Dodgertown

Spring’s Eternal at Dodgertown

The Sporting News list of 100 Most Powerful People in Sports for the 20th Century, December 1999

  1. Pete Rozelle
  2. Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis
  3. Roone Arledge
  4. Branch Rickey
  5. Marvin Miller
  6. David Stern
  7. Rupert Murdoch
  8. Avery Brundage
  9. Ban Johnson
  10. Muhammad Ali
  11. Walter O’Malley
  12. Steve Borstein
  13. Phil Knight
  14. George Halas
  15. Babe Ruth
  16. Walter Byers
  17. Lamar Hunt
  18. Ted Turner
  19. Paul Brown
  20. Michael Jordan
  21. Jackie Robinson
  22. Pierre De Coubertin
  23. Juan Antonio Samaranch
  24. Donald Fehr
  25. Tex Rickard
  26. Roy Hofheinz
  27. Horst Dassler
  28. Red Auerbach
  29. Bill France Sr.
  30. Arnold Palmer
  31. Al Davis
  32. Birch Bayh
  33. Billie Jean King
  34. Paul Tagliabue
  35. Charlie Finley
  36. Clarence Campbell
  37. George Steinbrenner
  38. Peter Ueberroth
  39. Bert Bell
  40. Jacob Ruppert
  41. Dick Ebersol
  42. Mark McCormack
  43. Al Neuharth
  44. Tex Schramm
  45. Bill Veeck
  46. Arthur Ashe
  47. Howard Cosell
  48. Fathers Theodore Hesburgh and William Beauchamp
  49. Don King
  50. Connie Mack
  1. David Falk
  2. John Wooden
  3. Andre Laguerre
  4. August Busch Jr.
  5. Peter Seitz
  6. Roger Penske
  7. Wilt Chamberlain
  8. Jack Nicklaus
  9. Bill France Jr.
  10. Bowie Kuhn
  11. George Preston Marshall
  12. Ed Barrow
  13. Abe Saperstein
  14. John McGraw
  15. Larry MacPhail
  16. Dick Schultz
  17. Gary Bettman
  18. Adolph Rupp
  19. Walter Brown
  20. Jesse Owens
  21. Deane Beman
  22. Phog Allen
  23. Wellington Mara
  24. Charles Comiskey
  25. Eddie Robinson
  26. Knute Rockne
  27. Arch Ward
  28. Jerry Jones
  29. Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
  30. Bobby Orr
  31. Art Rooney
  32. Alan Eagleson
  33. Pele
  34. Bud Selig
  35. Tommie Smith and John Carlos
  36. Pat Summit
  37. Laurence Tisch
  38. Bobby Jones
  39. Tiger Woods
  40. Leigh Steinberg
  41. Henry Iba
  42. Bill Bowerman
  43. Anatoli Tarasov
  44. Albert “Happy” Chandler
  45. “The Voices of Baseball” — Mel Allen, Red Barber, Vin Scully, Harry Caray, Jack Buck, Ernie Harwell,Bob Prince, Etc.
  46. Sonny Werblin
  47. Ed and Steve Sabol
  48. J.G. Taylor Spink and C.C. Johnson Spink
  49. Wayne Gretzky
  50. The Famous Chicken
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ABC Sports ranks the Top Ten Most Influential People "off the field" in sports history as voted by the Sports Century panel in December, 1999

  1. Branch Rickey
  2. Pete Rozelle
  3. Roone Arledge
  4. Marvin Miller
  5. Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis
  6. David Stern
  7. Avery Brundage
  8. Walter O’Malley
  9. George Halas
  10. Mark McCormack
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Attendance 1953-1957 Brooklyn Dodgers vs. Milwaukee Braves

Attendance 1953-1957 Brooklyn Dodgers vs. Milwaukee Braves
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Every inch of space at Dodgertown was carved out to maximize the training, education and practice regimen. It was a baseball factory and Rickey, who was the father of the sport’s modern-day farm system, pushed all the buttons.

