Dodgers: Remembering the first great 30-homer club

The Dodgers’ first 30-homer club of Ron Cey, Dusty Baker, Reggie Smith, and Steve Garvey in 1977, has been replicated once since. That soon might change.

Justin Turner is only three home runs away from reaching the 30-home run plateau. He’s already set a career-high this season and he’s got a month of games remaining to get it done. Joc Pederson (32), Max Muncy (33), and of course Cody Bellinger (44), all have also hit their career-bests in home runs this season,

The stars have aligned for these Dodgers in the power department in 2019. And the last time LA had this much power concentrated amongst four players was all the way back in 1997, 20 years after the aforementioned four-member 30-home run club.

When I first heard someone mention Turner’s chance to reach 30 home runs, my first thought was of the bobblehead of the 30-homer club given away back in 2014.

As a young fan, that’s my only exposure to the great historical feat of the 1977 sluggers. So, for all of the other less seasoned fans out there, first I’d like to say I feel your pain in terms of never having watched the Dodgers win a World Series.

But more importantly for this article, I’d like to bring the stories of these four Dodgers back to the public, because while Garvey still makes plenty of appearances, many may not remember the days of Cey, Baker, and Smith. In this article, I’ll devote time to each member of the old guard of the 30-homer club and compare them to their counterparts of 2019’s own club.

Ron Cey Third baseman, 30 home runs in 1977, 316 lifetime home runs, 2019 comp: Justin Turner

Affectionately dubbed “the Penguin” by Dodger fans, Cey was a five-time All-Star and a member of the famous infield succinctly referred to as “The Infield”, Cey is an all-time Dodger legend and definitely was a fan-favorite, and more than likely the best third baseman in Dodger history.

While being beaned by a Goose Gossage fastball is one his most famous exploits, Cey was a World Series co-MVP in 1981 and a steady hand at the hot corner for his whole Dodger career. He played the first 12 years of his 17-year career in Dodger blue, a stretch which included all five of his All-Star appearances. 1977 was the only season in which the Penguin reached 30 home runs.

In his five straight All-Star seasons from 1974 to 1979 (his age 26 to 31 seasons), he hit 18, 25, 23, 30, and 28 home runs. 1977 actually was the season in which he had his worst batting average (.241), but all those home runs netted him 110 RBI, another career-high he’d never surpass.

Cey leads this 30-homer club in a few key stats as well. Here’s what the LA Times dug up a year ago when remembering Cey:

From 1977-81 Most homers: Cey, 122; Garvey, 118; Baker, 102. OPS+: Smith, 154; Cey, 129; Garvey, 126. WAR: Cey, 22.4; Smith, 16.7; Garvey, 16.3

Even though names like Adrian Beltre or Pedro Guerrero, or even Justin Turner, may bring up hotter primes than that of Cey, he was a steady contributor and a very long-tenured one. He really is the Dodgers’ greatest third baseman.

Reggie Smith Rightfield, 32 home runs in 1977, 314 lifetime home runs, 2019 comp: Max Muncy

Unlike Cey, Smith entered the Dodgers building dynasty as a seasoned veteran, already in the 12th season of his 17 season career by 1977. Smith was dealt to the Dodgers in the middle of the 1976 season and he hit his way through the rest of his six-year stint in LA as one of the best on the team.

A real leader and veteran presence, Smith was an LA native and played like he was comfortable in a Dodger uniform. As a Dodger, he made three All-Star games, including his first two full seasons as a Dodger in 1977 and 1978.

1977, the year he joined the 30-homer club, was his best season by far though. Besides his 32 home runs, Smith led all of baseball in OBP with a .427 mark. His triple slash that year was .307/.427/.576, which earned him an OPS over 1.000 and garnered him a fourth-place finish in NL MVP voting.

A seven-time All-Star in his career, Smith finished out his career (sadly) with the San Francisco Giants, but he really showed how steady and consistent he was while with the Dodgers. A true competitor, Smith had five seasons in which he finished in the top 10 in all of baseball for home runs, and he led the AL in doubles twice in his career while with the Boston Red Sox.

To be honest, I had never heard of Smith before reading about the 30-homer club a few years ago, which to me marks him as criminally underrated. With stats akin to those of Garvey and Cey, despite being on the downswing of his age curve, Smith reminds me of Max Muncy: he doesn’t quite get the respect his performance should have deserved.

Dusty Baker Leftfield, 30 home runs in 1977, 242 lifetime home runs, 2019 comp Joc Pederson

Remembering Dusty Baker as a player is something I can’t do, but fortunately, I am able to look up his highlights on Youtube. If you haven’t ever done so, you should. While most fans of my generation know Baker for his three Manager of the Year award-winning seasons, Baker was a stud on the field in his own right.

Baker, a lifelong Dodger fan and resident of Southern California, was a fan favorite and favorite of new manager Tommy Lasorda.

Here’s a video encapsulating the moment Baker reached 30 home runs on the last day of the season against Houston’s star hurler J.R. Richard from MLB Network:

Beyond the 1977 season, Baker still was a star for the Dodgers, just not quite to the same degree. In his eight seasons with the Dodgers, Baker hit 144 home runs with 179 doubles and 73 steals, enough to get him to his first two All-Star games. He also won his two Silver Sluggers and his Gold Glove with the Dodgers.

Along with Smith, he gave the Dodgers one of the greatest outfields of the decade. Like Smith, Max Muncy is my comparison for Baker, due to how the Dodgers gave both players a chance to turn their careers around. Yet Joc Pederson, a fellow outfielder, provides a similar comparison to Baker, as trust from their managers yielded powerful seasons for both.