Hot Potato Corner

by Eric Stephen on Feb 7, 2009 8:47 PM PST in Research Comment 6 comments

Barring injury, it looks like Casey Blake will be starting at third base for the Dodgers on opening day April 6 in San Diego. Blake will be the sixth different 3B to start on opening day in the last six years:

2004: Adrian Beltre

2005: Jose Valentin

2006: Bill Mueller

2007: Wilson Betemit

2008: Blake DeWitt

2009: Casey Blake

Believe it or not, this is not the longest such streak of hot corner instability in Dodger history. After the franchise's first championship in 1955, the club embarked on an 11-year odyssey with a different third-sacker each year:

1956: Jackie Robinson

1957: Randy Jackson (dog!)

1958: Dick Gray

1959: Jim Baxes

1960: Junior Gilliam

1961: Tommy Davis

1962: Daryl Spencer

1963: Ken McMullen

1964: Johnny Werhas

1965: John Kennedy

1966: Jim Lefebvre

Overall, Blake will be the 33rd different third baseman in the last 54 years. He'll get to join the ranks of such Dodger greats as German Rivera (1984) and Mike Blowers (1996).

You want something more obscure? More LA Dodger opening day 3B have reached on an error (4) than have homered (3).

What does this all mean? Well, nothing, other than the fact that I'm bored and waiting for pitchers and catchers to report.

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Comments

Premature?

Who thought at this point last year that DeWitt would end up with the job? Blake could easily pull a 35 year old hammy and not be ready for opening day, If one throw can knock out two guys, then age can certainly knock out the Blake making room for the original Blake.

by meercatjohn on Feb 7, 2009 9:18 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

before Ron Cey

took the job in 73 we had a series of crappy 3rd baseman. How about Tommy Davis as the 61 3rd baseman? Shades of Pedro

by meercatjohn on Feb 7, 2009 9:20 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Tommy Davis

Seeing him as the opening day 3B kind of shocked me.

How about Ken McMullen with 10 years in between opening day starts (1963-1973)?

by Eric Stephen on Feb 7, 2009 9:23 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

re:

I saw McMullen play for the Senators so I was already a big fan when we traded for him. He was a good player but was done by the time he came back. As much as I liked what Osteen did I think the Dodgers could have used the offense of Howard and McMullen more then his pitching from 65 -72. Maybe we don’t get the World Series in 65 or maybe we don’t have to work so hard with the offense they provided. As cool as Lou Johnson was in 65 I think Howard would have been handy when Tommy D went down but that is ancient history..

by meercatjohn on Feb 7, 2009 9:27 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs