Last call: Greatest Dodgers of all-time: Nos. 4-6
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We’re finally coming into the home stretch of the countdown of my choices for the 12 greatest L.A. Dodgers of all time. I have received 732 ballots from Fabulous Forum readers, and Sandy Koufax and Mike Piazza are still virtually tied for first place. So I’m extending the balloting one more week. E-mail your list of the 12 greatest L.A. Dodgers of all time to houston.mitchell@latimes.com. And remember, we are looking for L.A. Dodgers only. If they played most of their career in Brooklyn, they aren’t eligible. Next week, the three greatest L.A. Dodgers of all time will be revealed, along with reader voting.
The 6th-greatest L.A. Dodger of all time:
Ron Cey
Some may be surprised by the fact that Cey finishes higher than Steve Garvey, but, while Garvey was good, Cey was better. Garvey got almost 200 hits every season, but Cey walked far more frequently, leaving him with higher on-base percentages every year from 1974-81.
The 5th-greatest L.A. Dodger of all time is:
Hershiser is best known for his 1988 season, when he won the Cy Young Award and broke the all-time record for consecutive scoreless innings with 59. He also carried the Dodgers through the playoffs. But it is often forgotten that Hersisher finished 19-3 in 1985, and pitched just as well in 1989 as he did in 1988.
The 4th-greatest L.A. Dodger of all time:
Before his arm was ruined by overuse, Fernando was the best left-hander in baseball. He won the Cy Young and Rookie of the Year award in 1981. And if Tommy Lasorda had started him instead of Dave Freakin’ Goltz in the 1980 playoff game to decide the NL West winner, the Dodgers would have had one more title in the 1980s.
-- Houston Mitchell