dodgers also wore green outlined uniforms and green caps throughout the 1937 season but reverted to blue the following year.

The current design was created in 1939 and has remained the same ever since with only cosmetic changes. Originally intended for the
1951 World Series for which the ballclub failed to qualify, red numbers under the "Dodgers" script were added to the home uniform in
1952
Events January–February
* January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses.
* February 6
** Princess Elizabeth, ...
. The road jersey also has a red uniform number under the script. When the franchise moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, the city name on the road jersey changed, and the stylized "B" was replaced with the interlocking "LA" on the caps in 1958. In 1970, the Dodgers removed the city name from the road jerseys and had "Dodgers" on both the home and away uniforms. The city script returned to the road jerseys in 1999, and the tradition-rich Dodgers flirted with an alternate uniform for the first time since 1944 (when all-blue satin uniforms were introduced). These 1999 alternate jerseys had a royal top with the "Dodgers" script in white across the chest, and the red number on the front. These were worn with white pants and a new cap with a silver brim, a top button, and a Dodger logo. These alternates proved unpopular and the team abandoned them after only one season. They would, however, bring back the blue jerseys in recent years but only wear them in spring training games. In 2014, the Dodgers introduced an alternate road jersey: a gray version with the "Dodgers" script instead of the city name. Since its introduction, however, the road jersey with the "Dodgers" script was used more often than the road jersey with the "Los Angeles" script, so much that the team now considers it as a primary road uniform. In 2018, the Dodgers wore their 60th anniversary patch to honor the 60 years of being in Los Angeles.
In 2021, the Dodgers again unveiled a blue alternate uniform, this time as part of the "City Connect" series in collaboration with
Nike. This uniform was similar to the blue alternates they wore in 1999, but with the script "Los Dodgers" in homage to Los Angeles'
Latino community. The uniform is also worn with blue pants, and black stripes are added to the sleeves. Initially, the Dodgers wore a special blue cap with the "Los Dodgers" script but switched in 2022 to a blue interlocking "LA" cap with a black brim. The "Los Dodgers" script was then relocated to the right side. In 2023, white pants with blue piping replaced the blue pants previously worn with the "City Connect" uniform.
Midway through the 2024 season, the Dodgers unveiled their second "City Connect" uniform. The cream-based uniform paid homage to the city of Los Angeles and various chapters of the city's history that are connected to the team. The "Los Angeles" wordmark was inspired by the signage of the Dodgers' original home of
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...
and was slanted upward. The number font was inspired by the mid-century typefaces that were popular during the team's early years in Los Angeles. The uniform also featured two different shades of blue: cobalt and electric, while "chili red" was based on the chest number colors the team had worn since the 1950s. The cobalt blue cap featured the "interlocking LA" and script "D" from the "Dodgers" logo merged to form the LAD team code; the said logo also appears as a sleeve patch. Above the manufacturer's tag is the hashtag #ITFDB, a reference to broadcaster
Vin Scully
Vincent Edward Scully (November 29, 1927 – August 2, 2022) was an American sportscaster, best known for his broadcast work in Major League Baseball. Scully was the play-by-play announcer for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for sixty-se ...
's catchphrase "It's time for Dodger baseball!".
Asian players

The Dodgers have been groundbreaking in their signing of players from Asia; mainly
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
, and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. Former owner
Peter O'Malley began reaching out in 1980 by starting clinics in China and South Korea and building baseball fields in two Chinese cities. In 1998, the Dodgers became the first major league team to open an office in Asia. They were the second team to start a
Japanese player (first in nearly 30 years), pitcher
Hideo Nomo
is a Japanese former baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He achieved early success in his native country, where he played with the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to . He then exploited a ...
, the first team to start a
South Korean player, pitcher
Chan Ho Park and the first to start a
Taiwanese player,
Chin-Feng Chen
Chen Chin-feng (; born 28 October 1977) is a Taiwanese aborigine of Siraya tribal ancestry, who is a former professional baseball outfielder. In 2002, he became the first player born in Taiwan to play in Major League Baseball. He currently se ...
.
In addition, they were the first team to send out three Asian pitchers from different Asian countries in the same game on May 17, 2008, against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: Park,
Hong-Chih Kuo of Taiwan, and
Takashi Saito of Japan. In the 2008 season, the Dodgers had the most Asian players on its roster of any major league team with five. They included Japanese pitchers Takashi Saito and
Hiroki Kuroda; South Korean pitcher Chan Ho Park; and Taiwanese pitcher Hong-Chih Kuo and infielder
Chin-Lung Hu. In 2005, the Dodgers'
Hee Seop Choi became the first Asian player to compete in the
Home Run Derby
The Home Run Derby is an annual home run hitting competition in Major League Baseball (MLB) customarily held the day before the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, MLB All-Star Game, which places the contest on a Monday in July. In the context ...
. For the 2013 season, the Dodgers signed starting pitcher
Hyun-Jin Ryu with a six-year, $36 million contract, after posting a bid of nearly $27 million to acquire him from the
KBO's
Hanhwa Eagles. For the 2016 season, the Dodgers signed starting pitcher
Kenta Maeda
is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher in the Chicago Cubs organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, and Detroit Tigers, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) fo ...
with an eight-year, $25 million contract, after posting a bid of $20 million to acquire him from the
NPB's
Hiroshima Toyo Carp
The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda founder Jujiro Matsuda ...
. For the 2024 season, the Dodgers signed free agent
two-way player Shohei Ohtani
is a Japanese professional baseball designated hitter and pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Shotime", he has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels and in Nippon Professional Basebal ...
with a 10-year, $700 million contract, the
largest ever in professional sports history.
Rivalries
The Dodgers' rivalry with the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
dates back to the 19th century when the two teams were based in New York; the rivalry with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
took place when the Dodgers were based in New York, but was revived with their East Coast/West Coast World Series battles in 1963, 1977, 1978, and 1981. The Dodgers' rivalries with the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...
and
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...
also dates back to their days in New York, but were most fierce during the 1970s, 1980s, and 2000s.
The Dodgers also shared a heated rivalry with the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...
during the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. The Dodgers had even shared a rather volatile rivalry with divisional foes; the
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...
during most of the 2010s. Their intra-city rivalry with the
Los Angeles Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...
dates back to the Angels' inaugural season in 1961. The Dodgers have recently revived an old Southern California-based rivalry with the
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...
dating back to the Padres' inaugural season in 1969. Most recently; the Dodgers have also regrown a heated rivalry against the former divisional foe
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
after their move to the American League, due in no small part to the controversy of the
2017 World Series.
Divisional
San Francisco Giants
The Dodgers–Giants rivalry is one of the oldest and fiercest rivalries in North American sports.
