DODGERS

On April 18, 1958, Major League Baseball officially dug its cleats into the West Coast. That day, a record-setting 78,672 fans crammed into the collapsible seats at Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles to welcome the Dodgers from their former home at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field. While Brooklyners mourned the loss of their home team, the legendary lineup of Don Drysdale on the mound and Pee Wee Reese at shortstop inspired the first generation of Angelenos to pass through the turnstiles.

Five championships later, Los Angeles and the Dodgers are in the seventh inning stretch of a yearlong 50th anniversary celebration. Golden Anniversary festivities kicked off New Year’s Day with a Rose parade float that carried Dodgers luminaries like Tommy Lasorda and Steve Garvey. In June, the Dodgers received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame—the first pro sports team to do so—and every month since April has highlighted a different decade in the team’s history.

This month, the Dodgers will conclude the ceremonies with a reunion of players from the past decade. Bleacher bums will get a chance to meet them during fan appreciation week from Sept. 19–25. Die-hards can also pick the “All-Time L.A. Roster” and the “Top 50 Moments in Dodgers History” by voting online. But with a dugout of legendary names to choose from (Koufax, Hershiser, and Piazza, to name just a few), and the bases loaded with unforgettable moments (who can forget Kirk Gibson’s pinch-hit homer in the 1988 World Series?), don’t expect the calls to go undisputed.

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Did you know that the Dodgers’ original home, Ebbets Field, cost $750,000 to build? Find out more about the long-gone ballpark at this site.

Dodgers’ team historian Mark Langill dug through the archives and picked his top 10 moments in the franchise’s L.A. history. Read them here.

The MLB playoffs begin next month. Track your team’s progress with this handy interactive tool from baseballrace.com. Then check out all the news around the league at Baseball Think Factory.

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