History of the Los Angeles Dodgers

Brooklyn Dodgers history

The franchise began in 1883 as a minor league team in the Inter-State Association of Professional Baseball Clubs. Over the years, the team was known by various press-given nicknames, including the Brooklyn Atlantics, Grays, Bridegrooms, Grooms, Superbas, and Robins, before settling on Brooklyn Dodgers during World War I. The club won the American Association championship in 1889 and 12 National League championships, with its first World Series title coming in 1955. The final game at Ebbets Field was a 2–0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 24, 1957.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Walter Alston managed the Dodgers for 23 years starting in 1954, a tenure that ranks as the third-longest for a single team in baseball history. The team played its first Los Angeles game on April 18, 1958, defeating the San Francisco Giants 6–5 before 78,672 fans at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The project sparked political controversy when residents, a predominantly poor Hispanic community, resisted forced removal through eminent domain, a conflict known as the Battle of Chavez Ravine.

During stadium construction, the Dodgers used the Coliseum from 1958 to 1961. The Coliseum, built in 1923 and expanded for the 1932 Olympics, had unusual baseball dimensions: the left-field fence was only 250 feet from home plate, with a 40-foot screen to limit home runs. In 1958, 182 home runs were hit to left field at home games, compared to three to center and eight to right. Outfielder Wally Moon, acquired for 1959, became known for hitting lazy fly balls over the screen, called "Moon shots," and led the National League in triples that year.