The feud between the Dodgers and the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
began in the late 19th century when both clubs were based in New York City, with the Dodgers playing in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
and the Giants playing at the
Polo Grounds
The Polo Grounds was the name of three stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used mainly for professional baseball and American football from 1880 to 1963. The original Polo Grounds, opened in 1876 and demolished in 1889, was built for the ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
. After the 1957 season, Dodgers owner
Walter O'Malley
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he br ...
moved the team to Los Angeles for financial and other reasons.
Along the way, he managed to convince Giants owner
Horace Stoneham—who was considering moving his team to
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
—to preserve the rivalry by bringing his team to California as well.
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
baseball fans were stunned and heartbroken by the move.
Given that the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco have been bitter rivals in economic, cultural, and political arenas for over a century and a half, the new venue in California became fertile ground for its transplantation.
Each team's ability to endure for over a century while moving across an entire continent, as well as the rivalry's leap from a cross-city to a cross-state engagement, have led to the rivalry being considered one of the greatest in American sports history.
Unlike many other historic baseball match-ups in which one team remains dominant for most of their history, the Dodgers–Giants rivalry has exhibited a persistent balance in the respective successes of the two teams. While the Giants have more wins in franchise history, the Dodgers have the most National League pennants at 24, with the Giants following close behind at 23. The Dodgers and the Giants are tied for
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
titles at eight. The
2010 World Series
The 2010 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2010 Major League Baseball season, 2010 season. The 106th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American L ...
was the Giants' first championship since moving to California, while the Dodgers had won six World Series titles since their move, their last title coming in the
2024 World Series
The 2024 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2024 Major League Baseball season, 2024 season. The 120th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (b ...
.
In
2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
, the Dodgers and Giants both finished the regular season with over 100 wins, with the latter clinching the division with a record of 107–55. The Dodgers were one game behind with a record of 106–56, relegating them to the
NL Wild Card Game, in which they defeated the St. Louis Cardinals. This resulted in the first postseason matchup between the Dodgers and Giants in the
NLDS. With a combined 213 regular season wins, this is the most number of regular season wins between competing teams in any MLB postseason series. The Dodgers ultimately won in the decisive Game 5, but would lose in the
NLCS
The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a Playoff format#Best-of-seven playoff, best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Major League Baseball po ...
to the eventual World Series champions: Atlanta Braves.
San Diego Padres
The Padres' rivalry with the Dodgers has often been lopsided in favor of Los Angeles; however, recent growth between the two teams in competition has added intensity on top of proximity between Los Angeles and San Diego.
The Dodgers currently lead the series 518–419, with the two teams meeting in the playoffs three times. The Dodgers swept the Padres in the
2020 NLDS, won in five games in the
2024 NLDS, and the Padres won in four games in the
2022 NLDS.
Arizona Diamondbacks
The rivalry between the Dodgers and the
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...
was one of the fiercest divisional matchups for multiple years, particularly during the 2010s when both teams were in regular contention for control of the division. In addition to the elevated competition, animosity rose immensely between both sides resulting in multiple incidents involving either team throwing pitches at one another, occasionally escalating into several bench-clearing brawls.
After eliminating the Diamondbacks and clinching the division on September 19, 2013, multiple Dodgers players celebrated the win by jumping into the pool at Chase Field. On December 8, 2015, Zack Greinke signed a six-year, $206.5 million contract with the Diamondbacks in free agency. Both teams met during the
2017 National League Division Series
The 2017 National League Division Series were two best-of-five-game series to determine the participating teams of the 2017 National League Championship Series. The three divisional winners (seeded 1–3) and a fourth team—the winner of a 2017 ...
; the Diamondbacks were swept 3–0 by the Dodgers en route to their appearance in the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
. The teams rematched in the
2023 National League Division Series, with the Diamondbacks returning the favor with a 3–0 sweep of their own as they eventually reached the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
. The Dodgers lead the series 259–193, with the teams tied 3–3 in the postseason.
National League
St. Louis Cardinals
Primarily a playoff rivalry; since 1892, The Dodgers and
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...
have met 6 times in the postseason with 2 meetings in the NLCS won by the Cardinals. Both teams have recently grown a history of animosity towards one another since the late 2000s as both teams often met frequently in the postseason. The Dodgers have not fared as well against the Cardinals in the postseason. In five prior postseason series matchups, the Cardinals have won four with the Dodgers winning only the 2009 NLDS and the 2021 National League Wild Card Game.
Cincinnati Reds
The Dodgers' former rivalry with the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...
was one of the most intense during the 1970s through the early 1990s. They often competed for the NL West division title. From 1970 to 1990, they had eleven 1–2 finishes in the standings, with seven of them being within 5½ games or fewer. Both teams also played in numerous championships during this span, combining to win 10 NL Pennants and 5 World Series titles from –, most notably as the
Big Red Machine teams clashed frequently with the
Tommy Lasorda-era Dodgers teams. Reds manager
Sparky Anderson once said, "I don't think there's a rivalry like ours in either league. The Giants are supposed to be the Dodgers' natural rivals, but I don't think the feeling is there anymore. It's not there the way it is with us and the Dodgers." The rivalry ended when division realignment moved the Reds to the NL Central. However, they did face one another in the
1995 NLDS.
American League
Los Angeles Angels
This rivalry refers to a series of games played with the
Los Angeles Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...
. The Freeway Series takes its name from the massive freeway system in the
greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, the home of both teams; one could travel from one team's stadium to the other simply by traveling along
Interstate 5
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels thro ...
. The term is akin to ''
Subway Series'' which refers to meetings between New York City baseball teams. The term "''Freeway Series''" also inspired the official name of the region's
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
rivalry: the ''
Freeway Face-Off.''
Animosity between the team's fanbases grew stronger in 2005, when the Angels' new team owner
Arte Moreno
Arturo "Arte" Moreno (born August 14, 1946) is an American businessman. On May 15, 2003, he became the first Mexican-American to own a major sports team in the United States when he purchased the Anaheim Angels baseball team from the Walt Disne ...
changed the name of his ball club from the 'Anaheim Angels', to the 'Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim'. Since the city of Anaheim is located roughly 30 miles from Downtown Los Angeles, the Angels franchise was ridiculed throughout the league for the contradictory nature surrounding the name, especially by Dodgers owner
Frank McCourt, who filed a formal complaint to commissioner
Bud Selig
Allan Huber "Bud" Selig
(; born July 30, 1934) is an American baseball executive who currently serves as the commissioner emeritus of baseball. Previously, he served as the ninth commissioner of baseball from 1998 to 2015. He initially served a ...
