Dodgers Diaries

The Manny Ramirez era at Dodger Stadium has finally come to a close, and for that I’m grateful. I never liked Manny, was annoyed when the Dodgers traded for him in 2008, and was even more annoyed when they re-signed him in 2009. At the time, I argued that there was no reason to pay him $20 million when there were no other bidders. I argued that he was aging and would break down with injury. And I argued that the money would be better spent signing a cheaper player like Adam Dunn and a pitcher besides.

I also argued that the Dodgers had seen the best that Manny could do for them in 2008. He only had to play 53 regular-season games. He hit like a monster in the playoffs. He was in the walk year of his contract, thus motivating him. With all those things at work in his favor, the Dodgers still didn’t win a

World Series, much less a pennant. So why would anyone assume that formula would work over the next two years, when Ramirez would be older and lazier and have to play a full regular season?

The Dodgers ignored my advice (as they usually do) and chose to build their team around a fading 37-year-old slugger. So let’s see how that worked out.

By some measures, they were right to re-sign Manny. He had an OPS of .949 the first year and .915 the second year. Not the 1.232 he put up in 2008, but still Hall of Fame numbers. But Ramirez played in just 170 games over the two years, basically half the games for which he was eligible. Put another way, he had one excellent season of .937 OPS, 27 HR, 39 doubles, and 103 RBIs. But he also had one season in which injuries and a 50-game suspension for cheating caused him to not play at all. That’s not a lot of production for $40 million.

In short, the team the Dodgers built around Manny functioned well when he was in the lineup. But when you put all the weight atop one wheel of your cart, you had better hope that wheel can shoulder the load. Ramirez couldn’t do that, and when he was out of the lineup -- which was almost half the time -- the Dodgers faltered. It wasn’t hard to predict.

For comparison purposes, Adam Dunn has hit 70 homers and 61 doubles since the Dodgers chose not to re-sign him, and has an OPS of .917. And he has missed just four games in two seasons. He still strikes out a ridiculous 170 times a year -- too many in a lineup that includes Matt Kemp. But he also has walked nearly 100 times a year. He’s an atrocious outfielder, maybe even worse than Manny. But at 30, he’s not a terrible choice to fill the gap in left field.

-- JOHN ROSENTHAL