PROLOGUE
I didn’t think Clayton Kershaw: Most of the information from the prologue comes from an interview I conducted with Clayton Kershaw at his Dallas home on January 15, 2014.
Ellis, described Kershaw to me as: Interview with A. J. Ellis on April 1, 2013.
seventy-five cents per heartbeat: Tweet from Buster Olney @Buster_ESPN, January 15, 2014.
CHAPTER 1: THE BILLIONAIRE BOYS’ CLUB
“It was just really, really weird”: Don Mattingly addressing media at the Dodgers’ spring training in Glendale, Arizona, on February 18, 2013.
“I wanted to do all these things”: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
Some seventy-eight thousand fans: On April 18, 1958, the Dodgers played their first game in Los Angeles at the Coliseum in front of 78,672 fans. They beat the Giants 6–5. The previous record for the largest regular-season crowd was the 78,382 who saw the Chicago White Sox at Cleveland on August 20, 1948.
For his efforts: O’Malley was on the April 28, 1958, cover of Time magazine.
In 1950 the state’s population was just over ten million: According to the U.S. Census Bureau, California had a population of 10,586,223 in 1950, and 29,760,021 by 1990 (www.census.gov).
Jaime Jarrin: referenced Neruda after the Dodgers beat the Braves to win the NLDS on October 7, 2013. According to an article in the Los Angeles Times written by Hector Becerra, Jarrin described Kershaw’s curveball to listeners as “aristocratic” that night, and when Juan Uribe stepped into the batter’s box just before hitting the series-clinching home run, the brilliant Jarrin said, “An interesting game is coming to an end, with two teams battling like dogs, faceup.”
O’Malley’s son Peter was quoted: From a January 7, 1997, article in the New York Times written by Murray Chass. O’Malley said: “I think family ownership of sports today is probably a dying breed. If you look at all sports, it’s a high-risk business. Professional sports is as high risk as the oil business. You need a broader base than an individual family to carry you through the storms. Groups or corporations are probably the way of the future.”
Fox never wanted: From many articles, including an August 18, 2002, piece in the Los Angeles Times by James Bates. “[Rupert] Murdoch realized the potential TV value of the Dodgers when he bought the team in 1998. Before he became owner, he never set foot inside Dodger Stadium. On his first opening day . . . he grilled executives on player contracts, expressing astonishment at baseball’s rules on guaranteed contracts.”
But the idea of entering into a bidding war: From many articles, including an August 5, 2007, New York Times piece by Jim Schachter. “The purchase [of the Dodgers] was part of Fox’s rivalry with Disney, for dominance in sports broadcasting.”
the club was hemorrhaging tens of millions: The Dodgers lost money from every year from 1994 to 2002, including an MLB-leading $54.5 million loss in 2001. Los Angeles Times, August 18, 2002, by James Bates.
McCourt financed his $430 million purchase: McCourt divorce filings and court testimony revealed the family put “not a penny” of their own money into buying the team.
Fox wanted to get rid of the team: According to court documents presented during the McCourt divorce trial, Fox lent McCourt $145 million to buy the Dodgers. He was to repay that loan in two years.
His local claim to fame: According to a November 5, 2003, Los Angeles Times article by Thomas S. Mulligan and Roger Vincent, “during the New Year’s Eve 1980 closing on the [parking lot] in a plush Boston law office, a rival developer launched himself across a conference table at McCourt and threatened in colorful language to throw him out a window.”
“Stock smelling salts”: An email from McCourt Group COO Jeff Ingram to the McCourts in January 2001. Presented as evidence during McCourt divorce trial.
his estranged wife described him: According to the November 5, 2003, Los Angeles Times article (Mulligan and Vincent), McCourt’s litigation opponents included Toronto’s Reichmann family, owners of Olympia & York; Hartford, Connecticut, developer David T. Chase; and Chicago’s Marshall Field family, owners of Cabot, Cabot & Forbes. Toward the end of his tenure with the Dodgers he was in litigation with both his wife and Major League Baseball.
“He was more stubborn than an army of cockroaches”: Interview with a former Dodgers executive in June 2010.
Vanity Fair magazine likened: “A Major League Divorce,” August 2011 issue, by Vanessa Grigoriadis.
boycotted the wedding: Interview with Jamie McCourt in her Beverly Hills office, June 22, 2010.
“They were equally delusional but Jamie was better at parties”: From an interview with a former executive in June 2010.
led the National League in attendance: Figures under McCourt (Espn.com):
2004: 3,448,283 #1 in the NL, #2 in MLB
2005: 3,603,646 #1 in the NL, #2 in MLB
2006: 3,758,545 #1 in the NL, #2 in MLB
2007: 3,857,036 #1 in the NL, #2 in MLB
2008: 3,730,553 #2 in the NL, #3 in MLB
2009: 3,761,653 #1 in the NL, #1 in MLB
2010: 3,562,320 #2 in the NL, #3 in MLB
September 2010 McCourt divorce trial begins:
2011: 2,935,139 #6 in the NL, #11 in MLB
March 2012: McCourt forced to sell team to Guggenheim Baseball
2012: 3,324, 246 #3 in the NL, #5 in MLB
2013: 3,745,527 #1 in the NL, #1 in MLB
2014: 3,782,337 #1 in the NL, #1 in MLB
(Attendance across baseball fell after the recession began in 2008. It is just now returning to prerecession levels.)
Despite promising fans that he would keep the team’s payroll: The Dodgers and Yankees play in the two largest markets in the country. In 2000, when the Dodgers were owned by Fox, L.A. ranked second in payroll behind New York, and the difference was $2.6 million. By the end of McCourt’s tenure, the Yankees’ payroll was more than double the Dodgers’. Within two years of owning the Dodgers, the Guggenheim group pushed the club’s payroll past New York’s (via USA Today and the Associated Press).