. Once the complaint was denied, McCourt devised a t-shirt mocking the crosstown rivals reading 'The Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles', which remains popular amongst the fanbase to this day.
New York Yankees
The Dodgers' rivalry with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
is one of the most well-known
rivalries in Major League Baseball.
The two teams have met twelve times in the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
, more times than any other two teams from the
American and
National Leagues.
The initial significance was embodied in the two teams' proximity in New York City when the Dodgers initially played in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
. After the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles in 1958, the rivalry retained its significance as the two teams represented the two largest cities on opposite sides of the United States
since the 1980s.
Although the rivalry's significance arose from the two teams' numerous World Series meetings, the Yankees and Dodgers had gone 40 years without meeting in the World Series from until .
They would not play each other in a non-exhibition game until 2004, when they played a three-game
interleague series.
Their last meeting in the regular season was in June 2024, when the Dodgers won two out of three games in New York.
Houston Astros
The rivalry between the Dodgers and the
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
had initially begun as a divisional matchup, but hostility waned following Houston's realignment to the American League. In 2017, the two teams played one another in the
2017 World Series in which the Astros won the championship in 7 games. The rivalry was re-intensified after the Astros'
widely publicized sign-stealing scandal, in which it was revealed the team had utilized a complex system to steal pitch signs, including during the 2017 World Series. As a result of the scandal, hostility grew immensely between the two teams and their fans. The Dodgers lead the all-time series 400–334; both teams are tied in postseason wins 6–6.
Fan support

In 2012, a ''
Bleacher Report
''Bleacher Report'' (often abbreviated as B/R) is a website that focuses on sports and sports culture. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, with offices in New York City and London. ''Bleacher Report'' was acquired by Time Warner's Turner B ...
'' article referred to Dodgers fans as the best sports fanbase in Los Angeles. Following the team's relocation to California, attendance had gone from eleventh during their final season in Brooklyn to second in their first season in Los Angeles. Initially during construction of Dodger Stadium, Walter O'Malley feared the size of the ballpark would prove to be too difficult to fill on a regular basis once completed in 1962. This proved not to be the case as the Dodgers led the league in attendance by a sizeable margin for the 1962 season, nearly doubling that of the New York Yankees.
Attendance records
In 1978 the Dodgers became the first MLB team to attract more than three million fans in a season, and repeated the feat six more times before any other franchise reached three million fans overall.
The Dodgers drew at least three million fans for 15 consecutive seasons from 1996 to 2010, the longest such streak among all MLB teams.
The team's largest
fan club
A fan club is an organized group of fans, generally of a celebrity. Most fan clubs are run by fans who devote considerable time and resources to support them. There are also "official" fan clubs that are run by someone associated with the pers ...
, Pantone 294 (a reference to the
Pantone
Pantone LLC (stylized as PANTONE) is an American limited liability company headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey, and best known for its Pantone Matching System (PMS), a proprietary color order system used in a variety of industries, notably gr ...
code of
Dodger blue), regularly travels to away games to cheer for the Dodgers. The Dodgers have regularly placed in the top three in attendance, or have led the league numerous times since 2000, excluding the 2020 season; the Dodgers have recently led the league in attendance for nine straight seasons going back to 2013.
On July 3, 2007, Dodgers management announced that total franchise attendance, dating back to 1901, had reached 175 million, a record for all professional sports. In 2007, the Dodgers set a franchise record for single-season attendance, attracting over 3.8 million fans. On March 28, 2008, the Dodgers set the world record for the largest attendance for a single baseball game during an exhibition game against the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...
in honor of the Dodgers' 50th anniversary, with 115,300 fans in attendance. In 2009, the Dodgers led MLB in total attendance.
The Dodger baseball cap is consistently in the top three in sales.
Primarily, Dodgers fans originate from most of southern or central California and also parts of southern
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
. The fanbase has also extended out to states across the southwest such as
Arizona
Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
,
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
and even western
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
. In 2015,
Vivid Seats reported that the Dodgers were the most popular MLB team in
Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
based on ticket sales. Dodgers' away games throughout the US will usually attract substantial numbers of expats and traveling fans.
Given the team's proximity to Hollywood, numerous celebrities can often be seen attending home games at Dodger Stadium. Celebrities such as co-owner
Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson List of NBA players who have spent their entire career w ...
,
Flea
Flea, the common name for the order (biology), order Siphonaptera, includes 2,500 species of small flightless insects that live as external parasites of mammals and birds. Fleas live by hematophagy, ingesting the blood of their hosts. Adult f ...
,
Mary Hart,
DaBaby
Jonathan Lyndale Kirk (born December 22, 1991), known professionally as DaBaby (formerly Baby Jesus), is an American rapper. After releasing several mixtapes between 2014 and 2018, he signed with Interscope Records in January 2019 in a joint ...
,
Larry King
Larry King (born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger; November 19, 1933 – January 23, 2021) was an American TV and radio host presenter, author, and former spokesman. He was a WMBM radio interviewer in the Miami area in the 1950s and 1960s and beginning in ...
,
Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins, PGA Tour wins, ranks second in List of men's major championships winning golfers, men's m ...
,
Alyssa Milano
Alyssa Jayne Milano ( ; born December 19, 1972) is an American actress and activist. She has played Samantha Micelli in '' Who's the Boss?'' (1984–1992), Jennifer Mancini in '' Melrose Place'' (1997–1998), Phoebe Halliwell in '' Charmed'' ...
,
Shia LaBeouf,
George Lopez,
Lana Del Rey
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...
,
Mila Kunis
Milena Markovna "Mila" Kunis (born August 14, 1983) is an American actress. Born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and raised in Los Angeles, she was Jackie Burkhart on ''That '70s Show'' (1998–2006) and has voiced Meg Griffin on ''Family Guy'' since ...
and
Ashton Kutcher
Christopher Ashton Kutcher (; born February 7, 1978) is an American actor, producer and entrepreneur. His accolades include a People's Choice Award and fifteen Teen Choice Awards, in addition to a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award.
