2007 Los Angeles Dodgers

2007 Los Angeles Dodgers
Major league affiliations
National League (Since 1890) Western Division (Since 1969)
Location
Dodger Stadium (Since 1962) Los Angeles, California (Since 1958)
2007 Information
Owner(s)	Frank McCourt
Manager(s)	Grady Little
Local television	FSN Prime Ticket KCAL
Local radio	KFWB KWKW
Baseball-Reference	2007 Los Angeles Dodgers

2007 Los Angeles Dodgers / Franchise: Los Angeles Dodgers / BR Team Page

Record: 82-80, Finished 4th in NL Western Division (2007 NL)

Managed by Grady Little

Coaches: Rich Donnelly, Mariano Duncan, Rick Honeycutt, Dave Jauss, Manny Mota, Bill Mueller, Eddie Murray and Dan Warthen

Ballpark: Dodger Stadium

History, Comments, Contributions

Although hopes were high for the 2007 Los Angeles Dodgers after the 2006 team had finished second in its division, they ended up barely over .500 in fourth place.

In April, the Dodgers had cast their lot with old players, sending youngsters James Loney and Matt Kemp to the minors. Eventually, both came back up and were the top hitters on the team, with Loney posting a .331/.381/.538 line in 96 games and Kemp going .342/.373/.521 in 98 games. Meanwhile, veteran Nomar Garciaparra had an Adjusted OPS+ that was well below average, and the Adjusted OPS+ of veteran Luis Gonzalez was barely above the league average. Another veteran, Jeff Kent, did quite well, though, slugging .500. The end of the year was marked by dissension, as veterans Kent, Gonzalez and pitcher Derek Lowe used the press to accuse unnamed youngsters of taking up too much space on the team, while Loney replied that Kent was only a team leader in his own eyes and that it was the youngsters who had been most productive down the stretch.

Brad Penny dominated the pitching staff, going 16-4, while reliever Takashi Saito at age 37 had 39 saves. The pitchers, however, had an average age of 31.1, close to the oldest in the league.

The 2007 Dodgers became the first Dodgers team in 41 years to suffer three shutouts in a row, doing so from August 5th through 8th (they did not play on the 6th). Brandon Webb, in the midst of the longest shutout streak in 19 years, tossed the first gem, followed by a combined effort by the Cincinnati Reds, with Bronson Arroyo working into the 7th and three relievers finishing up. Aaron Harang completed the series of goose eggs. The last time the men in Blue had been shut out three straight games was in the 1966 World Series.

Awards and Honors

• All-Stars: Russell Martin, Brad Penny and Takashi Saito
• NL Gold Glove: Russell Martin (C)
• NL Silver Slugger Award: Russell Martin (C)
• 2007 Topps All-Star Rookie Team: James Loney (1B)

Team leaders

Batting

Stat	Player	Total
Avg.	Matt Kemp	.344
HR	Jeff Kent	17
RBI	Russell Martin	81
R	Juan Pierre	80
SB	Juan Pierre	54

Pitching

Stat	Player	Total
W	Brad Penny	15
SV	Takashi Saito	36
IP	Brad Penny	185
ERA	Brad Penny	2.82

Opening Day lineup

Catcher	First Baseman	Second Baseman	Shortstop	Third Baseman	Right fielder	Centerfielder	Left fielder	Starting pitcher
Russell Martin	Nomar Garciaparra	Jeff Kent	Ramon Martinez	Wilson Betemit	Andre Ethier	Juan Pierre	Luis Gonzalez	Derek Lowe

2007 MLB season by team