1996 Los Angeles Dodgers season

1996 Los Angeles Dodgers
1996 NL Wild Card
Major League affiliations
National League (since 1890)
Western Division (since 1969)
Location
Dodger Stadium (since 1962)
Los Angeles (since 1958)
Other information
Owner(s)	Peter O'Malley
General manager(s)	Fred Claire
Manager(s)	Tommy Lasorda, Bill Russell
Local television	KTLA (5)
Local radio	KABC Vin Scully, Ross Porter, Rick Monday KWKW Jaime Jarrín, René Cárdenas
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The 1996 season saw the Dodgers remain atop the standings most of the season. However, longtime manager Tommy Lasorda suffered a heart attack in mid-season and had to step down. Bill Russell, Lasorda's bench coach and a former Dodger player, was chosen to manage the rest of the season.

The Dodgers went into the final weekend of the season with a two-game lead on the San Diego Padres, needing only to win one of the final three games with the Padres to clinch the National League Western Division crown. However, the Padres swept the Dodgers and they limped into the playoffs as a Wild Card team.

Offseason

• November 29, 1995: Acquired Mike Blowers from the Seattle Mariners for Miguel Cairo and Willie Otanez
• December 15, 1995: Acquired Rick Clelland from the Montreal Expos for Omar Daal
• December 17, 1995: Acquired Billy Brewer from the Kansas City Royals for José Offerman

Regular season

Season standings

NL West	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
San Diego Padres	91	71	0.562	—	45–36	46–35
Los Angeles Dodgers	90	72	0.556	1	47–34	43–38
Colorado Rockies	83	79	0.512	8	55–26	28–53
San Francisco Giants	68	94	0.420	23	38–44	30–50

Record vs. opponents

1996 National League Records Sources:
Team	ATL	CHC	CIN	COL	FLA	HOU	LAD	MON	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL
Atlanta	—	7–5	7–5	5–7	6–7	6–6	5–7	10–3	7–6	9–4	9–3	9–4	7–5	9–4
Chicago	5–7	—	5–8	5–7	6–6	5–8	8–5	6–6	7–5	7–6	4–9	6–6	7–5	5–8
Cincinnati	5–7	8–5	—	7–6	3–9	7–6	4–8	3–9	6–6	10–2	5–8	9–3	9–4	5–8
Colorado	7–5	7–5	6–7	—	5–8	8–5	6–7	3–9	7–5	6–6	7–5	8–5	5–8	8–4
Florida	7–6	6–6	9–3	8–5	—	7–5	6–7	5–8	7–6	6–7	5–7	3–9	5–7	6–6
Houston	6–6	8–5	6–7	5–8	5–7	—	6–6	4–9	8–4	10–2	8–5	6–6	8–4	2–11
Los Angeles	7–5	5–8	8–4	7–6	7–6	6–6	—	9–3	8–4	7–6	6–6	5–8	7–6	8–4
Montreal	3–10	6–6	9–3	9–3	8–5	9–4	3–9	—	7–6	6–7	7–5	4–8	9–4	8–4
New York	6–7	5–7	6–6	5–7	6–7	4–8	4–8	6–7	—	7–6	8–5	3–10	6–6	5–7
Philadelphia	4-9	6–7	2–10	6–6	7–6	2–10	6–7	7–6	6–7	—	7–5	4–8	6–6	4–8
Pittsburgh	3–9	9–4	8–5	5–7	7–5	5–8	6–6	5–7	5–8	5–7	—	4–9	8–4	3–10
San Diego	4–9	6–6	3–9	5–8	9–3	6–6	8–5	8–4	10–3	8–4	9–4	—	11–2	4–8
San Francisco	5–7	5–7	4–9	8–5	7–5	4–8	6–7	4–9	6–6	6–6	4–8	2–11	—	7–6
St. Louis	4–9	8–5	8–5	4–8	6–6	11-2	4–8	4–8	7–5	8–4	10–3	8–4	6–7	—

Opening Day lineup

Opening Day Starters
Name	Position
Delino DeShields	Second baseman
Brett Butler	Center fielder
Mike Piazza	Catcher
Eric Karros	First baseman
Raúl Mondesí	Right fielder
Mike Blowers	Third baseman
Todd Hollandsworth	Left fielder
Greg Gagne	Shortstop
Ramón Martínez	Starting pitcher

Notable Transactions

• July 31, 1996: Acquired Chad Curtis from the Detroit Tigers for Joey Eischen and John Cummings
• August 31, 1996: Acquired Dave Clark from the Pittsburgh Pirates for Carl South
• October 30, 1996: Chip Hale signed as a Free Agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers.^[1]