K ...
are known to frequently attend Dodger games, with some sitting at field box seats behind home plate where they sign autographs for fellow Dodger fans. Actor
Bryan Cranston
Bryan Lee Cranston (born March 7, 1956) is an American actor. After taking minor roles in television, he established himself as a leading actor in both comedic and dramatic Bryan Cranston filmography, works on stage and screen. He has received ...
is a lifelong Dodger fan.
International
Abroad; the Dodgers have a strongly devoted following in Mexico due to the impact of Mexican players such as
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
,
Ismael Valdéz, or more recently;
Julio Urias. The impact of the Dodgers' extensive fanbase across Mexico, and among the Mexican-American community is ever present, as an estimated 54% of fans in home attendance are of Mexican descent. Notably;
Mel Almada, the first Mexican-born player in league history, was also a southern California native, he played for the Dodgers near the tail end of his career in 1939. The fanbase is also present throughout Asian countries such as South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan due to the impacts of Japanese players such as
Hideo Nomo
is a Japanese former baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He achieved early success in his native country, where he played with the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to . He then exploited a ...
,
Hiroki Kuroda,
Kenta Maeda
is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher in the Chicago Cubs organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, and Detroit Tigers, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) fo ...
or
Yu Darvish
, more commonly known as Yu Darvish (ダルビッシュ 有), is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers, Lo ...
. The Dodgers grew fan attention in South Korea, as they became the first MLB team to sign the first South Korean-born player in league history:
Chan Ho Park in 1994. The Dodgers had also strengthened their ties with their recruitment of South Korean players, following the signing of All-Star pitcher
Hyun Jin Ryu in 2013. The team partnered with the Korean communities of Los Angeles and began hosting an annual Korean Heritage night since 2016. The Dodgers made history for signing the first Taiwanese player in MLB,
Chin-Feng Chen
Chen Chin-feng (; born 28 October 1977) is a Taiwanese aborigine of Siraya tribal ancestry, who is a former professional baseball outfielder. In 2002, he became the first player born in Taiwan to play in Major League Baseball. He currently se ...
in 2002; other Taiwanese players such as
Chin-Lung Hu and
Chin-Hui Tsao would also eventually sign with the Dodgers, largely growing fan support from the country.
The Dodgers increased their focus on growing a Japanese fanbase in 2024 amid their signing of
Shohei Ohtani
is a Japanese professional baseball designated hitter and pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Shotime", he has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels and in Nippon Professional Basebal ...
, including theme nights in collaboration with Japanese companies such as
Sanrio
is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and manufactures products focusing on the ''kawaii'' ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and Fashion accessory, a ...
(which sponsored a
Hello Kitty night, headlined by the national anthem being performed by Japanese musician and
X Japan
is a Japanese Rock music, rock band from Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, formed in 1982 by drummer and pianist Yoshiki (musician), Yoshiki and lead vocalist Toshi (musician), Toshi. Starting as a predominantly power metal, power/speed metal band with ...
member
Yoshiki), and
VTuber
A or is an online entertainer who uses a virtual Avatar (computing), avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated i ...
agency
Hololive (which also coincided with Los Angeles'
Anime Expo
Anime Expo, abbreviated AX, is an American anime convention held in Los Angeles, California and organized by the non-profit Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA). The convention is traditionally held annually on the first we ...
).
Radio and television

As of 2023, the primary play-by-play announcers on television and radio, respectively, are
Joe Davis
Joseph Davis (15 April 190110 July 1978) was an English professional snooker and English billiards player. He was the dominant figure in snooker from the 1920s to the 1950s, and has been credited with inventing aspects of the way the game is ...
and
Charley Steiner, with
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
(TV) and
Rick Monday (radio) working as the primary color commentators. On some games,
Stephen Nelson would fill in for Davis during his national assignments with
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...
, with Davis typically working as the lead voice of the
MLB on Fox
The ''MLB on Fox'' (also known as ''Fox MLB'') is an American presentation of Major League Baseball (MLB) games produced by Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports, the sports division of the Fox Broadcasting Company (Fox), since June 1, 1996. Fo ...
and as one of the play-by-play voices of the
NFL on Fox
The ''NFL on Fox'' (also known as ''Fox NFL'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games produced by Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports and televised on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox broadcast network. ...
.
Nomar Garciaparra
Anthony Nomar Garciaparra (; born July 23, 1973) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current SportsNet LA analyst. After playing parts of nine seasons as an All-Star shortstop for the Boston Red Sox, he played shortstop, Third ...
,
Eric Karros,
Dontrelle Willis
Dontrelle Wayne Willis (born January 12, 1982), nicknamed "the D-Train", is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A left-hander, he played in Major League Baseball for the Miami Marlins, Florida Marlins, Detroit Tigers, Arizona Diamo ...
and
Jessica Mendoza often fill in for Hershiser on select games. On the radio side,
Tim Neverett works play-by-play on select games, and also fills in for Davis on television broadcasts.
From 1950 to 2016, almost all Dodger games were called by
Vin Scully
Vincent Edward Scully (November 29, 1927 – August 2, 2022) was an American sportscaster, best known for his broadcast work in Major League Baseball. Scully was the play-by-play announcer for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for sixty-se ...
.
His longtime partners were
Jerry Doggett (1956–1987) and
Ross Porter (1977–2004).
In 1976, he was selected by Dodgers fans as the Most Memorable Personality (on the field or off) in the team's history. He is also a recipient of the
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...
's
Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasters (inducted in 1982). Unlike the modern style in which multiple sportscasters have an on-air conversation (usually with one functioning as
play-by-play
In Broadcasting of sports events, sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as a sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real time (media), real-time live commentary of a game or event, traditionally delivered in the present t ...
announcer and the other
as
color commentator
A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The person may also be referred to as a summariser (outside North America) ...
), Scully, Doggett, and Porter generally called games solo, trading with each other inning-by-inning. In the 1980s and 1990s, Scully would call the entire radio broadcast except for the third and seventh inning, allowing the other Dodger commentators to broadcast an inning. Fans and critics alike frequently praised Scully due in large part for his longevity with the team, and his ability to provide peculiar details about multiple players appearing onfield. Despite his longevity and a strong relationship with the team and fanbase, Scully was also praised for his relatively unbiased view of any game he called, often referring to the listeners as 'friends' instead of 'fans'.
When Doggett retired after the 1987 season, he was replaced by Hall-of-Fame Dodgers pitcher
Don Drysdale, who previously broadcast games for the
California Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...
and
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...
