# 1976 Los Angeles Dodgers season

The 1976 Los Angeles Dodgers finished the season in second place in the National League West. The big news was when long-time manager of two decades Walter Alston resigned abruptly near the end of the season and was replaced by Tommy Lasorda who would manage the team for two decades himself.

## Offseason

* November 17, 1975: Jimmy Wynn, Tom Paciorek, Lee Lacy and Jerry Royster were traded by the Dodgers to the Atlanta Braves for Dusty Baker and Ed Goodson.
* December 23, 1975: Bob Randall was traded by the Dodgers to the Minnesota Twins for Danny Walton.
* March 2: Willie Crawford was traded by the Dodgers to the St. Louis Cardinals for Ted Sizemore.
* March 2: Ken McMullen was released by the Dodgers.
* March 31: Orlando Alvarez and cash were traded by the Dodgers to the California Angels for Ellie Rodríguez.

## Regular season
### Season standings

vteNL West :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Cincinnati Reds | 102 | 60 | .630 | — | 49‍–‍32 | 53‍–‍28 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 92 | 70 | .568 | 10 | 49‍–‍32 | 43‍–‍38 |
| Houston Astros | 80 | 82 | .494 | 22 | 46‍–‍36 | 34‍–‍46 |
| San Francisco Giants | 74 | 88 | .457 | 28 | 40‍–‍41 | 34‍–‍47 |
| San Diego Padres | 73 | 89 | .451 | 29 | 42‍–‍38 | 31‍–‍51 |
| Atlanta Braves | 70 | 92 | .432 | 32 | 34‍–‍47 | 36‍–‍45 |

### Record vs. opponents

1976 National League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | ATL | CHC | CIN | HOU | LAD | MON | NYM | PHI | PIT | SD | SF | STL |
| Atlanta | — | 6–6 | 6–12 | 7–11 | 8–10 | 8–4 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 3–9 | 10–8 | 9–9 | 4–8 |
| Chicago | 6–6 | — | 3–9 | 5–7 | 3–9 | 11–7 | 5–13 | 8–10 | 8–10 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 12–6 |
| Cincinnati | 12–6 | 9–3 | — | 12–6 | 13–5 | 9–3 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 8–4 | 13–5 | 9–9 | 6–6 |
| Houston | 11–7 | 7–5 | 6–12 | — | 5–13 | 10–2 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 2–10 | 10–8 | 10–8 | 9–3 |
| Los Angeles | 10–8 | 9–3 | 5–13 | 13–5 | — | 10–2 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–12 | 8–10 | 10–2 |
| Montreal | 4–8 | 7–11 | 3–9 | 2–10 | 2–10 | — | 8–10 | 3–15 | 8–10 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 7–11 |
| New York | 8–4 | 13–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 10–8 | — | 5–13 | 10–8 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 9–9 |
| Philadelphia | 7-5 | 10–8 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 15–3 | 13–5 | — | 8–10 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 12–6 |
| Pittsburgh | 9–3 | 10–8 | 4–8 | 10–2 | 3–9 | 10–8 | 8–10 | 10–8 | — | 7–5 | 9–3 | 12–6 |
| San Diego | 8–10 | 6–6 | 5–13 | 8–10 | 12–6 | 8–4 | 5–7 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 8–10 | 4–8 |
| San Francisco | 9–9 | 4–8 | 9–9 | 8–10 | 10–8 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 3–9 | 10–8 | — | 5–7 |
| St. Louis | 8–4 | 6–12 | 6–6 | 3–9 | 2–10 | 11–7 | 9–9 | 6–12 | 6–12 | 8–4 | 7–5 | — |

### Opening Day lineup

Opening Day starters :
| Name | Position |
| Bill Buckner | Left fielder |
| Ted Sizemore | Second baseman |
| Dusty Baker | Center fielder |
| Steve Garvey | First baseman |
| Ron Cey | Third baseman |
| Joe Ferguson | Right fielder |
| Steve Yeager | Catcher |
| Bill Russell | Shortstop |
| Don Sutton | Starting pitcher |

### Notable transactions

* June 15: Joe Ferguson, Bob Detherage and Fred Tisdale (minors) were traded by the Dodgers to the St. Louis Cardinals for Reggie Smith.
* June 23: Mike Marshall was traded by the Dodgers to the Atlanta Braves for Elías Sosa and Lee Lacy.

