Power hungry

Well, at least I've got Ramirez with a (sort of) Dodger blue backdrop. Give me credit for at least trying -- I don't have photoshop.

I've been doing a lot of thinking about Manny lately, as everyone has been forced to thanks to the relentless Manny-on-the-hour-every-hour coverage. Glad to see Fox decided to repeat everything TBS said about Manny during the NLDS. Give us something we can use, people!

But here's what I'm thinking: I believe part of the reason for Dodgers fans' love-in over Manny has to do with the history of power hitters in L.A. There hasn't been a lot of them.

I'm a proud Dodger fan, but I've always been envious of other teams' sluggers. The Dodgers rarely have anyone listed as the top power hitters in baseball, and if they do, that player isn't around for long. Did you know that since the Dodgers moved to L.A. they have had just one person ranked first in the league in home runs, runs batted in or slugging percentage? That one person was Adrian Beltre, who led the NL in home runs with 48 in 2004.

That's it.

So that means the door is wide open for Manny to be one of the greatest sluggers in Dodger history should he choose to stay in L.A. next season or the Dodgers choose to sign him this offseason. I personally think Manny will eventually turn into a problem as he did in Boston, but if I was in charge, the Dodgers' history of power deficiency would make it awfully tempting to sign him for three years. I know Manny is 36, but with the way he works on his hitting, I think his talent is going to be around for a little while longer.

All of my Manny speculating caused me to put together a countdown of the Dodgers' top 15 power hitters over the years. I was surprised that L.A. has consistenly had a big bat in its lineup (with the exception of the late '60s and early '70s when guys like Len Gabrielson and Andy Kosco led the team in hitting). My list is based loosely on numbers, but I'm a word guy, not a number-cruncher, so I'm sure you could make a case for people being in a different order or for other guys being on the list. But that's the beauty of a blog. It's my bleeping list. Go post your own list.

Also, I didn't include any early L.A. Dodgers like Duke Snider or Gil Hodges. They're Brooklyn boys.

Here we go:

15. Darryl Strawberry. He's here on reputation, basically. He had one decent season for L.A. in 1991 (28 HRs/99 BIs/.491 slg) and then everything went south. And that's the thing -- can you imagine listing the Yankees' top 15 sluggers and including a guy who had only one decent power season? Neither can I. Strawberry barely edges out Mike Marshall, who probably had marginally better power numbers with L.A. than Straw, but isn't on the list because most of what I remember about Marshall is how much he irked me when he played.

14. Kirk Gibson. Again, one decent season in 1988 but one that included one epic home run. His numbers (25 HRs/76 BIs/.483 slug pct) are pretty feeble for an MVP, but you don't hear me arguing.

13. Eddie Murray. Another guy here based on his rep with another team, but he had three good power years for the Dodgers, especially 1990 (26/95/.520) when he finished 5th in the MVP voting.

12. Reggie Smith. He'd be a lot higher if injuries didn't sidetrack him after 1978. But he enjoyed two great years in 1977 and 1978 (32/87/.576 and 29/93/.559) and was fourth in the MVP voting each year.

11. Shawn Green. Two major years that seemed to come out of nowhere for a guy who was mostly a doubles/average hitter. In 2000, 49 HRs, 125 BIs, .598. In 2001, 42 HRs, 114 BIs, .558. He holds the record for most HRs in a season as a Dodger. Yeah, Shawn Green does. It still amazes me.

10. Frank Howard. "Hondo" was L.A.'s first certified power threat. He was fourth in the league in slugging and fifth in RBIs in 1962, and fifth in HRs in 1963. After 1963, the Dodgers didn't place anyone in the top five in HRs, RBIs or slugging pct. for 11 years.

9. Adrian Beltre. He's this high because of 2004 (48 HRs/121 BIs/.629 slg). He beat out Barry Bonds for the HR title, but finished second to Bonds in the MVP voting (booo!). Beltre had some OKish power years in 2000, 2002 and 2003.

8. Steve Garvey. Strictly a line drive hitter until 1977 when all the Dodgers found another gear. Garvey was one of four Dodgers to hit more than 30 HRs that year and after '77 he hit more than 20 HRs for L.A. the next three years. He was 2nd in MVP voting in '78.

7. Gary Sheffield. When Sheffield was with L.A. it was the first time I felt that the Dodgers had a genuine power threat that really put the fear of God into opponents. In three seasons with L.A. he had 94 HRs, 310 BIs and his slugging pct. was .523, .643 and .583. If he stuck around a little longer, he could've been No. 1.

6. Dusty Baker. Not really thought of as a slugger, but he had four good power years for the Dodgers (1977, 1979, 1980, 1982). I toyed with putting Sheffield above Baker, but Baker stuck around with L.A. longer and had some other respectable years.

5. Raul Mondesi. (Warning: this card may cause convulsions). Five years in a row of at least 24 HRs and 87 BIs. My favorite Dodger during the mid-1990s. Mostly because he had a fantastic arm in right field.

4. Pedro Guerrero. My favorite Dodger from the mid-1980s, before Hershiser came along. He finished in the top four in MVP voting three years running and his 1985 season was amazing (33 HRs, 87 BIs, .320 avg., .422 OBP, .577 slg). You could swap Guerrero and Mondesi easily.

3. Eric Karros. Surprised that he's ranked this high? Me, too. He had remarkably consistent power numbers for six years running, but still everyone was surprised when he broke L.A.'s record for career home runs. He knocked in over 100 runs all but one of those years. Simply solid, and I didn't appreciate him enough.

2. Mike Piazza. Would've easily been No. 1 if he wasn't traded away. I look at his numbers from 1994-97 and my jaw drops. No less than 92 RBIs any year. He slugged .606 and .638 in 1995 and 1997. I really hope when he goes in the Hall of Fame, he's wearing a Dodger cap on his plaque.

1. Ron Cey. How about that, my favorite player? OK, maybe the list is a little rigged, but you can make a case for him being the best power hitter for L.A. By far, he had more strong power years than any other player (eight). Seven straight years of more than 20 HRs. His main asset was consistency. And, come on, you have to love The Penguin.

So, anyway, if Manny sticks around, I fully expect him to be on the list. How high up the list? Well, it depends on how many team employees he shoves around.