.
Drysdale died in his hotel room following a heart attack before a game in
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
in 1993. This was a difficult broadcast for Scully and Porter who could not mention it on-air until Drysdale's family had been notified and the official announcement made.
He was replaced by former Dodgers outfielder Rick Monday.
Porter's tenure ended after the 2004 season, after which the format of play-by-play announcers and color commentators was installed, led by Monday and newcomer Charley Steiner.
Scully, however, continued to announce solo.
Scully called roughly 100 games per season (all home games and road games in California and Arizona)
for both
flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
radio station
KLAC
KLAC (570 AM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by a joint venture between iHeartMedia, Inc. and the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball club, KLAC serves as the Los Angeles ...
and on television for
Spectrum SportsNet LA
Spectrum SportsNet LA and Spectrum Deportes LA (otherwise known as simply SportsNet LA and Deportes LA and originally known as Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA) is an American regional sports network jointly owned by the Guggenheim Partners, contr ...
. Scully was
simulcast
Simulcast (a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast") is the broadcasting of programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultaneously) ...
for the first three innings of each of his appearances, then announced only for the TV audience. If Scully was calling the game, Steiner took over play-by-play on the radio beginning with the fourth inning, with Monday as color commentator.
If Scully was not calling the game, Steiner and Orel Hershiser called the entire game on television while Monday and Kevin Kennedy did the same on radio. In the event the Dodgers were in post-season play, Scully called the first three and last three innings of the radio broadcast alone, and Steiner & Monday handled the middle innings.
Vin Scully retired from calling games in 2016. His tenure with the Dodgers was the longest with any single sports team at 67 years. Youthful announcer Joe Davis was selected in 2017 by Dodgers management to handle play-by-play on television with Orel Hershiser as his colorman.
The Dodgers also broadcast on radio in two other languages, Spanish and Korean. Upon moving to Los Angeles in 1958, the Dodgers became the first MLB team with a Spanish-language
flagship station
In broadcasting, a flagship (also known as a flagship station or key station) is the broadcast station which originates a television network, or a particular radio or television program that plays a key role in the branding of and consumer loyal ...
,
KWKW (), with a broadcast team that included
René Cárdenas.
From 1959 to 2022, the Spanish play-by-play was voiced by another Frick Award winner,
Jaime JarrÃn. Until his death in 2024, a color analyst for some games was former Dodger pitcher
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
, for whom Jarrin once translated post-game interviews. Valenzuela was joined on the Spanish booth in 2023 and 2024 by
Pepe Yñiguez and
José Mota, son of Dodger legend
Manny Mota
Manuel Rafael Mota Geronimo, more commonly known as Manny Mota (born February 18, 1938), is a Dominican Republic, Dominican former Major League Baseball outfielder who played 20 seasons for the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Montr ...
.
The Spanish-language radio flagship station is
KTNQ
KTNQ (1020 AM) is a radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, with a Spanish talk, Spanish AC and Regional Mexican format. It is owned by Latino Media Network; under a local marketing agreement, it was programmed by former owner ...
. Meanwhile, the Dodgers' Korean broadcast began in 2013 through
KMPC.
Management
*Owner:
Guggenheim Baseball Management
**Chairman/Controlling Partner:
Mark Walter
Mark Richard Walter (born January 1, 1960) is an American businessman and the chief executive officer of Guggenheim Partners, a privately held global financial services firm with more than $325 billion in assets under management.
Outside invest ...
**Partner:
Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson List of NBA players who have spent their entire career w ...
**Partner:
Peter Guber
Howard Peter Guber (born March 1, 1942) is an American film producer, business executive, entrepreneur, educator, and author. He is chairman and CEO of Mandalay Entertainment. Guber's films have grossed over $3 billion worldwide and received ...
**Partner:
Todd Boehly
** Partner:
Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943), also known as BJK, is an American former World number 1 ranked female tennis players, world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in w ...
**Partner:
Ilana Kloss
**Partner: Robert Patton, Jr.
**Partner:
Alan Smolinisky
Alan Smolinisky is an American entrepreneur/investor and part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers Major League Baseball franchise. In June 2022, Smolinisky partnered with Nike founder Phil Knight and submitted an offer of more than $2 billion to pu ...
**Partner: Robert L. Plummer
*President/chief executive officer:
Stan Kasten
Stan Kasten (born February 1, 1952) is the current president and part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was previously the president of the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals. Long involved in Atlanta professional sports, he also serv ...
*President of Baseball Operations:
Andrew Friedman
*General Manager:
Brandon Gomes
Achievements
Baseball Hall of Famers
Ford C. Frick Award recipients
Team captains
*
Leo Durocher
Leo Ernest Durocher (French spelling Léo Ernest Durocher) (; July 27, 1905 – October 7, 1991), nicknamed "Leo the Lip" and "Lippy", was an American professional baseball player, manager (baseball), manager and coach (baseball), coach. He playe ...
1938–1941
*
Pee Wee Reese
Harold Peter Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23, 1918 – August 14, 1999) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. ...
1950–1958
*
Duke Snider
Edwin Donald "Duke" Snider (September 19, 1926 – February 27, 2011), nicknamed "the Duke of Flatbush", was an American professional baseball player. Primarily a center fielder, he spent most of his Major League Baseball (MLB) career playing f ...
1962
*
Maury Wills
Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from 1959 to 1972, most prominently as an integral member of the Los Ange ...
1963–1966
*
Davey Lopes 1978–1979
Retired numbers
Koufax, Campanella, and Robinson were the first Dodgers to have their numbers retired, in a ceremony at Dodger Stadium on June 4, 1972. Although other MLB teams had already been retiring numbers for decades, the Dodgers were late to the trend. The Dodgers had wanted to retire Robinson's No. 42 for some time, but Robinson had consistently rejected the honor due to a long-running grudge with Dodgers owner
Walter O'Malley
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he br ...
. Robinson did not agree to appear at a number retirement ceremony until O'Malley handed over control of the team to his son
Peter
Peter may refer to:
People
* List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Peter (given name)
** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church
* Peter (surname), a su ...
in 1970.