“Mr. Rickey functioned with clockwork precision,” said longtime Dodger scouting director Al Campanis. “He used the rotation system — a player would rotate from one learning session to another. At night, the faculty would compare impressions with Mr. Rickey who made an analysis of every boy in camp.”Joe Hendrickson, Dodgertown

Rickey’s teaching philosophy was emphasized in a column by Walter Stewart who quoted the Dodger President’s speech to the minor leaguers, “We must take pains in order to bring about perfection. One of the purposes of this camp — it’s really a school — is to bring you along as rapidly as possible. You must realize, too, that mere physical lack of skills is not always responsible for failure. The man who gets ahead is the one who makes obstacles into mounting steps. It’s either worth the effort or it isn’t. The average major leaguer was in the minors three to four years. We are trying to make your dream come true earlier. We are developing a system that will bring every hidden player potential to the surface. No other organization can offer these advantages. We will do our best, but what is your contribution? It is you who must make the main effort. The future of the Brooklyn baseball team is here.”Ibid.

Dodger Vice President and General Counsel Walter O’Malley, who had been a part-owner of the ballclub since his first acquisition of 25 percent stock on November 1, 1944, was one of Rickey’s partners and was involved in the development of the spring training move to Vero Beach. O’Malley became Dodger President on October 26, 1950 after purchasing Rickey’s 25 percent shares of stock. He immediately promoted Bavasi and Fresco Thompson to Vice Presidents. Bavasi would serve as General Manager, while former Dodger player Thompson also served as Director, Minor League Operations. Charlie Dressen was named as new Dodger Manager replacing Burt Shotton, who was known for wearing civilian clothes in the dugout.

O’Malley longed to find a solution to an aging Ebbets Field problem, with its landlocked piece of real estate and parking for only 700 automobiles. He had communicated with such noted architects as Norman Bel Geddes, Lorimer Rich, R. Buckminster Fuller and Capt. Emil Praeger to exchange ideas about stadium design solutions. The spring of 1951 would be O’Malley’s first in charge of the Dodger organization and he immediately went full throttle to implement needed changes and improvements.

In O’Malley’s first spring training, just four months after being named Dodger President, he upgraded the dining service, run by the Harry M. Stevens Company, who brought in their top chef Fred Boratto to work under dining chief Lester Webb. Dodger executives, major league players and the press ate on linen tablecloths and were able to order off a menu including steaks, loin lamb chops, broiled chicken, veal cutlet, roast beef and calves liver. O’Malley also assigned venerable 30-year Brooklyn employee J. Julius “Babe” Hamberger to the salon to greet and take care of the press and visiting dignitaries. Hamberger did virtually everything for the Dodgers, including traveling secretary, ticket seller, ticket taker, turnstile boy, concessions employee, sweeper, scoreboard operator, groundskeeper, announcer and clubhouse man.Joe King, The Sporting News, March 7, 1951 Players and camp personnel consumed some 86 gallons of fresh orange juice each day of spring training that year.Special Dodger Section, Vero Beach Press-Journal, February 27, 1958

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  • Dodger President Branch Rickey, the “father” of the player development system, Dodger Manager Burt Shotton, known for wearing civilian clothes in the dugout and a pitcher at Dodgertown.Dodger President Branch Rickey, the “father” of the player development system, Dodger Manager Burt Shotton, known for wearing civilian clothes in the dugout and a pitcher at Dodgertown.
  • Dodger major and minor league players use training camp to prepare for all aspects of baseball, including drills such as leading off first base and diving back.Dodger major and minor league players use training camp to prepare for all aspects of baseball, including drills such as leading off first base and diving back.
  • Walter O’Malley immediately upgraded the Dodgertown dining room after his ascent to President on Oct. 26, 1950. By spring training 1951, O’Malley had Dodger executives, major league players and the press dining on white linen tablecloths with a full service menu. However, when the minor league players descended on Dodgertown, dining service reverted to cafeteria style and O’Malley would wait in line with players from the various levels.Walter O’Malley immediately upgraded the Dodgertown dining room after his ascent to President on Oct. 26, 1950. By spring training 1951, O’Malley had Dodger executives, major league players and the press dining on white linen tablecloths with a full service menu. However, when the minor league players descended on Dodgertown, dining service reverted to cafeteria style and O’Malley would wait in line with players from the various levels.
  • J. Julius “Babe” Hamberger takes care of the needs of the press and visiting dignitaries. Hamberger was assigned by O’Malley to handle greetings at the salon. Hamberger worked in several front office positions for the Dodgers over a 30-year career.J. Julius “Babe” Hamberger takes care of the needs of the press and visiting dignitaries. Hamberger was assigned by O’Malley to handle greetings at the salon. Hamberger worked in several front office positions for the Dodgers over a 30-year career.