Roster

1996 Los Angeles Dodgers
Roster
Pitchers 56 Pedro Astacio 45 Jim Bruske 49 Tom Candiotti 41 John Cummings 37 Darren Dreifort 51 Joey Eischen 44 Mark Guthrie 52 Darren Hall 48 Ramón Martínez 16 Hideo Nomo 13 Antonio Osuna 61 Chan Ho Park 36 Scott Radinsky 59 Ismael Valdes 38 Todd Worrell		Catchers 26 Carlos Hernández 31 Mike Piazza 15 Tom Prince Infielders 20 Mike Blowers 25 Mike Busch 60 Juan Castro 14 Delino DeShields  3 Chad Fonville  7 Greg Gagne  5 Dave Hansen 23 Eric Karros 62 Oreste Marrero 29 Tim Wallach		Outfielders 21 Billy Ashley 22 Brett Butler 27 Roger Cedeño 35 Dave Clark 10 Chad Curtis 28 Todd Hollandsworth 55 Wayne Kirby 43 Raúl Mondesí 40 Rick Parker 29 Milt Thompson Other batters 12 Karim García 30 Wilton Guerrero		Manager  2 Tommy Lasorda 18 Bill Russell Coaches  8 Joey Amalfitano (third base) 58 Mark Cresse (bullpen) 11 Manny Mota 18 Bill Russell (bench)  9 Reggie Smith (hitting/1st base) 17 Dave Wallace (pitching)

Starting Pitchers stats

Name	G	GS	IP	W/L	ERA	BB	SO	CG
Hideo Nomo	33	33	228.3	16-11	3.19	85	234	3
Ismael Valdez	33	33	225.0	15-7	3.32	54	173	0
Pedro Astacio	35	32	211.7	9-8	3.44	67	130	0
Tom Candiotti	28	27	152.3	9-11	4.49	43	79	1
Ramón Martínez	28	27	168.7	15-6	3.42	86	133	2

Relief Pitchers stats

Name	G	GS	IP	W/L	ERA	BB	SO	SV
Todd Worrell	72	0	65.3	4-6	3.03	15	66	44
Antonio Osuna	73	0	84.0	9-6	3.00	32	85	4
Mark Guthrie	66	0	73.0	2-3	2.22	22	56	1
Scott Radinsky	58	0	52.3	5-1	2.41	17	48	1
Chan Ho Park	48	10	108.7	5-5	3.64	71	119	0
Joey Eischen	28	0	43.3	0-1	4.78	20	36	0
Darren Dreifort	19	0	23.7	1-4	4.94	12	24	0
Jim Bruske	11	0	12.7	0-0	5.68	3	12	0
Darren Hall	9	0	12.0	0-2	6.00	5	12	0
John Cummings	4	0	5.3	0-1	6.75	2	5	0

Batting Stats

Name	Pos	G	AB	Avg.	R	H	HR	RBI	SB
Mike Piazza	C	148	547	.336	87	184	36	105	0
Tom Prince	C	40	64	.297	6	19	1	11	0
Carlos Hernández	C	13	14	.286	1	4	0	0	0
Eric Karros	1B	154	608	.260	84	158	34	111	8
Delino DeShields	2B	154	581	.224	75	130	5	41	48
Greg Gagne	SS	128	428	.255	48	109	10	55	4
Mike Blowers	3B/1B/SS	92	317	.265	31	84	6	38	0
Chad Fonville	2B/SS/LF/CF/3B	103	201	.204	34	41	0	13	7
Tim Wallach	3B	45	162	.228	14	37	4	22	0
|Juan Castro	SS/3B/2B/LF	70	132	.197	16	26	0	5	1
Dave Hansen	3B/1B	80	104	.221	7	23	0	6	0
Mike Busch	3B/1B	38	83	.217	8	18	4	17	0
Oreste Marrero	1B	10	8	.375	2	3	0	1	0
Wilton Guerrero	IF	5	2	.000	1	0	0	0	0
Raúl Mondesí	RF	157	634	.297	98	188	24	88	14
Roger Cedeño	CF/LF/RF	86	211	.246	26	52	2	18	5
Todd Hollandsworth	LF/CF/RF	149	478	.291	64	139	12	59	21
Wayne Kirby	CF/LF	65	188	.271	23	51	1	11	4
Brett Butler	CF	34	131	.267	22	35	0	8	8
Billy Ashley	LF	71	110	.200	18	22	9	25	0
Chad Curtis	CF	43	104	.212	20	22	2	9	2
Milt Thompson	LF	48	51	.118	2	6	0	1	1
Dave Clark	LF	15	15	.200	0	3	0	1	0
Rick Parker	CF/LF	16	14	.286	2	4	0	1	1
Karim García	OF	1	1	.000	0	0	0	0	0

1996 Playoffs

1996 National League Division Series

The 1996 National League Division Series was played between Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves. Atlanta ended up winning the series 3-0.