Although the Dodgers website states that there are no "written 'criteria' for retiring uniform numbers," the team has historically retired only the numbers of individuals who played most of their career with the Dodgers and are members of the Baseball Hall of Fame. (Underscoring the principle, Koufax, Snider, Reese, Drysdale, Lasorda, Sutton, and Hodges all had their numbers retired during the seasons in which they were inducted into the Hall. Robinson and Campanella had already been Hall of Famers for several years when their numbers were retired in 1972.) There have only been three exceptions:
* Manager Walter Alston's number was retired in 1977, the season after he retired as the Dodgers manager. At the time he retired, he had four World Series rings and was fifth all-time in managerial wins. Alston entered the Hall in 1983.
* Infielder and assistant coach Jim Gilliam's number was retired in 1978, two days after his untimely death. Gilliam spent 28 years with the Dodgers organization and was still coaching the team when he died.
* Pitcher and broadcaster Fernando Valenzuela's number was retired in 2023, one year before his death from liver cancer.
The Dodgers had previously declined to issue Valenzuela's No. 34 to any new players out of respect for Valenzuela's
special role in Dodger history. In a strange coincidence, Valenzuela spent 34 years with the Dodgers organization. Like Gilliam, he was still working for the team when he died.
In 1997, 50 years after he broke the
color barrier and 25 years after the Dodgers retired his number, Robinson's No. 42 was retired throughout Major League Baseball. Robinson is the only major league baseball player so honored. Starting in the 2007 season,
Jackie Robinson Day (April 15, commemorating the Opening Day of Robinson's rookie season of 1947) has featured many or all players and coaches wearing the number 42 as a tribute to Robinson.
A broader term, the Dodgers "Ring of Honor", includes both the retired numbers and three non-baseball personnel whose insignia are displayed alongside the retired numbers. Longtime broadcasters Vin Scully (English) and Jaime JarrÃn (Spanish) are honored with microphone symbols. Team owner Walter O'Malley, who moved the Dodgers to Los Angeles, is honored with the team "LA" logo. All three have been recognized by the Hall of Fame, O'Malley by induction and Scully and JarrÃn via the
Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasters.
Legends of Dodger Baseball
In 2019, the Dodgers established "Legends of Dodger Baseball", which is meant to honor Dodger greats whose numbers have not been retired. The program honors those who made an "impact on the franchise, both on and off the field." Recipients are recognized with plaques at Dodger Stadium.
*
Steve Garvey (2019)
*
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and en ...
(2019)
*
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
(2019; number retired in 2023)
*
Maury Wills
Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from 1959 to 1972, most prominently as an integral member of the Los Ange ...
(2022)
*
Kirk Gibson (2022)
*
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
(2023)
*
Manny Mota
Manuel Rafael Mota Geronimo, more commonly known as Manny Mota (born February 18, 1938), is a Dominican Republic, Dominican former Major League Baseball outfielder who played 20 seasons for the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Montr ...
(2023)
*
Dusty Baker
Johnnie B "Dusty" Baker Jr. (born June 15, 1949) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and Manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for 19 seasons, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers. D ...
(2024)
Awards
Most Valuable Player (NL)
*Brooklyn
** –
Jake Daubert
**1924 –
Dazzy Vance
Charles Arthur "Dazzy" Vance (March 4, 1891 – February 16, 1961) was an American professional baseball player. He played as a pitcher for five different franchises in Major League Baseball (MLB) in a career that spanned 16 seasons over 21 year ...
**1941 –
Dolph Camilli
**1949 –
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
**1951 –
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella (November 19, 1921 – June 26, 1993), nicknamed "Campy", was an American professional baseball player, primarily as a catcher. The Philadelphia native played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering ...
**1953 –
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella (November 19, 1921 – June 26, 1993), nicknamed "Campy", was an American professional baseball player, primarily as a catcher. The Philadelphia native played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering ...
**1955 –
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella (November 19, 1921 – June 26, 1993), nicknamed "Campy", was an American professional baseball player, primarily as a catcher. The Philadelphia native played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering ...
**1956 –
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and en ...
*Los Angeles
**1962 –
Maury Wills
Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from 1959 to 1972, most prominently as an integral member of the Los Ange ...
**1963 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
**1974 –
Steve Garvey
**1988 –
Kirk Gibson
**2014 –
Clayton Kershaw
Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...
**2019 –
Cody Bellinger
**2024 –
Shohei Ohtani
is a Japanese professional baseball designated hitter and pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Shotime", he has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels and in Nippon Professional Basebal ...
World Series Most Valuable Player
*
1955 –
Johnny Podres
John Joseph Podres (September 30, 1932 – January 13, 2008) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in the majors from 1953 to 1969, spending most of his career with the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers. Podres ...
*
1959
Events
January
* January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...
–
Larry Sherry
*
1963
Events January
* January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...
–
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
*
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...
–
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
*
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
–
Ron Cey
Ronald Charles Cey (; born February 15, 1948), nicknamed "the Penguin," is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from through , most notably as an integral member of the Los Angel ...
,
Pedro Guerrero, and
Steve Yeager
*
1988 –
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
*
2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
–
Corey Seager
*
2024
The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
–
Freddie Freeman
Cy Young Award (NL)
*Brooklyn
**1956 –
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and en ...
(MLB)
*Los Angeles
**1962 –
Don Drysdale (MLB)
**1963 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
(MLB)
**1965 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
(MLB)
**1966 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
(MLB)
**1974 –
Mike Marshall
**1981 –
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
**1988 –
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
**2003 –
Éric Gagné
**2011 –
Clayton Kershaw
Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...
**2013 –
Clayton Kershaw
Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...
**2014 –
Clayton Kershaw
Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...
Triple Crown
*Brooklyn
**1924 –
Dazzy Vance
Charles Arthur "Dazzy" Vance (March 4, 1891 – February 16, 1961) was an American professional baseball player. He played as a pitcher for five different franchises in Major League Baseball (MLB) in a career that spanned 16 seasons over 21 year ...
*Los Angeles
**1963 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
**1965 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
**1966 –
Sandy Koufax
Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
**2011 –
Clayton Kershaw
Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed starting pitcher, Kershaw has spent his entire MLB career with the Dodgers s ...
Rookie of the Year Award (NL)
*Brooklyn
**1947 –
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
(MLB)
**1949 –
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and en ...
**1952 –
Joe Black
**1953 –
Jim Gilliam
*Los Angeles
**1960 –
Frank Howard
**1965 –
Jim Lefebvre
**1969 –
Ted Sizemore
**1979 –
Rick Sutcliffe
Richard Lee Sutcliffe (born June 21, 1956), nicknamed "the Red Baron", is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinals between 1976 and ...