Dodgers’ opening day payroll under Fox:
2000: $90,375,953 2nd in MLB (Yankees #1 with $92,938,260)
2001: $109,105,953 3rd in MLB (Yankees #1 with $112,287,143)
2002: $94,850,953 5th in MLB (Yankees #1 with $125,928,583)
2003: $105,872,620 4th in MLB (Yankees #1 with $152,749,814)
McCourt buys the Dodgers:
2004: $92,902,001 6th in MLB (Yankees had highest payroll at $184,193,950)
2005: $83,039,000 11th in MLB (Yankees #1 again at $208,306,817)
2006: $98,447,187 6th in MLB (Yankees #1 at $194,663,079)
2007: $108,454,524 6th in MLB (Yankees #1 at $189,639,045)
2008: $118,588,536 7th (Yankees #1 at $209,081,577)
2009: $100,414,592 9th (Yankees #1 at $201,449,189)
2010: $95,358,016 11th (Yankees #1 at $206,333,389)
2011: $104,188,999 12th (Yankees #1 at $202,689,028)
2012: $95,143,575 12th (Yankees #1 at $197,962,289)
Guggenheim Partners buy the Dodgers during the 2012 season:
2013: $216,334,965 2nd (Yankees #1 at $228,344,965)
2014: $241,128,402 (Highest payroll of any team in American sports history)
2015: $270 million (First again, with nearly $44 million going to players no longer on the team)
revealed McCourt’s plan to cut: Evidence submitted in the McCourt divorce court trial on September 1, 2010, called for cutting the Dodgers’ payroll from $100 million in 2003 to $85 million in 2006. By the end of his ownership tenure McCourt had leveraged the Dodgers to the point that the team owed lenders $540 million. Court documents showed that most of the profit the Dodgers generated from ticket sales was going toward paying off interest on that debt.
daily home salon sessions: According to divorce court filings, the McCourts spent $150,000 annually on a hairstylist who came to their home five days a week.
Russian psychic: His name was Vladimir Shpunt. According to a June 10, 2010, Los Angeles Times article by Bill Shaikin (“Dodgers Tap Into V Energy”), Shpunt, who lived most of his life in Russia, had three physics degrees and a letter of reference from a Nobel Prize winner. He would essentially close his eyes and visualize the Dodgers winning. He also held a healing session with Dodger right fielder Jayson Werth after Werth injured his wrist. Werth later said that Dodger doctors had misdiagnosed the injury and that he did not receive proper treatment until he went to the Mayo Clinic. Shpunt also “diagnosed the disconnects” between former manager Jim Tracy and general manager Paul DePodesta.
a home on Charing Cross Road: All home purchase information comes from McCourt divorce filings. It is also public record.
“I never stopped worrying”: Jamie McCourt testified in her divorce trial. She also told me as much in an interview conducted in her office on June 22, 2010.
“Frank and I practically raised each other”: Jamie McCourt testified in court on September 3, 2010, that she didn’t know that in signing the marital property agreement, she essentially gave away her stake in the Dodgers. “Frank and I practically raised each other, and the notion that this was not something that we wanted to get together or that I would just give it up without remembering that and without worrying about what that would mean is preposterous.”
“Every day going to that stadium was like showing up to a funeral”: Interview with current Dodger executive.
McCourt had been too cheap to pay for an increased security presence: Bryan Stow emerged from his coma but sustained permanent brain damage in the attack. He later sued McCourt and the Dodgers for negligence. A jury awarded him $18 million in damages.
It rejected Fox’s loan to smoke him out: In a statement, Bud Selig said the loan was “structured to facilitate a further diversion of Dodgers assets for the personal needs of Mr. McCourt.” And that it would “have the effect of mortgaging the future of the franchise to the long-term detriment of the club and its fans.”
Players called their agents: I was in the Dodgers’ locker room that day and observed this.
the winning bid isn’t always the highest one: In 2010 Mark Cuban and Jim Crane bid $390 million on the Texas Rangers at auction, which was more than the $385 million bid by a group lead by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan. But since Cuban and Crane still needed MLB’s approval to buy the club, and that was likely to take weeks or months, Greenberg and Ryan’s bid was valued to be worth more because it could close the following week. They subsequently bought the team.
Bids for the Dodgers poured in from across the globe: Peter O’Malley partnered with South Korean company retail conglomerate E-Land to submit a bid for the team.
“But he turned me down, that son of a bitch”: Interview with Stan Kasten in his Dodger Stadium office on July 15, 2014.
“It was like Earvin was going through the college recruitment process”: Interview with Lon Rosen at Dodger Stadium on July 15, 2014. Kasten had actually offered Magic Johnson the Atlanta Hawks GM job in Rosen’s living room. Everything about Johnson joining up with Kasten came from the interview with Kasten on July 15, 2014.
McCourt slid a piece of paper across the table toward Walter: Conversation with Mark Walter on August 29, 2013.
Walter told McCourt it was take-it-or-leave-it: Ibid.
The Guggenheim group worried McCourt would violate the handshake agreement: From a Dodger executive with knowledge of the situation.
“You know Frank went back to Stevie Cohen and said beat this”: From an executive with knowledge of the situation.
“We might not have won”: Interview with Kasten on July 15, 2014.
“The day the Dodgers deal closed”: From an executive with knowledge of the situation.
Walter says he declined to set the record straight: Conversation with Walter on August 29, 2013.
“I have some bad news”: Conversation with Walter on August 29, 2013.
When first determining the baseline value: Conversation with Mark Walter on August 26, 2013.
While McCourt hid from media: During the two years McCourt was mired in divorce and bankruptcy proceedings he granted no interviews to journalists. In his desperation he did agree to go on a local sports radio station and take questions from Dodger fans. He was ripped to shreds.
“I’m nothing special”: Conversation with Mark Walter on August 26, 2013.
MLB was as fiscally unregulated as the Wall Street: As of March 2015, the largest contract ever signed by an NFL player was the eight-year, $132 million deal signed by Detroit wide receiver Calvin Johnson. Baseball teams have issued thirty-four contracts larger than that, including the record twelve-year, $325 million deal the Miami Marlins signed Giancarlo Stanton to after the 2014 season. Furthermore, all the money in MLB contracts is fully guaranteed, regardless of injury. NFL contracts do not offer the same luxury. Football players can break their necks and be cut the next day, and owed nothing. The NFL Players Association estimates that the average career lasts 3.3 years, which has led to the NFL being called “Not for Long.”
