Going...Going...Gone

Kevin Malone was hired by Bob Graziano, a money guy.

Graziano was rehired by Bob Daly, a movie guy.

Bob Daly was appointed by Peter Chernin and Chase Carey, entertainment guys.

Chernin and Carey’s company bought a Dodger team run by Fred Claire, a public relations guy.

Claire relied on farm director Charlie Blaney, a hotel guy.

Claire and Blaney were hired after the 1987 firing of Al Campanis.

A baseball guy.

The last baseball guy.

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Campanis strangled himself on “Nightline” with ugly racial remarks in the spring of 1987.

Yet it was his baseball team that ultimately ended up red-faced and choking.

While the Dodgers didn’t exactly die along with Campanis’ career--which had been so unlike those awful remarks--it was the beginning of the end.

A season later, Claire worked magic with Campanis’ final roster, adding Kirk Gibson, Alfredo Griffin, Jay Howell and Mickey Hatcher to help the Dodgers to the 1988 World Series title.

But they haven’t won a playoff game since.

It is the longest Dodger drought in 60 years.

And the madness continues.

At Chavez Ravine on Thursday, while the miscast general manager read a statement and ran, the man who cast him stayed.

While Kevin Malone became the past, the man who supported him through many questionable decisions discussed the future.

Malone’s formal resignation underscored a problem that has nothing to do with hecklers from San Diego or left-handed pitchers from Montreal.

It is a problem that actually doesn’t have anything to do with Malone.

He was fired because he never should have been hired.

Baseball people knew this two years ago.

The Dodgers didn’t fully realize it until two days ago.

Because the Dodgers are no longer run by baseball people.

This is what they need now. This is their only chance.

Hire a veteran baseball person, and get out of the way.

“I’m not looking to be involved in the day-to-day operations,” said Daly, the chairman.

Oh, yeah? Well, he’s been involved virtually every day since buying into the team in the fall of 1999, mostly because of the constant problems with Malone.

Part of him needs to walk away now, just like Malone.

He needs to turn this over to a John Hart or John Schuerholz or some other proven general manager.

Then he needs to do a Peter O’Malley.

You know, hang out in his nice office overlooking left field, entertain guests from Japan, court big free agents and fix long concession lines and leave everything else alone.

“If [the new general manager] wanted to come in my office and fill me in for 15 minutes a day, that would be fine,” Daly said.

No, no, Bob, not 15 minutes a day. More like 15 minutes a week.

The same with Graziano, who lately has done splendid work with the shining and selling of Dodger tradition, from the neat TV commercials and billboards to the returning of Lou Johnson’s World Series ring.

The problem is, he works too hard. Graziano comes to all the big baseball news conferences, implying that a businessman is making important baseball decisions.

When the new general manager shows up, Graziano needs to disappear.

One baseball guy, one baseball voice.

There was a time the Dodgers’ executive suite was filled with nothing but baseball guys.

Al Campanis was the general manager. Bill Schweppe was the farm director. Ben Wade ran the scouting.

They all lived in the town, unlike today’s Dodger bosses.

They would all gather for daily personnel lunches, unlike today’s Dodger bosses.

They were all about baseball.

We never thought it would be any different. The problem was, neither did O’Malley, who never properly groomed replacements for any of the Big Three.

Campanis was fired, then Schweppe retired within six months, then Wade retired within a couple of years, and the organization has never been the same.

While Claire initially did well, his reign was eventually undermined by weaknesses at the scouting and minor league levels.

Today’s roster has nearly as many home-grown products from Quebec (one) as the Dominican Republic (two). All of the outfielders were acquired through trades. The fundamentals are missing. The sense of history is nil.

When Tom Lasorda was honored on the field last season for leading the United States to an Olympic gold medal, most of the players didn’t even leave the bench to greet him.

Jim Tracy is starting to change things in the dugout. But it’s still an organization that is more about business than baseball, more about cash than cutoff throws, more about Hollywood than hitting to the opposite field.

It starts at the top, from where this organization must move in a clear, united direction.

From Dodger Boy to baseball guy.

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Bill Plaschke can be reached at his e-mail address: bill.plaschke@latimes.com.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Malone’s Moves

Some of the key moves of the Kevin Malone era:

1998

Nov. 5--Signed P Jeff Shaw.

Nov. 9--Signed free-agent CF Devon White.

Nov. 11--Acquired P Mel Rojas from New York Mets for OF/1B Bobby Bonilla.

Nov. 17--Declined option on P Ramon Martinez.

Dec. 1--Acquired C Todd Hundley and P Arnold Gooch from New York Mets for C Charles Johnson and OF Roger Cedeno.

Dec. 10--Signed free-agent P Alan Mills.

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1999

Jan. 4--Signed free-agent P Kevin Brown.

Jan. 15--Signed P Carlos Perez.

April 16--Traded P Dave Mlicki and P Mel Rojas to Detroit for three minor leaguers.

May 14--Signed P Mike Maddux.

June 15--Acquired 2B Craig Counsell from Florida for player to be named.

Aug. 5--Signed P Matt Herges.

Nov. 8--Acquired RF Shawn Green and 2B Jorge Nunez from Toronto for RF Raul Mondesi and P Pedro Borbon.

Dec. 3--Signed 2B Craig Counsell and RF Shawn Green.

Dec. 6--Signed PH Dave Hansen.

Dec. 12--Acquired P Terry Adams, P Chad Ricketts and a player to be named from Chicago Cubs for 2B Eric Young and P Ismael Valdes.

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2000

Jan. 5--Signed free-agent P Orel Hershiser.

Jan. 7--Signed P Darren Dreifort.

Jan. 10--Signed free-agent P Gregg Olson.

Jan. 11--Signed free-agent OF/IF F.P. Santangelo.

Jan. 20--Signed C Chad Kreuter to a minor league contract.

Feb. 18--Signed 1B Eric Karros.

March 12--Released 2B Craig Counsell.

March 27--Signed 3B Adrian Beltre.

March 30--Signed SS Kevin Elster and P Mike Fetters.

June 13--Acquired P Al Reyes from Baltimore for P Alan Mills and cash.

June 20--Acquired C/PH Jim Leyritz from New York Yankees for IF Jose Vizcaino.

July 26--Acquired P Ismael Valdes from Chicago Cubs for P Jamie Arnold and OF Jorge Piedra.

July 31--Acquired CF Tom Goodwin from Colorado for OF Todd Hollandsworth and two minor leaguers.

Aug. 6--Acquired OF/PH Bruce Aven from Pittsburgh for a player to be named.

Dec. 8--Signed free-agent P Andy Ashby.

Dec. 19--Signed free-agent P Darren Dreifort.

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2001

Jan. 18--Signed P Chan Ho Park.

Jan. 30--Signed free-agent P Ramon Martinez.

Feb. 8--Signed P Jesse Orosco to a minor league contract.

Feb. 25--Acquired CF Marquis Grissom from Milwaukee for CF Devon White and a player to be named.

March 18--Traded P Antonio Osuna and a minor league pitcher to Chicago White Sox for three pitching prospects.

March 28--Released P Ramon Martinez.

March 29--Released IF/PH F.P. Santangelo.