Dating back to Brooklyn, the Dodgers franchise has one of the richest histories in the sport — perhaps only second to the New York Yankees. Now, some elite talents have been representing the team in the past (Mike Piazza, Adrian Beltre, Pedro Martinez) along with a few on the current squad (Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Shohei Ohtani). While Betts and Ohtani may find themselves on this list one day, we’ll instead focus on five other Dodgers who should garner recognition. Believe it or not, one of them is still a current player on the team.
5. Duke Snider
Snider was an Iron Man for this franchise. The native of Los Angeles featured for both Brooklyn and LA over 16 years. An elite outfielder, Snider was an 8-time All-Star throughout his star-studded career. He’s one of the few Dodgers historically speaking to notch over 400 HRs and 2,000 hits. He helped lead the franchise to two World Series wins in the 1950s. Duly, Snider had a five-year consecutive stretch where he clubbed 40 or more home runs in each of those seasons.
4. Don Drysdale
Drysdale was one of the aces for the franchise during its golden run through the late 50s into the 60s. Another native of Los Angeles, Drysdale quickly moved up the ranks before teaming with Sandy Koufax to give the Dodgers a devastating righty-lefty combination. A power arm, he led the league in strikeouts on three separate occasions. Drysdale also helped the team win three World Series titles and was a 9-time All-Star to boot.
3. Clayton Kershaw
Despite still being an active ballplayer, Clayton Kershaw deserves recognition as one of the best players in the history of this franchise. The left-handed ace out of Dallas has more than proven to be the best pitcher of his generation. A power fastball is paired with pinpoint accuracy, a looping curveball, and a devastating slider. While he doesn’t throw as hard as he once did, Kershaw’s ability to get hitters out comes from mixing his pitches up, but more so from his ability to outthink hitters. He’s a pitcher rather than a thrower of the baseball — and those are two separate distinctions. The 10-time All-Star won the Cy Young Award three times throughout his career. He also was the National League MVP in 2014, illustrating just how dominant he was. For good measure, Kershaw also led the National League in ERA five times, and in strikeouts three times. In the upcoming years, you’ll surely see a statue of Kershaw at Chavez Ravine somewhere.
2. Jackie Robinson
The impact Jackie Robinson had on professional sports in the United States is immense. That aside, Robinson as an actual athlete was sublime. He was a four-sport athlete at UCLA before settling as a baseball player. He made six-straight all-star appearances for the Brooklyn Dodgers. This included helping the franchise win one World Series (1955). A pure hitter, Robinson ended his career with a career .313 batting average. He led the league in stolen bases twice, and — to this day — remains an iconic figure for the franchise and the sport as a whole.
1. Sandy Koufax
The lefty out of Brooklyn represented his hometown team for the duration of his career. To date, we’ve never seen a more dominant left-handed pitcher. The 3-time Cy Young winner/2-time World Series MVP would routinely sit in the high 90s with his fastball — often touching 100 miles-per-hour. He’d then break off a ridiculous curveball that made hitters look silly. Even though he predominantly utilized these two pitches, it didn’t matter. Koufax’s stuff was that good — to the point he led the league in strikeouts four separate times. He also led the National League in ERA for five straight years. For good measure, among his many personal accolades, Koufax also helped the franchise win four World Series.