“We didn’t have the dough”: Conversation with Mark Walter on August 29, 2013.
CHAPTER 2: BURN THE SHIPS
The Dodgers’ then second baseman, Jeff Kent, made a suggestion: Interview with a former executive in June 2010.
McCourt was said to be particularly impressed when Colletti didn’t ask how much money he would be given to spend: From an interview with a former executive in June 2010.
But the damage McCourt’s tightfistedness: According to Baseball America, the Dodgers spent the least amount of money of any team in baseball on international signings in both 2010 and 2011. In 2010, the Seattle Mariners led the majors with $6.47 million in international bonuses; the Dodgers paid $314,000 total. In 2011 the Rangers led the majors by spending $12.83 million on international prospects. The Dodgers spent just $177,000. The White Sox spent the next lowest in 2011, with $778,500.
“I didn’t think the problems”: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
by his own estimation, Colletti grew up dirt poor: He has mentioned this in many interviews, but most notably in a Los Angeles Times piece written by Bill Dwyre on March 10, 2013, “Colletti Is Writing a Different Story.”
letting young guys know they were fucking nobodies: This was a common refrain among Dodger players, especially the fringe guys.
Colletti worried that rookies didn’t possess the guts required to succeed in October: A common refrain from the coaching staff.
J. D. Drew surprised him by opting out: In a conference call with reporters after Drew opted out, Colletti said, “I know J.D. is a spiritual guy and a man of his word. I guess he changed his words.” Drew said later that he was offended by the comments. According to a New York Times article written by Murray Chass on December 8, 2006, Colletti considered filing tampering charges against the Boston Red Sox, who signed Drew after he opted out of his Dodgers contract.
“I care so much that I don’t give a fuck”: A common joke among many players.
BURN THE SHIPS: I noticed the “Burn the Ships” shirts and asked a group of players what the phrase meant since I thought it was cool.
“more psychotic than a psychologist”: From an April 27, 1988, article in the Chicago Tribune, “Bowa Handling It All: Hot Temper, Cold Club,” by Jeff Lenihan.
He finished second in the NL MVP award voting: Kemp initially supported Braun after word leaked that Braun had tested positive for excessive testosterone levels. Braun was not suspended for his failed test after it was determined that the collector, Gino Laurenzi, failed to mail the Milwaukee Brewer’s urine sample to be tested directly after he collected it. He held on to the specimen overnight, since it was a Sunday night and he wasn’t aware that any FedEx shipping facilities were still open. Later, after it was determined that Braun was a client of Anthony Bosch, he was suspended for fifty games by MLB.
He didn’t: Jason Schmidt pitched in ten total games for the Dodgers, and gave up 29 runs in 43.1 innings. In the end, he received more than one million dollars per inning. He won three games.
the club was aware of Schmidt’s partially torn rotator cuff: When Jason Schmidt signed his three-year contract for $47 million, the Dodgers took out an insurance policy with ACE American Insurance to protect them if the pitcher got injured. Schmidt tore his labrum, and had an ineffective career in Los Angeles. The Dodgers sued ACE for $9.27 million to recoup some of the money they lost. During that trial, they had to disclose the fact that they knew Schmidt had a partially torn rotator cuff when they signed him, but that they did not believe that injury had anything to do with his torn labrum.
Many Dodger fans were frustrated by Colletti’s infatuation with former Giant players: During his first three years in Los Angeles, Colletti gave contracts to many former Giants, including Jeff Kent, Brett Tomko, Bill Mueller, the infielder Ramon Martinez, Jose Cruz Jr., Kenny Lofton, Roberto Hernandez, Mark Sweeney, and Shea Hillenbrand. He would later award large, controversial contracts to Jason Schmidt, Juan Uribe, and Brian Wilson, who also all played for San Francisco.
“I just don’t like giving a lot of money to players”: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
At the top of that list: Ibid.
wasn’t God’s plan: “Crawford, Gonzalez, and Two Different Takes on the End of the Red Sox Season,” a September 29, 2011, article in the Boston Globe written by Peter Abraham. Gonzalez told Abraham, “We didn’t do a better job with the lead. I’m a firm believer that God has a plan and it wasn’t in his plan for us to move forward.”
Gonzalez blamed the club’s schedule: The Red Sox were featured regularly on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.
“You go to the grocery store and you’re getting hitting advice”: From an interview Nick Punto gave when the Red Sox came to Los Angeles to play the Dodgers, on August 23, 2013. Punto, who loved playing in Boston, was quoted as saying, “It’s an unbelievable place to play. I loved the accountability factor.”
Colletti had called the Red Sox general manager, Ben Cherington: “Sox-Dodgers Blockbuster Anatomy,” by Gordon Edes for ESPN.com Boston.
Colletti thought the Dodgers had struck: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
Then, opportunity struck: The story of how the Boston-Dodgers trade went down comes from my interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014, and my conversation with Mark Walter on August 29, 2013.
Terry Francona, and general manager, Theo Epstein, were both run out of town: Francona took a year away from coaching to work as a broadcaster for ESPN before signing on to become the Indians manager in 2014. Epstein was traded to Chicago to become president of baseball operations for the Cubs.
The players hated Valentine: The problems started in spring training when he berated fringe utility infielder Mike Aviles during a drill. He made matters worse by going on a local sports radio show and questioning third baseman Kevin Youkilis’s heart and commitment. All-star second baseman Dustin Pedroia fired back, “I know that Youk plays as hard as anybody I’ve ever seen in my life. I have his back, and his teammates have his back. . . . I don’t really understand what Bobby’s trying to do. But that’s really not the way we go about our stuff here. I’m sure he’ll figure that out soon.” He was fired after one season.
