The Dodgers and Mariners face off today at Camelback Ranch. Twelve years ago, I was convinced this would be the World Series matchup. The Mariners were top heavy in talent, led by ubertalents Ken Griffey, Jr., Randy Johnson, Alex Rodriguez, Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner.
The Dodgers were coming off two straight playoff appearances and added Todd Zeile in the offseason. They had five very good starting pitchers, all under 30. Mike Piazza had perhaps the greatest hitting season ever by a catcher (.362, 40 bombs) yet was somehow denied the MVP I felt he deserved for the second straight year. The Dodgers repeated their 1977 feat with four players hitting 30 homers (Eric Karros, Raul Mondesi, and Todd Zeile joined Piazza).
It wasn't meant to be. The Mariners won the AL West, but lost to the Orioles in the ALDS. The Dodgers ran into Brian Johnson and the Giants, losing to their hated rivals by two games.
Today's game is again streamed for free on Dodgers.com. Click here to watch.