Top 10 Dodgers of the 2000’s: 2000-2009

4. Russell Martin

The newly acquired Martin is back in blue. Martin was a part of the young crop of players that included the previously mentioned Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and Clayton Kershaw (also James Loney). He was great straight away and was able to maintain that success.

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In his four seasons from 2006-2009, his OBP did not drop below .350. Which is even more impressive considering the beating catchers take behind the dish. He was also able to steal 60 bases during that time frame. Martin was a good all-around catcher.

In those four seasons, he collected 2 all-star game appearances, a gold glove and a silver slugger. He was also a part of one of the most iconic moments in franchise history. The four consecutive home runs to tie the game. Martin, like many others on this list, was a fan favorite and that was because he played the game with an edge and that helped him be productive while with the Dodgers.

3. Adrian Beltre

This was very tough. The numbers 1-3 could be interchanged and it would be hard for me to make an argument against it. The newly retired Adrian Beltre gets the nod here because of his giant year in 2004. That year he finished second in MVP voting behind Barry Bonds (of course) and was able to earn his first silver slugger.

2004 was the season that really put Beltre on the map for many fans and earned him a nice contract with the Mariners. That season really came out of nowhere. Although he was consistently improving as a player the magnitude in which he improved could not have been predicted.

He was a solid player beforehand but setting a career high in average, OBP, OPS, slugging, home runs and RBI’s. Beltre was also an elite defender. He holds two of the top 10 spots for defensive WAR in a single season for the Dodgers. Even if his offensive number only really popped off the stat sheet in 2004, Beltre was always an elite defender.