The 1998

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

season was the 109th for the franchise in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

, and their 41st season in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. It was the first season since the sale of the franchise from

Peter O'Malley Peter O'Malley (born December 12, 1937) is an American former owner (1979–98) and president (1970–98) of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Life and sports O'Malley was born at Carson C. Peck Memorial Hospital in Brookly ...

to the

Fox Entertainment Group Fox Entertainment Group was an American entertainment company specialised in filmed entertainment owned by 21st Century Fox. Following the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney, the group's assets were folded into various Disney units. The ...

took effect. The new corporate executives would quickly anger Dodger fans when they bypassed General Manager Fred Claire and made one of the biggest trades in franchise history. They traded All-Star catcher

Mike Piazza Michael Joseph Piazza ( ; born September 4, 1968) is an American former professional baseball catcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1992 to 2007. He currently serves as the manager of the Italian national baseball te ...

and starting third baseman

Todd Zeile Todd Edward Zeile (; born September 9, 1965) is an Americans, American former professional baseball third baseman, catcher, and first baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played sixteen seasons, from 1989 to 2004, for the St. Louis Cardinals ...

to the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fran ...

for a package that included

Gary Sheffield Gary Antonian Sheffield (born November 18, 1968) is an American former professional baseball outfielder who played in Major League Baseball for eight teams from 1988 to 2009. He is a sports agent. For most of his career, Sheffield played right ...

. The team on the field performed poorly under all the stress and soon Fox fired Claire and manager

Bill Russell William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Va ...

, replacing them with former Manager

Tommy Lasorda Thomas Charles Lasorda (September 22, 1927 – January 7, 2021) was an American professional baseball pitcher and manager. He managed the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1976 through 1996. He was inducted into the Natio ...

, who was appointed interim GM and Minor League manager Glenn Hoffman who took over for Russell. The team limped along to finish in third place in the National League West and more changes were in the offing for the following season.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Opening Day lineup

Notable transactions

*May 15, 1998: Acquired

Bobby Bonilla Roberto Martin Antonio Bonilla (, born February 23, 1963) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and outfielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2001. Bonilla was one of the Major League's best batters a ...

, Jim Eisenreich, Charles Johnson,

and

Manuel Barrios Manuel Antonio Barrios (born September 21, 1974) is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros and Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in M ...

from the

for

and

*June 4, 1998: Acquired

Dave Mlicki David John Mlicki (born June 8, 1968) is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). Between 1992 and 2002, he played for the Cleveland Indians, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, and Houston Astros. Career Aft ...

and

Greg McMichael Gregory Winston McMichael (born December 1, 1966) is an American former professional baseball player who was a relief pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1993 to 2000. Born in Knoxville, Tennessee, McMichael graduated from Webb School o ...

from the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

for

Hideo Nomo is a Japanese former baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He achieved early success in his native country, where he played with the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to . He then exploited a l ...

and

Brad Clontz John Braddock Clontz (born April 25, 1971) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) relief pitcher who played for the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, and Pittsburgh Pirates between and . Amateur career Clontz was bor ...

*July 4, 1998: Acquired

Jeff Shaw Jeffrey Lee Shaw (born July 7, 1966) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox of the American League (AL), and the Montreal Expos, Cinci ...

from the Cincinnati Reds for

Paul Konerko Paul Henry Konerko (; born March 5, 1976) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman from 1997 to 2014, most prominently as a member of the Chicago White Sox, where he was a si ...

and Dennys Reyes *July 10, 1998: Acquired

Brian Bohanon Brian Edward Bohanon (born August 1, 1968) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for five teams in a span of seven seasons from 1990 through 2001. Career Bohanon played baseball at North Shore High School in Texas. As a senior ...

from the

for

*July 23, 1998: Acquire
Widd Workman
from the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

for Jim Bruske *July 31, 1998: Acquired

Mark Grudzielanek Mark James Grudzielanek (; born June 30, 1970) is a former Major League Baseball second baseman and shortstop. Grudzielanek played for six different teams during his 15-season career. He batted and threw right-handed. He was most recently the ma ...

, Carlos Perez and

Hiram Bocachica Hiram Gabriel Bocachica Colón (born March 4, 1976) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics, and San D ...

from the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

for

Wilton Guerrero Wilton Álvaro Guerrero (born October 24, 1974Ben LindberghBP Unfiltered: Guerrero Brothers and Birthdates Baseball Prospectus (February 5, 2013).) is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball. He played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1996� ...

Ted Lilly Theodore Roosevelt Lilly III (born January 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Lilly attended Yosemite High School in Oakhurst, California, and Fresno City College. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Mont ...

Peter Bergeron Peter Francis Bergeron (born November 9, 1977) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and current Major League Baseball (MLB) scout. Bergeron appeared in 308 MLB games, all of which were played with the Montreal Expos over five ...

an
Jonathan Tucker

Roster

Starting Pitchers stats

Relief Pitchers stats

Batting Stats

1998 Awards

1998 Major League Baseball All-Star Game The 1998 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 69th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 7 ...

reserve **

reserve (selected as a member of the Cincinnati Reds but was traded to the Dodgers during the break and made his first appearance in a Dodger uniform in the All-Star Game) * Gold Glove Award ** Charles Johnson * NL Pitcher of the Month ** Chan Ho Park (July 1998) * NL Player of the Week **

(April 6–12) **

(April 20–26) **

Raúl Mondesí Raúl Ramón Mondesí Avelino (born March 12, 1971) is a Dominican former politician and baseball player. Mondesí played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 13 seasons, primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and made his MLB debut with them in ...

(June 29 – July 5)

Farm system

Major League Baseball draft

The Dodgers selected 50 players in this draft. Of those, only four of them would eventually play Major League baseball. The first round pick was outfielder

Bubba Crosby Richard Stephen "Bubba" Crosby (born August 11, 1976) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees. He is best known for his tenure as a backup outfielder for the Yankees, when hi ...

from

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a private research university in Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranked among the top universities ...

. He played nine games for the Dodgers before he was traded to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

, where he was a part-time player for three seasons. He hit .216 in 205 games in the Majors. This draft also included pitcher

Scott Proctor Scott Christopher Proctor (born January 2, 1977) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 2004 and 2011 for the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Atlanta Braves. In 2012, he p ...

(5th round) from Florida State University and catcher David Ross (7th round) from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

. Proctor was a relief pitcher in the Majors, who played in seven seasons (two for the Dodgers) and was 18-16 with a 4.78 ERA in 307 games (most prominently with the

). Ross was primarily a backup catcher during his two decade career which began in 2002 and ended in 2016.

References

External links

1998 Los Angeles Dodgers uniformLos Angeles Dodgers official web site

Baseball-Reference season pageBaseball Almanac season page
{{Los Angeles Dodgers Los Angeles Dodgers seasons

1998 in sports in California