New Home for the Dodgers

Today, in 1957, the Los Angeles City Council gives Chavez Ravine the OK as the new location of the Los Angeles Dodgers, then the Brooklyn Dodgers. Their was big controversy over this move, as many Mexican American immigrants were forced to leave the area to make way for the construction of Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers would move to Chavez Ravine and the new Dodger Stadium in 1958 and have played there over the last 54 years. When a team makes a move to a new city, it is fair to say that the club expects to benefit strongly from the change in scenery. Was this true for the Dodgers from a baseball standpoint? The Brooklyn Trolly Dodgers became just the Dodgers in 1911, 46 years before the move to Los Angeles. Over those four and a half decades, the Brooklyn Dodgers made 9 World Series appearances, winning their 1955 appearance. The team also saw 39 of their players enter the Hall of Fame. They also broke the color barrier in baseball with their signing of Jackie Robinson. How have the Dodgers fared in the 54 years since the move to Los Angeles? Well, the blue and white made 9 more World Series appearances and put 14 more athletes in the Hall of Fame. Solid numbers. The difference? 5 World Series titles have been won by the Dodgers since the move to LA. The Dodgers aren't the only team in baseball, or the state of California for that matter, to keep success alive after moving. The Oakland Athletics won five World Series titles in Philly, before moving to Kansas City and later to Oakland. The A's won four more titles by the bay. However, the Dodgers are the 1st team in baseball to spend a considerable amount of time in one area, relocate and be even more successful. Sources for this article: http://www.todayinsport.com/day/september/16 http://www.sportsecyclopedia.com/nl/bdodgers/brooklyn.html http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/chavezravine/index.html http://www.sportsecyclopedia.com/nl/ladodgers/ladodgers.html http://xfinity.comcast.net/slideshow/sports-franchises/10/ Picture via http://newspaper.li/la-dodgers/