His coaches and teammates compared him to a clubhouse lawyer: Every locker room has a clubhouse lawyer, or a guy who will argue every point to death. From players who had played with him in Boston.
it took Kasten and Henry just fifteen minutes: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
in exchange for James Loney and a package of minor leaguers: All five players the Red Sox received in that August 2012 trade were on other teams by opening day 2015. Loney signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays before the 2013 season. DeJesus was traded three times before ending up with the Reds on a minor-league deal. Sands was traded to the Pirates, then went to the Rays before signing a minor-league contract with the Indians. And De La Rosa and Webster were traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks in late 2014 for pitcher Wade Miley.
“I’m from an area where if”: From an ESPN.com article by Gordon Edes on February 23, 2011, “Red Sox ‘Creeped Out’ Carl Crawford.”
“We need to talk to you about the Navigator”: A story Crawford told me.
He later told a teammate that he felt like the Rays: A story told to me by that teammate.
“That guy used to terrorize us with his bat and his speed”: A story told to me by that teammate.
“For two years I was afraid to smile”: Interview with Carl Crawford on August 19, 2014.
“I started growing grey hairs on my face from the stress”: USA Today sports article written by Paul White on April 24, 2013.
“I was completely shocked”: Interview with Carl Crawford on August 19, 2014.
“I broke it down into years”: Conversation with Mark Walter on August 29, 2013.
Walter was so nervous that he let it sit unread: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
forced to spray-paint Ramirez’s navy blue glove: Interview with Mitch Poole on August 31, 2012.
The van’s tire treads were worn so thin: Ibid.
Gonzalez found his locker: From my observations that day at Dodger Stadium.
CHAPTER 3: THE ACE
On the morning of April 1, 2013: All details about Kershaw’s routine in this chapter come from the many conversations with Kershaw about it, including specific interviews with him on August 12, 2013, and January 15, 2014.
Go to work around one: This is for games that begin at seven o’clock. Almost every weekday game at Dodger Stadium begins at 7:10. Saturday night games begin an hour earlier, and Sunday games start at 1:10.
Kershaw had taken another girl to the homecoming dance: Interview with Clayton Kershaw on January 15, 2014.
Kershaw had been MLB’s ERA champ at age twenty-three: In 2011 he posted a 2.28 ERA; in 2012 he went 2.53.
two of the nastiest pitches: The opinion of most hitters in the National League.
men who were paid millions of dollars a year: The average MLB salary in 2013 was $3.3 million. It shot up to $3.8 million in 2014.
public enemy number one: During a spring training game against the Red Sox in March 2008, Kershaw threw a curveball to Sean Casey that froze him in the batter’s box. Kershaw began walking off the mound toward the Dodgers’ dugout before it even landed in the catcher’s mitt for strike three to end the inning. That’s when Scully nicknamed it.
Before a game at Wrigley Field: Conversations with Clayton Kershaw and A. J. Ellis.
“You just don’t see that pitch”: From a question I asked Kirk Gibson in a press conference at Chase Field in Arizona on August 27, 2014.
“You watch tape”: Interview with Mark Trumbo after he faced Clayton Kershaw at Chase Field in Arizona on August 27, 2014.
Close approached the Dodgers: From a person with knowledge of the deal.
when he tried to imagine his life beyond thirty: Interview with Clayton Kershaw on January 15, 2014.
traded a young Pedro Martinez: What a mistake! As a twenty- and twenty-one-year-old he pitched 115 innings for the Dodgers and struck out 127 while posting a 2.58 ERA. He went on to become one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history.
“We’re like the pit crew”: Interview with A. J. Ellis on April 1, 2013.
“I don’t need the extra minute”: Interview with Clayton Kershaw on January 15, 2014.
Clayton Kershaw was born: Everything in this section that is not already common knowledge can be attributed to the interview I did with Clayton Kershaw on January 15, 2014.
a consolation prize for their 2005 season: The Dodgers went 71-91 in 2005. Dodger fans were so loyal that the club still led the NL in attendance that year, and the following year.
“I totally thought I was going to the Tigers”: I asked both Clayton Kershaw and Logan White about this story, and they confirmed the facts. It was originally reported by Bill Shaikin on May 18, 2013, in the Los Angeles Times, “Clayton Kershaw Is a Dodgers Star Now but It Almost Didn’t Happen.”
“She took on some pretty serious debt”: Interview with Clayton Kershaw on January 15, 2014.
Lincecum helped the Giants win World Series: They had last won the World Series in 1954.
the Giants gave the opening day start to Matt Cain: Matt Cain had been an all-star in 2011 and 2012, posting ERAs of 2.88 and 2.79, respectively. In 2011 he finished eighth in the NL in ERA; in 2012 he finished fourth in the NL in ERA.
It seemed as though every opposing pitcher: This is the opinion of many Dodger players who struggled to answer why the club gave him such lousy run support. In 2012 the Dodgers scored an average of 3.94 runs in games Kershaw started. The Cardinals’ Lance Lynn, on the other hand, got the most support, with 5.90 runs a game that season. In 2013 the Dodgers’ offense was even worse with Kershaw on the mound, scoring 3.79 runs a game. The same offense scored 4.11 runs on average for Zack Greinke and 4.70 runs for Hyun-Jin Ryu.
“I went up there swinging at the first pitch”: Interview with Kershaw after the game on April 1, 2013.
Johnson turned and high-fived Mark Walter: This was shown on television.
The next day, Kershaw was shagging balls on the warning track: Story told to me by a person in the room.
CHAPTER 4: IT’S TIME FOR DONNIE BASEBALL
The new owner’s bunker had been open for two business days: It was built in the off-season.
Baseball was serious business for him: An opposing catcher told me that whenever he tried to make small talk with Ellis in the batter’s box, the second baseman would ignore him, annoyed that he had to retrain his focus. He could not have been more different off the field, and is described by teammates as one of the nicest men ever to put on a major-league uniform.
Sellers was sent to the minors weeks later: Ramirez returned on June 2. Sellers played his last game for the Dodgers on June 10.
“He thanked him for being a professional”: Postgame interview with Ned Colletti on October 7, 2013.
“Coming over here I was worried about making friends”: Postgame interview with Hyun-Jin Ryu on October 7, 2013.
