Dodgers History: The highs and many lows of Darryl Strawberry

Darryl Strawberry’s first season with the Los Angeles Dodgers lived up to expectations.

It started off so good. Darry Strawberry’s debut season wearing Dodger blue, while a drop-off from his career-best campaign the season before, was still statistically up to the standards that warranted his $20 million contract.

Playing right field in Dodger Stadium, he slashed .265/.361/.491, which were all in line with his career averages with the Mets, except for slugging. He hit only 28 home runs in 1991, his lowest total since 1984, his second season in the big leagues. That said, his 28 total set a Dodgers franchise record at the time for most long balls by a left-handed hitter.

Strawberry earned his eighth straight All-Star appearance and finished ninth in National League MVP voting during a season in which the Dodgers finished one game out of first place.

The local kid was literally the “straw” that stirred the Dodgers drink that season. In Dodger wins, he batted .327 and hit twenty home runs; in Dodger losses, he was held to a putrid .188 batting average with only 8 round trippers.

The Dodgers entered the final series of the season tied with the Braves for the division lead, but three devastating losses to the Giants cost them the title. Strawberry tried his best to carry the team on his shoulders over that final week of the season. He hit home runs on three consecutive days to spark a three-game winning streak before the final series collapse.