WORLD SERIES / ATLANTA BRAVES vs. MINNESOTA TWINS : Time to Break Up That Old Blue Gang of His?

Funny, but I could have sworn that the Dodgers had a good season.

I seem to remember them being in first place for several months, packing Dodger Stadium nightly, celebrating the heartwarming recovery of Orel Hershiser and enjoying the encouraging comebacks of Juan Samuel, Jim Gott and Gary Carter. There were game-winning heroes galore, and it took a team of destiny to defeat the Dodgers over the course of a 162-game season by one measly game.

Oh, the season did have its downside. There were controversies over the non-hiring of Mexican-born players and the non-grilling of Dodger Dog frankfurters, and it was astounding which of these protests was taken more seriously. There was the injured arm of Jay Howell and the injured pride of Kevin Gross, who found not all California fans to be laid-back and mellow.

On the whole, however, the season went about as well as could be expected--and certainly better than it did for California’s other boys of summer, the Angels, Padres, Athletics and Giants, all of whom expected to do great things. A California team had been involved in each of the last three World Series--two California teams, in fact, in 1988 and ’89. But only the Dodgers came within sniffing distance this time.

So why isn’t everybody happy?

Why have the Dodgers been all but dismantled, piece by piece, since the end of the season? Why is a team with one of the five best records in baseball, a team that might very well have won the World Series had the Atlanta Braves not rubbed Aladdin’s lamp or whatever it is they did, suddenly looking upon the 1992 season as though it will be a rebuilding year?

Management might not view it that way, but it is becoming clear that there will be some changes made. Many changes. The Dodgers are about to be shaken up, and shaking up is hard to do. The starting shortstop and second baseman, for starters, are being politely invited to leave, and so is the backup backstop. This might not be so surprising had these Dodgers gone downhill, but quite the contrary, all of them played pretty fair baseball this season. Years have passed, in fact, since Samuel or Carter played better.

Nevertheless, since that miserable weekend in San Francisco that ended the season, nothing particularly pleasant has happened to the Dodgers. The last smile we saw was on the face of Alfredo Griffin, who spent what evidently has turned out to be his last day with the club wearing a rubber Halloween mask during infield practice. Players did Tom Lasorda impersonations and had a couple of healthy laughs.

Next day, though, we read how newcomers Darryl Strawberry and Brett Butler thought their teammates’ efforts left a lot to be desired. Then veterans Samuel, Carter and Griffin were informed that the club would not be making offers to retain their services. Then pitcher Bob Ojeda more or less gave the club an ultimatum that he was out of here permanently, barring last-minute changes of heart or mind.

Personally, I have mixed reactions to some of this. My first thought is that the Dodger public should be sympathetic and understanding, to some degree, because anybody who wants the club to shell out enough money to sign free agents such as Strawberry and Butler or to hang onto Hershiser or Eddie Murray, must also appreciate that the fat contracts of players such as Samuel, Carter and Griffin must be trimmed.

Furthermore, the team cannot keep Jose Offerman, Dave Hansen, Carlos Hernandez and others in minor league limbo forever. Offerman needs a full chance to show what he can do at shortstop. Mike Sharperson can handle second base; Samuel’s advantages were power and speed, but Sharperson will hit for a higher average. Hansen will have a shot at third base, or will battle Hernandez to be Mike Scioscia’s understudy behind the plate.

Ojeda is the one guy I hate to lose, for professional and personal reasons. He is a good left-hander and a good guy, and both are hard to come by. Professionally speaking, for example, I don’t mind that the Dodgers keep left fielder Kal Daniels in their lineup. Personally speaking, I wouldn’t mind them trading that clown to Cleveland for a crisp $10 bill.

Ojeda has a right to do as he pleases, but if he leaves and the Dodger-bashers begin to howl, let them be reminded that it is easy to dish out long-term contracts to pitchers when you are not paying the bill, but when you have seen the doctor bills of pitchers such as Fernando Valenzuela, Hershiser and Howell, you aren’t all that confident that Ojeda or anybody else will be there for as long as you need him.

Anyway, we are not going to know what happens to the 1992 Dodgers until it happens. And as Atlanta and Minnesota have already proved, practically anything can.