“I see the ball, I hit the ball”: Interview with Juan Uribe on September 24, 2013.
“He’s the best teammate I ever played with”: Interview with Matt Kemp on October 7, 2013.
his wife, Cindy, had supported their family: From a conversation with Cindy Ellis on July 1, 2014.
“There’s no worse feeling than taking a bad swing”: Interview with A. J. Ellis, September 5, 2014.
everyone knew it was only a matter of time: Beckett made eight starts for the Dodgers, before succumbing to injury on May 13. He had surgery to alleviate a pinched nerve in his neck, and didn’t pitch again in 2013. He finished the season with a 5.19 ERA in 43.1 innings. He was paid $15.75 million.
Hitters had no trouble: Despite being a fly-ball pitcher, Ted Lilly enjoyed success during a fifteen-year career, until batters started hitting too many fly balls that weren’t caught. He gave up four home runs in just twenty-three innings of work in 2013, with a 5.09 ERA.
the time bomb in his arm ticked louder than most: Rodriguez is known for having a funky arm delivery that hides the ball from hitters longer than usual. However, the low arm slot from which he throws has given him trouble in his young career. After an excellent 2012 rookie season he struggled in the second half of 2013 and made only nineteen appearances in 2014.
visa issues: Belisario had trouble gaining admittance into the United States for spring training, year after year, and would often report late. In February 2011 he disclosed that his visa problems stemmed from his testing positive for cocaine in the past.
Only four of them were drafted by the Dodgers: The four were Matt Kemp, Clayton Kershaw, Paco Rodriguez, and A. J. Ellis.
signed as international prospects: Hyun-Jin Ryu and Kenley Jansen.
to paraphrase Dodger legend Don Drysdale: After his Hall of Fame playing career, Drysdale went on to become a broadcaster for the Dodgers. His obituary noted that he had become critical of modern-day players. “You have to wonder when two players of different teams have the same agent,” he said. “Who are these players really loyal to, the agent or their teams? You don’t see 15 guys going out for a beer anymore. You see 24 guys living in 24 different single rooms on the road, and in some instances, taking 24 different cabs to the stadium.” From “Don Drysdale, Hall of Fame Pitcher, Dies at 56,” by Richard D. Lyons, New York Times, July 5, 1993.
“ ‘Getting along’ is probably not the right way to say it”: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
“It’s not the greatest working environment when Ned’s around”: The opinion of multiple players, past and present.
Only nineteen guys across both leagues: A list of all MLB players who made at least $20 million in 2013 (USA Today):
1. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees, $29 million
2. Cliff Lee, Phillies, $25 million
3. Johan Santana, Mets, $24.6 million
4. Mark Teixeira, Yankees, $23.1 million
5. Prince Fielder, Tigers, $23 million
6. Joe Mauer, Twins, $23 million
7. C.C. Sabathia, Yankees, $23 million
8. Tim Lincecum, Giants, $22.25 million
9. Adrian Gonzalez, Dodgers, $21.85 million
10. Zack Greinke, Dodgers, $21 million
11. Vernon Wells, Yankees, $21 million
12. Miguel Cabrera, Tigers, $21 million
13. Matt Cain, Giants, $20.83 million
14. Cole Hamels, Phillies, $20.5 million
15. Matt Kemp, Dodgers, $20.25 million
16. Justin Verlander, Tigers, $20.1 million
17. Roy Halladay, Phillies, $20 million
18. Barry Zito, Giants, $20 million
19. Carl Crawford, Dodgers, $20 million
20. Ryan Howard, Phillies, $20 million
“We had a lot of guys making less money”: Interview with Don Mattingly on August 27, 2014, at Chase Field in Arizona.
“They need to be self-motivated”: Ibid.
“He hardly ever gets mad”: Interview with Preston Mattingly, August 1, 2014.
“Everybody always thinks it was my back”: From a story by Ramona Shelburne for ESPN.com Los Angeles, “Don Mattingly: The Manager, the Dad,” on June 16, 2012.
“Before he took the job he asked us”: Interview with Preston Mattingly, August 16, 2014.
“I liked helping guys”: Interview with Don Mattingly on August 27, 2014.
Zack Greinke believed: Interview with Zack Greinke on August 31, 2013.
Colletti signed so many broken former closers: The 2014 bullpen featured Brandon League, Brian Wilson, and Chris Perez, among others. Each was given a multimillion-dollar contract years after being dropped from the closer role at his previous club.
While minor on the surface: When McGwire’s Dodgers faced St. Louis in the NLCS, some within the Cardinals organization thought McGwire’s knowledge of their hitters’ strengths and weaknesses gave Los Angeles a distinct advantage.
Hillman assumed: I heard this from more than one player.
a mean Excel sheet: Hillman made gorgeous color-coded charts to show where and when hitters and pitchers were supposed to be during spring training, which were prominently displayed in the Dodgers’ clubhouse.
“I’ve never been around someone”: Hillman said this at the Dodgers’ Faith and Family Night on July 27, 2013, after a game at Dodger Stadium.
Greinke had no energy for suffering fools: From an article written by Tom Hardricourt in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Getting to Know Zack Greinke,” February 22, 2011. Greinke said this about speaking to reporters: “Every day I come to the park and want to get focused on my start, and then random people come and waste my time talking every day. It takes eight minutes to get a real question out because they’re like buttering me up. Then they get to the question and it’s a stupid question. So it’s a waste of 10 minutes, and in that 10-minute time I don’t get to do what I needed to do. The main reason is it gets rid of all the ‘eyewash’ comments from reporters and I actually get to focus on what needs to be focused on instead of wasting energy on other stuff.”
exchanged a few polite text messages: Interview with A. J. Ellis on April, 1, 2013.
“Well, the first thing I’d do is trade you”: Interview with A. J. Ellis on August 1, 2013.
Ellis wondered what the hell he was talking about: Interview with A. J. Ellis on July 29, 2014.
