by Molly Knight
“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!”: H
e 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.