In 2004, the first season under new owner Frank McCourt, the Dodgers won their first division title in 8 years. The 1995 Dodgers won the division after the strike was over in a shortened season. But they were ousted out of the playoffs in the NLDS. The new GM was Paul DePodesta, a strong advocate of analytics when teams were just starting to use that kind of data. He traded away LA’s starting catcher at the deadline for a 1st baseman, Hee-Seop Choi, a minor leaguer, and Brad Penny. The minor leaguer was packaged with a couple of other players for Arizona’s Steve Finley.
9 Division Titles in 10 Years, Are Dodger Fans Spoiled?