“It was a changeup!”: Ibid.
was named Gatorade’s: Greinke earned the award given to the nation’s top prep baseball player in 2002; Kershaw earned it in 2006. Other players who have won the award include Gary Sheffield (1986), Alex Rodriguez (1993), and Justin Upton (2005).
reminded Colletti of Greg Maddux: Colletti said this on the Dodgers broadcast on September 2, 2013, talking to Charley Steiner and Rick Monday. He said it after Greinke stole the base, noting that Greinke was a thinking man, an excellent fielder, and swung a good bat. “He finds ways to help you win even without pitching,” said Colletti.
“They didn’t tell me not to”: Spoken to reporters (including me) after a home game against the Padres on September 1, 2013.
“I try too hard and it backfires”: Interview with Zack Greinke on August 31, 2013.
On the mound, he was fine: On February 15, 2013, Greinke addressed a pack of reporters at the Dodgers’ spring training facility and said: “[My anxiety] never really bothered me on the mound . . . but I was raised to do what you enjoy doing, whether you are making several hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, or $30,000 per year. That was my thought, why am I putting myself through torture when I didn’t really want to do it? I mean, I enjoyed playing but everything else that went with it I didn’t.”
He devoured self-help books with little results: “It hasn’t been hard since I started taking the medicine. I don’t know if I got lucky, or what,” Greinke said. “I wish I knew about it before. I didn’t know there was something for it. I used to read self-help books trying to make myself better.” From a February 15, 2013, news conference with reporters.
“I was pretty rude on my way out”: From an article written on June 23, 2014, by Ken Gurnick for MLB.com, on the occasion of the Dodgers going to Kansas City to play the Royals.
Kasten later called his meeting with Greinke: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
Greinke thought he might be a general manager: Interview with Zack Greinke on August 31, 2013. Greinke thought Ellis might make a good mouthpiece for him.
“I could be in the lawn business”: Interview with Zack Greinke on August 31, 2013.
“Don’t fucking touch me!”: Matt Kemp was shown on television screaming at Bud Black.
“He threw at him on purpose, okay?”: This bizarre tirade by Tom Garfinkel was secretly recorded by a Padres season ticket holder and passed along to Jeff Passan, a reporter for Yahoo Sports. Passan published a story about the incident on April 18, 2013. Garfinkel apologized to Greinke and to Stan Kasten. Garfinkel would resign as president and CEO of the Padres three months later.
“But just so you know”: A person with knowledge of the call told me this.
CHAPTER 5: THE COLLAPSE
Josh Beckett told Don Mattingly: A person with knowledge of the exchange told me this.
one even put on Gonzalez’s neck brace: Multiple teammates told me about this.
he wondered if he would ever come back: Interview with Matt Kemp at his Hollywood Hills home in April 2012.
he was always the token black kid: Ibid.
But Kemp never wanted to be a professional baseball player: Ibid.
“It’s only after you’re rich”: From an interview with Matt Kemp in March 2014 at the Dodgers’ spring training complex in Glendale, Arizona.
“So many nights I just went home and cried”: Interview with Matt Kemp at his Hollywood Hills home in April 2012.
he might notice a sick child: Kemp is remarkable in his interactions with children, and has told me he prefers kids to adults. He visits hospitals unannounced and maintains lasting relationships with kids he meets. Once he met a child who couldn’t watch Dodger games from her hospital bed, so he worked it out so she could get a login for MLB.com that bypassed the local blackout restrictions in L.A. and let her watch the games. He also noticed a sick child named Joshua Jones in the crowd at a game at AT&T Park in San Francisco in May 2013. After the game, he jogged over to the fan and gave him his autograph. Then he took the jersey off his back and handed it to Jones, and removed his cleats and gifted those to him as well. The incident was secretly recorded without Kemp’s knowledge. It went viral the next day. Jones passed away three months later.
“Trade me to the fucking Astros!”: He yelled this in the clubhouse in front of teammates and staff after arriving for a game early in the 2014 season and not finding his name in the lineup.
stole forty bases, and: Members of the 40/40 club:
1988 Jose Canseco 42HR 40SB
1996 Barry Bonds 42HR 40SB
1998 Alex Rodriguez 42HR 46SB
2006 Alfonso Soriano 46HR 41SB
turned to a reporter: The reporter Boras said this to was me.
Jacoby Ellsbury: Ellsbury later agreed to a seven-year contract with the Yankees worth $153 million.
Kemp approached Gonzalez: Gonzalez had the same surgery to repair a torn labrum, and told reporters afterward that he wasn’t a power hitter anymore. Told to me by a person with knowledge of the conversation.
A few of Kemp’s teammates heard this and became enraged: Told to me by multiple people who witnessed the incident.
To amuse themselves, when Dodger pitchers watched game film: Told to me by multiple team personnel.
Dodgers front office dispatched a club executive: Told to me by multiple people who witnessed it.
a respected national columnist: Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.
transfixed by the double switch: There is no known recording of the number of double switches a team executes in a season, though many with the Dodgers were convinced the 2013 club broke the all-time major-league record.
Ethier had showed up to a Sunday matinee: Told to me by a person with knowledge of the conversation.
“That’s not gonna help me in arbitration”: I heard this from a Dodger player the week it happened.
“So at that number, you’re looking at”: From an interview I did with Josh Collmenter at Dodger Stadium on June 15, 2014.
Gonzalez loved to use RBIs as a measuring stick: From many conversations I had with Gonzalez, but specifically on September 24, 2013 and on April 15, 2015. I consider Gonzalez to be a very thoughtful player, and I asked his opinion on who I should cast my NL MVP ballot for. (I voted for McCutchen.) At first I didn’t agree with his citing RBI, but I’m glad he told me because it inspired me to look up his numbers with runners in scoring position—he is great.
He began hustling out every ground ball: The Dodgers’ ranks were unanimous in their feelings about Andre Ethier being an unsung hero during their incredible run. The guys knew he was playing out of position, and they recognized he was busting his ass. His selflessness inspired many.
Adam Wainwright, who convinced him: From Skip Schumaker’s testimony at the Dodgers’ Faith and Family Night on July 27, 2013.