**1980 –
Steve Howe
Stephen James Howe (born 8 April 1947) is an English musician, best known as the guitarist and backing vocalist in the progressive rock band Yes (band), Yes across three stints since 1970. Born in Holloway, London, Holloway, North London, Howe d ...
**1981 –
Fernando Valenzuela
Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (; November 1, 1960 – October 22, 2024), nicknamed "El Toro", was a Mexican professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from 1980 to 1997 (except for a one-year sabba ...
**1982 –
Steve Sax
Stephen Louis Sax (born January 29, 1960) is a retired American Major League Baseball player and coach. He played as a second baseman in Major League Baseball from 1981 to 1994, celebrated as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers with whom he won ...
**1992 –
Eric Karros
**1993 –
Mike Piazza
**1994 –
Raúl Mondesi
**1995 –
Hideo Nomo
is a Japanese former baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He achieved early success in his native country, where he played with the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to . He then exploited a ...
**1996 –
Todd Hollandsworth
**2016 –
Corey Seager
**2017 –
Cody Bellinger
Team records
Personnel
Current roster
Presidents
*
Charlie Byrne (1883–1897)
*
Charles Ebbets (1898–1925)
*
Edward McKeever (1925, interim)
*
Wilbert Robinson
Wilbert Robinson (June 29, 1864 – August 8, 1934), nicknamed "Uncle Robbie", was an American catcher, coach and manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for the Philadelphia Athletics (American Association) ...
(1925–1929)
*
Frank B. York (1930–1932)
*
Stephen McKeever (1933–1938)
*
Larry MacPhail
Leland Stanford "Larry" MacPhail Sr. (February 3, 1890 – October 1, 1975) was an American lawyer and an executive in Major League Baseball. He served as a high-ranking executive, including club president and general manager, with the Cincin ...
(1939–1942)
*
Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...
(1943–1950)
*
Walter O'Malley
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he br ...
(1950–1970)
*
Peter O'Malley (1970–1997)
*
Bob Graziano (1998–2004)
*
Jamie McCourt (2004–2009)
*
Dennis Mannion (2009–2010)
*
Stan Kasten
Stan Kasten (born February 1, 1952) is the current president and part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was previously the president of the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals. Long involved in Atlanta professional sports, he also serv ...
(2012–present)
Managers
Since 1884, the Dodgers have used a total of 31 Managers, the most current being
Dave Roberts, who was appointed following the 2015 postseason, after the departure of
Don Mattingly.

Over the nearly 43 years from 1954 to mid-1996, the Dodgers employed only two managers,
Walter Alston
Walter Emmons Alston (December 1, 1911 – October 1, 1984), nicknamed "Smokey", was an American baseball manager in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally ...
and
Tommy Lasorda, both of whom are in the
Hall of Fame
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
. During this entire time period of extraordinary stability, the Dodgers were family-owned by
Walter O'Malley
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he br ...
and then his son
Peter O'Malley. It was during this era that the Dodgers won 11 of their 24 pennants and their first six World Series championships.
The managers of the Los Angeles Dodgers (1958–present) are as follows:
*
Walter Alston
Walter Emmons Alston (December 1, 1911 – October 1, 1984), nicknamed "Smokey", was an American baseball manager in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally ...
(1958–1976) (in Brooklyn since 1954)
*
Tommy Lasorda (1976–1996)
*
Bill Russell
William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played Center (basketball), center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. He was t ...
(1996–1998)
*
Glenn Hoffman (1998)
*
Davey Johnson (1999–2000)
*
Jim Tracy (2001–2005)
*
Grady Little (2006–2007)
*
Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre Jr. (; born July 18, 1940) is an American professional baseball Senior management, executive and former player, Manager (baseball), manager, and television color commentator. He has served as a special assistant to the Commiss ...
(2008–2010)
*
Don Mattingly (2011–2015)
*
Dave Roberts (2016–present)
General Managers/Presidents of Baseball Operations
*
Larry MacPhail
Leland Stanford "Larry" MacPhail Sr. (February 3, 1890 – October 1, 1975) was an American lawyer and an executive in Major League Baseball. He served as a high-ranking executive, including club president and general manager, with the Cincin ...
(1938–1942)
*
Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...
(1943–1950)
*
Buzzie Bavasi (1950–1968)
*
Fresco Thompson (1968)
*
Al Campanis (1968–1987)
*
Fred Claire (1987–1998)
*
Tommy Lasorda (1998)
*
Kevin Malone (1999–2001)
*
Dave Wallace (2001)
*
Dan Evans (2001–2004)
*
Paul DePodesta (2004–2005)
*
Ned Colletti (2005–2014)
*
Andrew Friedman (2014–present) ''*as President of Baseball Operations''
**
Farhan Zaidi (2014–2018) *''as general manager''
**
Brandon Gomes (2022–present) ''*as general manager''
Public address announcers/organists
From the Dodgers' move to Los Angeles from Brooklyn in 1958, the Dodgers employed a handful of well-known public address announcers; the most famous of which was
John Ramsey, who served as the PA voice of the Dodgers from 1958 until his retirement in 1982; he was also well known for announcing at other venerable Los Angeles venues, including the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...
and
Sports Arena, and the
Forum. Ramsey died in 1990.
From 1958 to 1982, Doug Moore, Philip Petty, and Dennis Packer served as back-up voices for John Ramsey for the Dodgers, California Angels, Los Angeles Chargers, USC football, and Los Angeles Rams. Packer was Ramsey's primary backup for the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Kings until Ramsey's retirement from the Forum in 1978. Thereafter, Packer became the public address announcer for the Lakers, Kings, indoor soccer, and indoor tennis events at the Forum.
Nick Nickson, a radio broadcaster for the
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...
, replaced John Ramsey as the Dodger Stadium public address announcer in 1983 and served in that capacity through the 1989 season to work with the Kings full-time.
Dennis Packer and
Pete Arbogast
Pete Arbogast (born December 5, 1954) is a radio announcer who is the voice of the USC Trojans. He has called football, men's basketball, and women's basketball for the Trojans and was the voice of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Biography
Arbogast was ...
were emulators of John Ramsey, using the same stentorian style of announcing Ramsey was famous for. Packer and Arbogast shared the stadium announcing chores for the
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States w ...
matches at the
Rose Bowl. Arbogast won the Dodgers job on the day that Ramsey died on January 25, 1990, by doing a verbatim imitation of Ramsey's opening and closing remarks that were standard at each game. His replacement, in 1994 was Mike Carlucci, who remained as the Dodgers' PA voice announcer until he resigned in 2002 to concentrate on his voiceover and acting career along with his Olympics announcing duties.