Game 1, October 2

Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	R	H	E
Atlanta	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	4	0
Los Angeles	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	5	0
W: John Smoltz (1-0)  L: Antonio Osuna (0-1)  SV: Mark Wohlers (1)
HRs: ATL – Javier López (1); LAD – none

Game 2, October 3

Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Atlanta	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	3	5	2
Los Angeles	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	3	0
W: Greg Maddux (1-0)  L: Ismael Valdez (0-1)  SV: Mark Wohlers (2)
HRs: ATL – Fred McGriff (1), Ryan Klesko (1), Jermaine Dye (1); LAD – none

Game 3, October 3

Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Los Angeles	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	2	6	1
Atlanta	1	0	0	4	0	0	0	0	X	5	7	0
W: Tom Glavine (1-0)  L: Hideo Nomo (0-1)  SV: Mark Wohlers (3)
HRs: LA – none; ATL – Chipper Jones (1)

1996 Awards

• 1996 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
  • Mike Piazza starter
  • Todd Worrell reserve
• Rookie of the Year Award
  • Todd Hollandsworth
• All-Star Game MVP Award
  • Mike Piazza
• TSN National League All-Star
  • Mike Piazza
• Players Choice: Outstanding NL Rookie
  • Todd Hollandsworth
• Baseball Digest Rookie All-Star
  • Todd Hollandsworth
• Silver Slugger Award
  • Mike Piazza
• NL Pitcher of the Month
  • Hideo Nomo (September 1996)
• NL Player of the Week
  • Hideo Nomo (Sep. 16–22)
• Branch Rickey Award
  • Brett Butler

Farm system

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Albuquerque Dukes	Pacific Coast League	Phil Regan
AA	San Antonio Missions	Texas League	John Shelby
High A	San Bernardino Stampede	California League	Del Crandall
High A	Vero Beach Dodgers	Florida State League	Jon Debus
A	Savannah Sand Gnats	South Atlantic League	John Shoemaker
A-Short Season	Yakima Bears	Northwest League	Joe Vavra
Rookie	Great Falls Dodgers	Pioneer League	Mickey Hatcher
Rookie	DSL Dodgers DSL Dodgers 2	Dominican Summer League

Teams in BOLD won League Championships

Major League Baseball draft

The Dodgers selected 79 players in this draft. Of those, seven of them would eventually play Major League baseball.

The top draft pick was third baseman Damian Rolls from Schlagel High School. He was selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 1999 Rule 5 draft and then traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, where he played parts of five seasons with a .248 batting average, 9 homers and 73 RBI.

Shortstop Alex Cora was drafted in the third round out of the University of Miami. He would play 14 seasons in the Majors (7 of them with the Dodgers), primarily as a utility infielder/defensive replacement. He hit .243 in 1,273 games

The most successful player in this draft class was left-handed pitcher Ted Lilly from Fresno City College, who was drafted in the 23rd round. A two-time All-Star, he would play 15 seasons in the Majors (the last 4 with the Dodgers) and had a 130-113 record and 4.14 ERA in 356 games (331 starts).

