Los Angeles Dodgers: The Hall of Very Good

The history of the Los Angeles Dodgers is home to some of the greatest MLB players of all-time, but some sit on the cusp of Cooperstown.

As of 2019, the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York is home to 333 members, 235 of which are players. Of those 235 players, 45 played for the Los Angeles Dodgers at some point in their career, and 11 of their wear a Dodgers cap (8 with Brooklyn, three more with Los Angeles).

Undoubtedly the Dodgers have seen their fair share of players that have been fan favorites and who ranked highly among their peers but didn’t achieve enshrinement in Cooperstown. The Baseball Hall of Fame is home to the absolute best of all-time and unfortunately, not all players can earn that distinction.

Maybe their window of dominance was too short or perhaps, while still being very good players, they just don’t rank among the best of all-time. Maybe they missed an important milestone or were overshadowed by an absolute luminary of their era.

But what of those players that were still standouts? Shouldn’t they receive some sort of recognition for what they accomplished on the baseball field as well?

With that in mind, I would like to introduce the inaugural class to the Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Very Good.

Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Very Good: Ron Cey

Ron Cey the first 12 years of his Major League career as a member of the Dodgers, where he hit .264/.359/.445 with 228 home runs and 842 RBI. Among all-time Dodgers rankings, he is fifth in fWAR (49.9), 5th in home runs and 10th in RBI.

Cey’s bid for the Hall of Fame falls short in a few spots.

A six-time All-Star, Cey never finished higher than eighth in the MVP voting. That likely happened because even during his 10 peak years (1973 to 1982), he competed in the same league with perhaps the greatest third baseman of all-time; Mike Schmidt. During this span, Cey put up a comparable 49.9 fWAR (3rd among his position), but Schmidt was a distant star with 73.9.

Cey also misses in a number of the career milestone categories that are typical precursors to induction. His 316  home runs at third base rank 16th all-time at the position, but fall well short of the 400 which seems to be the magic number for the hot corner. Four of the five eligible third basemen who have hit the mark have been inducted. Darrell Evans is the lone exception and Alex Rodriguez is unlikely to receive the acknowledgment. Likewise, Cey, with only 1868 career hits, is well short of 3000, or even the 2000+ that is typical of Hall of Fame third basemen.

Of the third basemen during Cey’s heyday, only Schmidt and George Brett currently claim real estate in Cooperstown, although an argument for either Evans or Pete Rose could be made on another site. However, Ron Cey will get his spot as the first member of our Hall of Very Good.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Very Good: Willie Davis

A veteran of 14 MLB seasons, Willie Davis spent his first 12 campaigns with the Los Angeles Dodgers after being signed as an amateur free agent in 1958. During his time in Dodger Blue, the man known as “3-Dog” by his teammates hit an inspired .279/.311/.412 with 182 home runs, 1053 RBI, and 398 stolen bases.

From a strict value standpoint, Davis put up an fWAR of 48.6 with the Dodgers, ranking him just behind Cey among all-time Dodgers. While he was no slouch with the bat, most of his value came from his play in center field, where he had the unenviable task of replacing Duke Snider. He accumulated a Total Zone Rating of 105 while making 5278 put-outs and accounting for 133 assists.

Like Cey, Davis offered a ton of value for the Dodgers during his time but struggles to match up against the luminaries of the position, especially from an offensive standpoint. While Davis ranks 2nd in total fWAR from 1960-1972, Willie Mays was the benchmark of that time, accumulating 93.2 fWAR against Davis’ 48.6. Mays far eclipsed Davis offensively while nearly matching him from a defensive standpoint. It didn’t help matters that Mays was the recipient of every Gold Glove from 1957 to 1968 either.

The biggest knocks on Davis are from the offensive side of the game. While the Hall of Fame has made strides in recent seasons to honor those who provided elite defensive value, Davis did not fall into that era. Instead, he comes up short of offensive milestones like 3000 hits (2561) and 400+ home runs (182).

Davis ranks just 27th in terms of WAR7, which measures a player’s best 7-years and directly correlates to his JAWS rating (16th), which uses a combination of standard WAR and WAR7 to determine Hall of Fame comparison at his position. Of the 15 players that rank above him in JAWS, 10 are in the Hall of Fame and three are not yet eligible. The average cut-off for induction is 58, with Davis falling short at 49.8.

Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Very Good: Fernando Valenzuela

The threshold for pitchers being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame is a steep one. It requires not only sheer dominance, but consistency, healthy, and, quite frankly, a bit of good luck. A pitcher almost needs to ensure that not only do they succeed as a player but that their team is also successful during their career.

Fernando Valenzuela was lucky to be part of the latter, finding himself on two World Series-winning squads. Breaking in during the 1981 season, he was thrust right into the fray and made a mark for himself among Dodgers faithful. After winning both the Cy Young and National League Rookie of the Year award in his first season, he went on to spend 11 of his 17 years toeing the rubber at Chavez Ravine. He would go 141-116 with the Dodgers, chipping in a 3.31 ERA, a 3.28 FIP, and a 6.74 K/9 rate. He even authored a career slash line of .200/.205/.262 with eight home runs and 72 RBI as a hitter.

From a sheer value standpoint, Valenzuela put up a career fWAR of 40.9, and his 38.0 with the Dodgers ranks fifth all-time for the team. Of the Dodgers ahead of his four are in the Hall of Fame currently and the leader of the pack (Clayton Kershaw) has not yet retired. During his peak from 1981 to 1987, Fernando led all MLB pitchers in fWAR (34.2), was 27th in ERA, 10th in FIP (3.06), and 13th in WPA (10.55).

While his Dodgers career is memorable for his impeccable run during his rookie year, his 21 games won in 1986, and his no-hitter in 1990, Fernando’s peak came early in his career and by 1988, he never consistently put up ace-level production worthy of enshrinement in Cooperstown.

When measuring against the pitchers that currently own spots in the Hall of Fame, where the JAWS threshold sits at 61.6, Valenzuela sits 161st all-time with a mark of 37.5. Even his seven peak years, checking in a 33.5 WAR7, fall below the starting pitcher mark of 50.0.

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Still, among Dodgers fans, Fernando Valenzuela is royalty and he will never have to pay for another drink in Los Angeles for the rest of his days. For Fernando Mania, two World Series titles, a Cy Young, and a Rookie of the Year award, Fernando deserves a spot in our Dodgers Hall of Very Good.