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Los Angeles Dodgers: remembering a five-year run of ROY

By James Simmons

NEW YORK - CIRCA 1994: Mike Piazza #31 of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats against the New York Mets during a Major League Baseball game circa 1994 at Shea Stadium in the Queens borough of New York City. Piazza played for the Dodgers in 1991-98. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
NEW YORK - CIRCA 1994: Mike Piazza #31 of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats against the New York Mets during a Major League Baseball game circa 1994 at Shea Stadium in the Queens borough of New York City. Piazza played for the Dodgers in 1991-98. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /
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The Rookie of the Year competition belonged to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the early 1990s. Here’s a look at their winners and the seasons they had.

The Los Angeles Dodgers had the best rookie in baseball each year from 1992 to 1996. Individually they had very successful seasons and the Dodgers as a team made the playoffs twice during that span, but were unable to get past the first round both times.

Eric Karros received all but two first-place votes as he ran away with the Rookie of the Year Award in 1992. He played a solid first base and put up quality numbers in his rookie campaign.

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Karros hit 20 homers and drove in 88 on a Dodgers team which finished in the cellar of the NL West Division with 99 losses. Karros went on to have a productive twelve-year career with the Dodgers before moving on to Chicago and Oakland before retiring after the 2004 season.

Everyone is familiar with Mike Piazza, the 62th round draft pick turned Hall of Famer. He was the ROY in ’92 after hitting 35 homers and driving in 112. That began a ten-year run of All-Star appearances and Silver Slugger awards, with six of those coming in Los Angeles.

Piazza would have a short stint in Florida before embarking on a long career with the New York Mets. He too would end his career in Oakland after the 2007 season.

The strike-shortened ’94 season didn’t offer much in the way of competition for Raul Mondesi as he became the third Dodger in a row to win the award. Mondesi received all 28 first-place votes and won in a landslide over second-place finisher John Hudek.

Mondesi would play seven years for the Dodgers before bouncing around the league finally retiring after his 2005 stay with the Atlanta Braves.

Even though Hideo Nomo had been pitching professionally in Japan since 1990, he was considered a rookie in his first-year pitching for the Dodgers. Nomo won the ROY Award by a slim margin over Chipper Jones by going 13-6 with a 2.54 ERA.

Nomo would win 30 games the next two years before being traded to the New York Mets. He would pitch for five other teams after that and even reappear for the Dodgers in 2002, before calling it quits after the 2008 season.

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The fifth consecutive Dodger to win the award was Todd Hollandsworth. Edgar Renteria had a better WAR and comparable stats, save homers and RBI but was unable to unseat the Dodgers run.

Hollandsworth also became a journeyman suiting up for eight teams in his 12-year career. He called it quits after his 2006 season in which he split time with the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds.

The Los Angeles Dodgers had no chance in 1997 of having six in a row, as Scott Rolen steamrolled the competition, receiving all 28 first-place votes. Of the 12 players receiving votes, not a one went to a Dodger.

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Quite a run nonetheless for one team to have such great performances out of first-year players.

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