1996 Draft Picks

Round Name Position School Signed Career span Highest level 1 Damian Rolls 3B Schlagel High School Yes 1996–2009 MLB 2 Josh Glassey C Mission Bay High School Yes 1996–2002 AAA 3 Alex Cora SS University of Miami Yes 1996–2011 MLB 4 Peter Bergeron OF Greenfield High School Yes 1996–2007 MLB 5 Nick Leach 1B Madera High School Yes 1996–2002 AA 6 Jack Jones SS California State University, Fullerton Yes 1996–2004 AAA 7 Ben Simon RHP Eastern Michigan University Yes 1996–2005 AAA 8 Chris Karabinus LHP Towson University Yes 1997 A- 9 Edwin Falcon C Tomas C Ongay High School Yes 1996–1998 A- 10 Jeff Auterson OF Norte Vista High School Yes 1996–2001 A+ 11 Jason Walters RHP Meridian Community College Yes 1997–1999 A- 12 Randy Stearns OF University of Wisconsin–River Falls Yes 1996–1997 A 13 Derrick Peoples OF Billy Ryan High School Yes 1997–2004 A- 14 Willie King 1B Franklin D. Roosevelt High School Yes 1996–2005 A 15 Casey Snow C California State University, Long Beach Yes 1996–2000 AAA 16 Matthew Kramer RHP Moorpark College Yes 1996–1999 A+ 17 Mikal Richey OF Columbia High School Yes 1996–1997 Rookie 18 Pedro Flores LHP East Los Angeles College Yes 1996–2011 AAA 19 Mickey Maestas RHP George Mason University Yes 1996–1997 A- 20 Ismael Gallo SS Mt. San Antonio College Yes 1997–2001 A+ 21 Kimani Newton OF St. Joseph High School Yes 1996–2000 A+ 22 Elvis Correa RHP South Division High School Yes 1996–2001 A+ 23 Ted Lilly LHP Fresno City College Yes 1996–2013 MLB 24 Pat Kelleher OF Yes 1997–2002 A+ 25 Scott Morrison SS Baylor University Yes 1996–1997 A 26 Monte Marshall 2B Birmingham–Southern College Yes 1996–1997 A+ 27 Steve Wilson C Georgia Southern University Yes 1996–1998 A+ 28 Brian Zaun OF Butler University Yes 1996–1997 A 29 Toby Dollar RHP Texas Christian University Yes 1996–1999 AAA 30 Rich Saitta 2B Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey Yes 1996–2002 AAA 31 Brian Foulks OF Benedict College Yes 1996–1997 A 32 Brian Sankey 1B Boston College Yes 1996–1998 A+ 33 Brian Jacobson LHP California Baptist University Yes 1996–1997 A 34 Brad Creese C Marina High School No Diamondbacks-2000 2000–2006 AAA 35 Don Thomas LHP Andrew College No Astros-1997 1997–2003 A 36 Wayne Franklin LHP University of Maryland, Baltimore County Yes 1996–2010 MLB 37 Jim Fritz C University of Tennessee No Phillies-1997 1997–1998 A 38 Jeff Kubenka LHP St. Mary's University Yes 1996–2002 MLB 39 Bryan Cranson LHP Bronson High School No 40 Frank Thompson RHP Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University Yes 1996–2001 A+ 41 Jason Weekley OF Saint Mary's College of California Yes 1996–1997 A+ 42 Jake Allen C Southeastern Illinois College Yes 1997 Rookie 43 Kevin Culmo RHP California State University, Sacramento Yes 1996 A- 44 Eddie Sordo RHP Jacksonville University No 45 Erik Lazerus SS California State University, Chico No 1997–1999 Ind 46 Bradley Turner C Belton High School No 47 Eric Lovinger RHP Oregon State University Yes 1996 A- 48 Neal Hannah RHP Mercer University Yes 1996–1998 A- 49 Peter Brinjak RHP Power-St. Joseph's High School No 50 Brian Paulk RHP Saginaw Valley State University Yes 1996–1998 A+ 51 Doug Straight RHP Buckhannon-Upshur High School No 52 Dean Mitchell RHP Texas A&M University Yes 1996–2001 AAA 53 Blake Mayo RHP University of Alabama at Birmingham Yes 1996–2002 AAA 54 James Jackson OF Kankakee High School No 55 Adam Flohr LHP Spokane Falls Community College No Devil Rays-1998 1998–2003 AAA 56 Spencer Micunek RHP Kalamazoo Valley Community College No 57 Ryan Anholt 2B Kwantlen College No 2000 Ind 58 Brian Little 3B College of the Sequoias No 59 J. C. Huguest C Coral Park High School No Reds-2000 2000–2008 A+ 60 Craig Jarvis OF Claremont Secondary School No 61 Kevin Sullivan C Pacelli High School No Phillies-2000 2000–2008 AAA 62 Mark Paschal OF Chaffey College No 63 George Bailey 3B St. Joseph High School No 64 Joseph Thomas RHP Mt. San Antonio College No 65 Devin Helps LHP McClung Collegiate High School No 66 Travis Bolton C West Valley High School No 67 Graig Merritt C Terry Fox Secondary School No Devil Rays-2001 2001–2005 AA 68 Samuel Shelton RHP Durango High School No 69 Mike Meyer SS Sabino High School No Cardinals-2000 2000–2014 A+ 70 Matt Mason C J. Lloyd Crow High School No 2000–2003 Ind 71 Kevin Huff RHP Horizon High School No 72 Eric Bruntlett SS Harrison High School No Astros-2000 2000–2010 MLB 73 Edwin Rodriguez 1B Academia Cristo Rey No 74 Ryan Withey SS Mainland High School No Angels-2000 2000–2001 A 75 Paul Sirant RHP River East Collegiate High School No 76 Chad Zaniewski OF John I. Leonard High School No 77 Richard Garner C Wade Hampton High School No 78 Jim Davis 1B Berrien County High School No 79 Saúl Rivera SS Lake Land College No [2]

References

1. http://www.baseball-reference.com/h/halech01.shtml
2. 1996 Los Angeles Dodgers Picks in the MLB June Amateur Draft

External links

• 1996 Los Angeles Dodgers uniform
• Los Angeles Dodgers official web site
• Baseball-Reference season page
• Baseball Almanac season page