Why Are The Dodgers Disliked So Much?

                                               When the Dodgers were in Brooklyn, they had a natural rivalry with the New York Giants. The Giants resided in Manhattan at the Polo Grounds. Uptown as it were. Denizens of both boroughs’ genuinely disliked each other. Many times, fights would break out between the fans. After the move to California, with the Giants settling in San Francisco and the Dodgers in LA, most thought the rivalry would not be as intense. Wrong. For whatever reason, northern and southern California are not exactly drinking buddies. 

                                               So-Cal is laid back, sunny and glitzier. No-Cal is often cold and wet. Not to mention, snooty. At least that is how some of the folks south of Bakersfield see it. San Francisco is Fishermans Wharf and trolly cars, LA is Hollywood and celebrities. While Candlestick was a nightmare to play in, often cold, windy and foggy, Dodger Stadium seldom had bad weather and, on some days, you could see more than a handful of Hollywood’s best in the stands. 

                                              It did not help matters that the Dodgers went to four World Series in first nine years in California and the Giants only once. Many times, they battled right down to the wire before it was decided. The Giants had some great players, but the Dodgers seemed to win with less talented teams. Except for the pitching. After Koufax retired, it would be 8 years before LA made the series again. The Giants only pennant in the 60’s was 1962, they won zero pennants in the 70’s and they did not finally win one until 1989. The Dodgers over that same period won nine pennants and five Championships to their none. 

                                           As a matter of fact, the Giants did not win a championship in San Francisco until they won in 2010. 56 years after their last title in New York. Those kinds of stats breed a lot of animosity towards one’s rival. Then in 1969, the NL expanded and added another team in California, the San Diego Padres. It would take the Padres 25 years before they finally won their first West division title, and NL pennant in 1984. The Tigers quickly sent them home for the winter. Since then, they have won the west 4 more times, 96-98-05-06. They went to 1 more World Series in 1998 and were swept by the Yankees. They have not been back since. They along with the Rockies are the only teams in the NL West who have not won the World Series. 

                                            But let’s get back to that disliked part. The rivalry with the Giants has a long history. The rivalry with the Padres is a relatively new thing. For much of their early existence, the Padres were on the losing side of most seasons’ series with the Dodgers. 1973 was the first season in which the Padres did not have a losing record to the Dodgers. They were 9-9. But in 74, LA was 16-2 against the Pads.  In the Padres first 6 seasons they lost 74 games against the Dodgers and won 34. In 1976, the Padres finally won a season series against LA.  They went 12-6 against the Dodgers, but still finished 19 games behind them in the pennant race. 

                                          Through the rest of the 1900’s, other than 1984, LA fans never had a second thought about the Padres. The worry was always the Giants, Reds, Braves and Astros while they were in the west. There was no rivalry except with the Giants. The rivalry with the Yankees fueled by so many Series they played against each other, was a moot point after 81. Until full interleague schedules were implemented a couple of years ago, they rarely saw New York. 

                                          The rivalry between LA and San Diego began intensifying in 2019. That was when Manny Machado signed with the Padres. They also brought up Fernando Tatis Jr. that year. They may have finished last that season, but every game in San Diego was loud and usually a close game. That was also when the Beat LA chants got really loud. Machado would hear loud choruses of boos in LA whenever he came to the plate. It took Tatis Jr. a couple of years to start hearing those, but in 21, he got booed a lot. 

                                         The first time they met in the playoffs, in 2020, LA beat the Padres in 3 straight games. Will Smith set a record in game 3 getting 5 hits. He became the first Dodger to ever do that. It did not help relations that LA thumped them that game, 12-3.  It also did not help matters that the Padres kept losing season series to LA right up to this year. There was a shift in the attitude of Padres fans after the Padres took LA out in 22. The boos and chants got a lot louder whenever the Dodgers went into Petco to play. 

                                         So now it is a full-blown rivalry. The Giants in the meantime, have almost become an afterthought. They had their run of success winning in 10-12-14. After that they played second fiddle to the Dodgers until they won the West in 21. But LA took them down before losing the NLCS that year. With Buster Posey now running the team, I expect things there will be different. Posey is a winner, and he will instill that winning attitude in his club. 

                                        But other than the obvious rivalry between the Padres and Giants, why do so many other fan bases dislike LA?  My theory is success breeds contempt. I also think a lot of fans believe the Dodgers just buy what they need. Not entirely untrue but throwing money at a baseball team does not guarantee success. Just look at how long the Yankees were irrelevant. After losing the 81 series, it was 13 years before they were able to win a pennant again. After their win in 77, they went 17 years before winning another. For Yankee fans accustomed to winning a lot, that must have felt like a lifetime. Remember, their owner was George Steinbrenner. And George expected to win every year. 

                                      Since Guggenheim took over the team, the Dodgers have been more successful during the season than at any other time in their history. They have put together some very good teams. They did not always achieve their goal of winning the World Series, but they have had the opportunity to do so every year since 2013. Living in Colorado, I listen to the Rockies fans who are so very upset with the way ownership runs their team, and they naturally dislike LA because of the Dodgers success. 

                                      The Dodgers are simply disliked because they have the ability to get the players they need either through trades or free agency.  Those who are not fans of the team do not understand the commitment the ownership made to the fans when they first purchased the team. Nor do they realize all the work that the front office has to put in to keep the team competitive. I had a friend of mine ask me the other day, how in the world did the Dodgers manage to win the west as banged up as they were? To tell the truth, I honestly do not know. What I do know is that the players who were on this team, wanted to be there. The chemistry was great, and they picked each other up. It did not hurt that Ohtani had a historic season. I told them to buckle up because LA wants to do it again, and again, and again. Go on and dislike the Dodgers. Me? I love em!