From 2003 to 2014, the Dodgers public address announcer was Eric Smith, who also announces for the
Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...
and
USC Trojans
The USC Trojans (also Southern California Trojans) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ...
.
On April 3, 2015, the Dodgers announced that former radio broadcaster
Todd Leitz was hired to become their new public address announcer. Leitz was an anchor and news reporter in Los Angeles at
KNX 1070
AM for 10 years, and a news reporter at
KABC 790 for two years.
From 1988 to 2015,
Nancy Bea Hefley enjoyed popularity behind the Dodger Stadium keyboard similar to
Gladys Goodding. Since retirement in 2015, Bea's replacement and current organist is
Dieter Ruehle
Dieter Ruehle is an American musician who is the stadium organist for Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers and National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings. As of December 2024, Ruehle has played for three championship teams in three differe ...
, who also plays at
Crypto.com Arena for Los Angeles Kings games.
Other
Vin Scully
Vincent Edward Scully (November 29, 1927 – August 2, 2022) was an American sportscaster, best known for his broadcast work in Major League Baseball. Scully was the play-by-play announcer for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for sixty-se ...
is permanently honored in the Baseball Hall of Fame's "Scribes & Mikemen" exhibit as a result of winning the
Ford C. Frick Award in 1982. Frick Award recipients are not official members of the Hall.
Allan Roth was the first person hired as the official statistician of a Major League team when he was hired by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. He continued his tenure with Los Angeles until 1964.
Sue Falsone, was the first female physical therapist in Major League baseball, and from 2012 to 2013, was the first female head
athletic trainer
An athletic trainer is a certified and licensed health care provider who practices in the field of sports medicine. Athletic training has been recognized by the American Medical Association
The American Medical Association (AMA) is an American ...
.
Minor league affiliations
The Los Angeles Dodgers
farm system
In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful pl ...
consists of seven
minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...
affiliates.
See also
*
1994 in baseball
Headline events of the year
As a result of a 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike, players' strike, the Major League Baseball, MLB season ended prematurely on August 11, 1994. No postseason (including the 1994 World Series, World Series) was p ...
*
Dodger Dog
*
List of Los Angeles Dodgers broadcasters
*
List of Los Angeles Dodgers managers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a Major League Baseball team that plays in the National League Western Division. The Dodgers began play in 1884 as the Brooklyn Atlantics and have been known by seven nicknames since (including the Grays, Grooms, Superb ...
*
List of Los Angeles Dodgers seasons
*
Los Angeles Dodgers all-time roster
*
Los Angeles Dodgers minor league players
*
Roy Campanella Award
Explanatory notes
References
Further reading
*Red Barber
''Rhubarb in the Catbird Seat''*Stanley Cohen, ''Dodgers! The First 100 Years''
*Robert W. Creamer
*
*Steve Delsohn, '' True Blue: The Dramatic History of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Told By the Men Who Lived It''
*Carl Erskine and Vin Scully, ''Tales From the Dodger Dugout: Extra Innings''
*Harvey Frommer, ''New York City Baseball''
*Steve Garvey, "My Bat Boy Days: Lessons I Learned from the Boys of Summer"
*Cliff Gewecke, ''Day by Day in Dodgers History''
*Andrew Goldblatt, ''The Giants and the Dodgers: Four Cities, Two Teams, One Rivalry''
*
Richard Goldstein, ''Superstars and Screwballs: 100 Years of Brooklyn Baseball''
*Peter Golenbock, ''Bums: An Oral History of the Brooklyn Dodgers''
*Doris Kearns Goodwin, ''Wait Till Next Year: A Memoir''
*Frank Graham, ''The Brooklyn Dodgers: An Informal History''
*
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
with Jerry B. Jenkins, ''Out of the Blue''
*Donald Honig, ''The Los Angeles Dodgers: Their First quarter Century''
*
Roger Kahn
Roger Kahn (October 31, 1927 – February 6, 2020) was an American journalist and author, best known for his 1972 baseball book '' The Boys of Summer''.
Biography
Roger Kahn was born in Brooklyn, New York, on October 31, 1927, to Olga (''née ...
, ''
The Boys of Summer''
*Roger Kahn, ''The Era 1947–1957: When the Yankees, the Giants, and the Dodgers Ruled the World''
*Mark Langill, ''The Los Angeles Dodgers''
*Tommy Lasorda with David Fisher, ''The Artful Dodger''
*Jane Leavy, ''Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy''
*Joseph McCauley, ''Ebbets Field: Brooklyn's Baseball Shrine''
*William McNeil, ''The Dodgers Encyclopedia''
*Tom Meany (editor), ''The Artful Dodgers''
*Andrew Paul Mele, ''A Brooklyn Dodgers Reader''
*John J. Monteleone (editor), ''Branch Rickey's Little Blue Book''
*Thomas Oliphant, ''Praying for Gil Hodges: A Memoir of the 1955 World Series and One Family's Love of the Brooklyn Dodgers''
*
David Plaut, ''Chasing October: The Dodgers-Giants Pennant Race of 1962''
*Carl E. Prince, ''Brooklyn's Dodgers: The Bums, The Borough and The Best of Baseball''
*Jackie Robinson, ''I Never Had It Made''
*
Gene Schoor, ''The Complete Dodgers Record Book''
*
Gene Schoor, ''The Pee Wee Reese Story''
*Duke Snider with Bill Gilbert, ''The Duke of Flatbush''
*Michael Shapiro, ''The Last Good Season: Brooklyn, The Dodgers, and Their Final Pennant Race Together''
*Glen Stout, ''The Dodgers: 120 Years of Dodgers Baseball''
*Neil J. Sullivan, ''The Dodgers Move West''
*Jules Tygiel, ''Baseball's Great Experiment: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy''
*John Weaver, ''Los Angeles: The Enormous Village, 1781–1981''
External links
*
Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Reference.com"The 1960s Dodgers: Two Parts Patience, One Part Creative Insanity"by Steve Treder, November 10, 2004. Article on the 1960s Los Angeles Dodgers in ''The Hardball Times''.
{{Authority control
Los Angeles Dodgers
Dodgers
Major League Baseball teams
Cactus League
Baseball teams established in 1883
1883 establishments in New York (state)
Baseball teams established in 1958
1958 establishments in California
Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2011
Shorty Award winners