“Believe it or not”: Schumaker told me this before the games versus the Cardinals on May 24, 2013. He could not believe how sore his body was from one inning of pitching.
White was respected as one of the sharpest: On one scouting trip to Mexico in 2012, White signed Yasiel Puig and Julio Urias, a fifteen-year-old pitcher who wound up being a top-five MLB prospect going into the 2015 season. This was perhaps the greatest scouting trip of all time.
1st round Chris Anderson RHP JR Jacksonville University
2nd round Tom Windle LHP JR University of Minnesota
3rd round Brandon Dixon 3B JR University of Arizona
an anxious Colletti emailed leadership surveys: From players who received them.
CHAPTER 6: PUIGATORY
White arrived alone in Mexico City: All the information about Puig’s tryout comes from an interview I conducted with White on October 23, 2014.
So he called Kasten: The details of this phone call were first mentioned to me by Stan Kasten in our July 15, 2014, interview. They were confirmed by White on October 23, 2014.
“I thought it’d be funny”: Interview with Mitch Poole on August 13, 2013.
“Papi”: Ibid.
“You don’t give them steak”: Don Mattingly made these remarks on April 6 to a pregame pack of reporters (including me).
“Go to YouTube and type in ‘Puig bat flip’ ”: A Dodger executive told me this on April 2013.
“What happened?”: I was at this game in Anaheim and asked Schumaker what happened after the game.
“Please,” said Kasten. “Do it for me”: Told to me by someone with knowledge of the conversation.
Puig referred to himself as “El Secreto”: Told to me by a source close to Puig.
ran through basic English with him: I was standing near them and witnessed this.
In 2012 he got so sick: From a press conference Scully gave on August 23, 2013, announcing his return for the 2014 season.
social media coordinator, Josh Tucker, not to hype Puig up too much: Conversation with Josh Tucker the day Puig was called up.
sticker still stuck: One of my favorite pictures of Puig is a shot of him about to take the field for the first time. The sticker is visible.
relied on a powerful Mexican drug cartel: Most of the details of Puig’s defection are supplied by the testimony of Yunior Despaigne, a boxer who left Cuba on a boat with Puig. Despaigne is suing Puig in federal court, and he filed his lawsuit under penalty of perjury. Sources around the Dodgers have confirmed the drug cartel’s involvement in Puig landing in America. It has been widely reported, and Puig’s camp has never denied it.
“I don’t really like the press”: Puig said this to USA Today’s Jorge L. Ortiz, as quoted in an article of July 8, 2013, “Puig Explains Himself: ‘I’m a Ballplayer.’ ”
Puig got down on his hands and knees: I witnessed this on June 10, 2013.
“He doesn’t like all the attention”: Luis Cruz said this to a few of us reporters who were standing there before the game on June 10, 2013.
“If you catch too much of the plate you’re basically fucked”: National League West pitcher told me this.
“But I don’t really care because he rakes”: A Dodger pitcher told me this.
“I always try to put on a show for the fans”: Puig said this to a pack of media reporters (including me) on July 12, 2013.
“I don’t think any of us were really thinking”: Interview of Don Mattingly on radio show The Herd with Colin Cowherd on July 3, 2013.
“Oh na naaa”: I witnessed this often.
“That’s like you in San Diego!”: I witnessed this, too. It happened while reporters were in the room.
One veteran infielder said he hoped a blogger: The player who said this to me never did punch a member of the media.
He wore number 74: The number was significant to Kenley Jansen because when he was growing up the family constantly worried about being able to make the mortgage. During his first season in the big leagues he sent all of his paychecks home until it was paid off. From “No Man Is an Island,” a column written by Bill Plaschke for the Los Angeles Times, September 11, 2013.
“I’d never seen a pitcher throw at two different”: Interview with Skip Schumaker after the game on June 12, 2013.
“He plays with a lot of arrogance”: Ian Kennedy said this to Arizona reporters after the club’s game against the Dodgers on July 9, 2013.
There was no doubt in Mattingly’s mind it had come from Gibson: I mean, this was obvious from his actions (running at Gibson and screaming at him). But a source close to Mattingly told me this.
Kershaw was furious: From multiple team sources.
“I don’t think anyone thought he was the problem”: Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
to the ire of the coaching staff: Every coach on that team wanted youth.
CHAPTER 7: THE RUN
in the season’s biggest moments: Greinke was the starting pitcher in the brawl game against San Diego and the brawl game against Arizona.
One popular theory: This rumor wound up not being very far off base, as the Dodgers ultimately hired one of Hunsicker’s old colleagues, Andrew Friedman, away from Tampa to take over baseball operations.
“Winning does a lot”: Kershaw said this in his postgame interview with reporters after the game.
Epstein was thought: Epstein was also the guy some Dodger executives insinuated had tampered with J. D. Drew (encouraging him to opt out of his Dodgers contract by presenting his agent, Scott Boras, with an offer while he was still a Dodger, which is against the rules). According to a New York Times article written by Murray Chass on December 8, 2006, Epstein tried to call an angry Colletti to smooth things over, but Colletti refused to take his calls.
Joe Torre’s godson, Mike Borzello: It had been widely reported that the Dodgers and Cubs were talking about trading Dempster. A team employee told me of Epstein’s frustration later.
“He’s not a bad kid”: Mattingly said this to a group of reporters in the Chase Field dugout, including me.
When Fernando Valenzuela was a rookie: This story was told to me by Ken Gurnick, the prolific Dodger beat writer who has covered the team for decades and was there during Fernandomania.
This became evident when a national television reporter: This story was relayed to me by multiple players and staff members.
Puig’s friends say the incident: From a source close to Puig.
While Bravo was off working with Puig: Bravo’s sons illness had been widely reported.
Puig, who had quietly: Puig’s son, Diego, was born in December 2013. Puig shares pictures of the boy on his social media accounts often.
“I love him . . . But I can’t fucking stand him”: Text from an NL East pitcher sent to a Dodger pitcher, who told me.
if you wore Diamondback red you were his sworn enemy: From a source close to Puig.
