Righty starting pitcher Orel Hershiser looks like he could have been your science teacher in school. But he was a “Bulldog” on the mound for the L.A. Dodgers. In 13 years with the Dodgers Hershiser pitched in 353 games (309 starts) in which he was 135-107 with 5 saves, a 3.12 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. He is 9th in Dodgers’ history in games started (309), #10 in wins (135), #6 in strikeouts (1,456) and he is #9 in shutouts (24). Hershiser was a three-time All-Star for the Dodgers and he won a Gold Glove. But in 1988, Orel Hershiser was the best pitcher on the planet. He won the Cy Young Award with a unanimous vote in 1988 a year in which he also won the Gold Glove. He pitched in 35 games (34 starts) in 1988 and he was 23-8 with 1 save, a 2.26 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. Hershiser set a all-time record in 1988 that still stands and he threw 59 consecutive shutout innings that year to top Don Drysdale’s previous mark. Hershiser didn’t stop there as he was also the MVP of the World Series in 1988. In that series, Hershiser started 2 games and completed them both (1 was a shutout) as he was 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP. Hershiser won’t likely ever get into baseball’s Hall of Fame but at least in 2008 there was no pitcher even close to as good as he was.

The portly little lefty starting pitcher Fernando Valenzuela took L.A. by storm when he arrived for good in 1981. Valenzuela won the Rookie of the Year Award and the Cy Young Award in 1981 at the age of 20. He pitched in 25 games (all starts) for the Dodgers in 1981 and he was 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. He had 11 complete games that season including 8 of which that were shutouts. The Dodgers worked Valenzuela hard which probably led his arm to be shot before his time should have been up. Valenzuela pitched in 331 games (320 starts) in 11 years for the Dodgers and he was 141-116 with 2 saves, a 3.31 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Valenzuela’s name is all over the record books for the Dodgers. He is #6 all-time in Dodgers’ history in games started (320), #8 in wins (141), tied for #6 in shutouts (29), #9 in innings pitched (2,348 2/3) and #5 in strikeouts (1,759). Fernando Valenzuela will always have a place in Dodgers’ fans hearts as he was truly a sight to see and a reason to come to the ballpark.

1B Steve Garvey never really liked to take a rest as for a few years he played in every game for the Dodgers. He was a 8-time All-Star for the Dodgers and he won 4 Gold Gloves in his 14 seasons with them. He was also the N.L. MVP in 1974 with the Dodgers when he played in 156 games and he was 200 for 642 (.312 avg, .811 OPS) with 95 runs scored, 21 homers, 111 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Garvey played in 1,727 games in his time with the Dodgers and he was 1,968 for 6,543 (.301 avg, .796 OPS) with 852 runs scored, 211 homers, 992 RBIs and 77 stolen bases. Garvey is #5 all-time on the Dodgers in hits, #6 in homers and #5 in RBIs. Garvey was one of the best 1B in team history and that’s saying a lot with the Dodgers’ legacy in baseball.