Schumaker decided to watch: Interview with Skip Schumaker after the game, July 16, 2013, in Phoenix, Arizona.
“If the ball’s away”: Postgame interview with A. J. Ellis on July 16, 2013.
His mother had wanted to name him Juan Jose: Interview with Hanley Ramirez on March 12, 2014.
“Show me why you’re the best hitter I’ve ever played with”: Postgame interview with A. J. Ellis on July 16, 2013.
Angels for second baseman Howie Kendrick: They would trade for Kendrick a year and a half later.
the pregame festivities turned the dugout into a mess: I witnessed all this.
It was still possible to buy season tickets: At the start of the 2015 season there was a wait list for season tickets. The cheapest season tickets, in the reserve level, cost five dollars a game.
He arrived twenty minutes late for a team meeting: Told to me by multiple people in the room.
“I’ve seen guys that are in the Hall of Fame”: Interview with Don Mattingly on August 27, 2014.
When the Yankees came to town: I observed Robinson Cano greet Puig’s friend on the field, and Puig’s entourage’s general presence in the dugout every day. Multiple players and employees complained to me about their presence in the locker room.
His cover was blown: Colletti told this story to a pack of reporters (including me) just outside the visiting clubhouse the night the Dodgers were eliminated in St. Louis, October 18, 2013.
whale puke: I asked Wilson what it was. He said whale puke.
“I’ve got something to say”: I heard this from multiple players and staff who thought it was genius.
chicken fight tournament: I walked into the Dodgers’ locker room the day before they clinched and saw players sitting on other players’ shoulders. I asked what was going on. They told me they were planning on staging a chicken fight tournament in the pool. I gave the Dodgers’ team photographer, Jon SooHoo, the heads-up.
thought he heard Kemp bragging: I didn’t hear Kemp say this, but others did. Everyone I spoke with was adamant he was kidding. I tell this story as a way to demonstrate the ridiculous tension between the Dodgers and Diamondbacks. Even a senator weighed in on social media.
“I’m a starter”: It was a phrase Kemp repeated often, in private and to reporters. When asked about it later, he explained that it was a no-win situation. If he accepted a platoon role then it would look like he didn’t care enough to fight for his job. But if he bristled about having to share time it would look like he wasn’t a team player. He was right.
CHAPTER 8: THE BEST TEAM MONEY CAN BUY
injury issues all year: The Dodgers were so banged up that head trainer Stan Conte (smartly) sat down with Mattingly to help plan out the lineups after they clinched.
Dodger officials were told: A Dodger exec told me that before the game.
They found the hole in his swing: A Dodger staff member told me that before the game.
“If you don’t play good people don’t remember you”: Interview with Juan Uribe at AT&T Park in San Francisco on September 24, 2013.
Kimbrel wanted in the game: TV cameras caught him cursing in the bullpen. The footage is easily found on the Internet.
all seemed to scream and bounce: I have been to roughly five hundred Dodger home games in my life. This was the loudest I have ever heard that stadium, but I was not present for Gibson’s home run, and sadly I was not old enough to remember watching it on television.
Young was perhaps the most outwardly animated Dodger: I heard this from multiple players on that text chain.
but Ramirez was terrified of needles: Multiple people with the team told me this.
The drug cartel that helped smuggle Puig to the United States was always around: From multiple sources close to Puig.
One of them asked to borrow his Lincoln: From a source close to Puig.
“Two and a half billion dollars and two fucking runs”: A Dodger executive said this to me.
“It’s not over yet, we need you”: I heard Puig had gone missing from multiple players. I confirmed the details with the principal parties involved.
“meep meep”: I observed this.
So Nolasco took the mound in Game 4: They almost started Kershaw but decided against it.
poster comparing Puig to a squirrel: I witnessed this bizarre scene and took a picture that wound up going viral.
Ramirez finally acquiesced to the needle: From two sources close to Ramirez.
“They took turns high-fiving him”: From a person with knowledge of what happened.
“In twenty years we can sit down”: I was the reporter Puig said that to.
CHAPTER 9: NO NEW FRIENDS
Juan Uribe went first: News of Puig’s clubhouse meeting was widely reported. I got multiple players to fill in the blanks for me later.
Puig secretly admired Schumaker and Punto: Told to me by a source close to Puig.
“But five years is the max for me”: Interview with Clayton Kershaw at his home on January 15, 2014.
“Matt Kemp! Why you no talk today?”: I heard Ramirez say this. “Oh. So that’s why he’s do sad,” Ramirez said to me.
“you need to get your ass here on time”: This is what Gonzalez told reporters when he was asked what he said to Puig.
Puig had changed his phone number: From multiple team sources.
they thought he put together tougher at-bats: From a conversation I had with a member of the coaching staff.
“It could be his last chance to prove us right or wrong”: From a conversation I had with a staff member.
“He used to throw maybe ten pitches”: Interview with A. J. Ellis on June 18, 2014, after Kershaw’s no-hitter.
“I just want to get my four at-bats every day”: Hanley Ramirez said this to me in an interview on March 12, 2014.
“When certain guys want to play”: Schumaker made these comments to the Cincinnati Enquirer on June 11, 2014.
“It doesn’t feel that way, though, does it?” Interview with Stan Kasten on July 15, 2014.
“He stated he’s the best outfielder in the league”: From a CBS Sports article written on March 7, 2015, by Jon Heyman.
CHAPTER 10: THE BEST FRONT OFFICE MONEY CAN BUY
Forty-eight hours later: Greinke pitched the next day in Chicago, and looked out of sorts from the start. In the first inning he made his first error in more than four years, throwing the ball away on a failed pickoff attempt. He gave up four earned runs in five innings. I don’t know whether what happened the night before was related to how Greinke pitched that day, but his performance on the mound was bad enough for me to text a team employee and ask if everything was okay with him. The staff member told me he had been in an altercation with Puig over rookie hazing. I asked players and other staff members about it later, and they filled in the details.
Ned Colletti was angry: From two people with knowledge of the incident.
The Padres asked for $18 million more: From a Dodger executive.