### Roster
## Player stats
### Batting
#### Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| C | Steve Yeager | 117 | 359 | 77 | .214 | 11 | 35 |
| 1B | Steve Garvey | 162 | 631 | 200 | .317 | 13 | 80 |
| 2B | Davey Lopes | 117 | 427 | 103 | .241 | 4 | 20 |
| 3B | Ron Cey | 145 | 502 | 139 | .277 | 23 | 60 |
| SS | Bill Russell | 149 | 554 | 152 | .274 | 5 | 65 |
| LF | Bill Buckner | 154 | 642 | 193 | .301 | 7 | 60 |
| CF | Dusty Baker | 112 | 384 | 93 | .242 | 4 | 39 |
| RF | Reggie Smith | 65 | 225 | 63 | .280 | 10 | 26 |

#### Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| Ted Sizemore | 84 | 266 | 64 | .241 | 0 | 18 |
| Joe Ferguson | 54 | 185 | 41 | .222 | 6 | 18 |
| Lee Lacy | 53 | 158 | 42 | .266 | 0 | 14 |
| Ed Goodson | 83 | 118 | 27 | .229 | 3 | 17 |
| John Hale | 44 | 91 | 14 | .154 | 0 | 8 |
| Henry Cruz | 49 | 88 | 16 | .182 | 4 | 14 |
| Jim Lyttle | 23 | 68 | 15 | .221 | 0 | 5 |
| Ellie Rodríguez | 36 | 66 | 14 | .212 | 0 | 9 |
| Manny Mota | 50 | 52 | 15 | .288 | 0 | 13 |
| Kevin Pasley | 23 | 52 | 12 | .231 | 0 | 2 |
| Rick Auerbach | 36 | 47 | 6 | .128 | 0 | 1 |
| Glenn Burke | 25 | 46 | 11 | .239 | 0 | 5 |
| Leron Lee | 23 | 45 | 6 | .133 | 0 | 2 |
| Iván DeJesús | 22 | 41 | 7 | .171 | 0 | 2 |
| Joe Simpson | 23 | 30 | 4 | .133 | 0 | 0 |
| Danny Walton | 18 | 15 | 2 | .133 | 0 | 2 |
| Sergio Robles | 6 | 3 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |

### Pitching
#### Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Don Sutton | 35 | 267.2 | 21 | 10 | 3.06 | 161 |
| Doug Rau | 34 | 231.0 | 16 | 12 | 2.57 | 98 |
| Burt Hooton | 33 | 226.2 | 11 | 15 | 3.26 | 116 |
| Tommy John | 31 | 207.0 | 10 | 10 | 3.09 | 91 |
| Rick Rhoden | 27 | 181.0 | 12 | 3 | 2.98 | 77 |
| Rick Sutcliffe | 1 | 5.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 3 |

#### Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Al Downing | 17 | 46.2 | 1 | 2 | 3.86 | 30 |
| Dennis Lewallyn | 4 | 16.2 | 1 | 1 | 2.16 | 4 |

#### Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| Charlie Hough | 77 | 12 | 8 | 18 | 2.21 | 81 |
| Mike Marshall | 30 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 4.45 | 39 |
| Stan Wall | 31 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3.60 | 27 |
| Elías Sosa | 24 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3.48 | 20 |

## Awards and honors

* Gold Glove Award
** Steve Garvey
* Comeback Player of the Year Award
** Tommy John
* TSN National League All-Star
** Don Sutton
* NL Pitcher of the Month
** Don Sutton (September 1976)
* NL Player of the Month
** Steve Garvey (September 1976)
* NL Player of the Week
** Steve Garvey (May 17–23)
** Reggie Smith (July 5–11)
** Doug Rau (July 19–25)
** Don Sutton (Sep. 20–26)
* Hutch Award
** Tommy John

### All-Stars

* 1976 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
** Steve Garvey, starter, first base
** Ron Cey, reserve
** Rick Rhoden, reserve
** Bill Russell, reserve

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Albuquerque Dukes | Pacific Coast League | Stan Wasiak |
| AA | Waterbury Dodgers | Eastern League | Don LeJohn |
| A | Lodi Dodgers | California League | James B. Williams |
| A | Danville Dodgers | Midwest League | Dick McLaughlin |
| Rookie | Bellingham Dodgers | Northwest League | Bill Berrier |

## 1976 Major League Baseball draft

The Dodgers drafted 41 players in the June draft and 14 in the January draft. Of those, ten players would eventually play in the Major Leagues.
The top draft pick in the June draft was catcher Mike Scioscia from Springfield High School in Pennsylvania. He would be the Dodgers starting catcher from 1980 to 1992 and was a 2-time All-Star and two-time World Series Champion with the Dodgers (1981 and 1988). After his playing career ended he became the manager of the Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels and would win another World Series as their manager in 2002.
1976 Draft Picks :
January draft
Round
Name
Position
School
Signed
Career span
Highest level
1
Michael Wetklow
OF
Sacramento City College
No
2
Dave Patterson
RHP
Cerritos College
Yes
1976–1982
MLB
3
Paul Bain
RHP
El Camino College
Yes
1976–1981
AAA
4
Mookie Wilson
OF
Spartanburg Methodist College
No Mets-1977
1977–1991
MLB
5
Timothy DeWald
RHP
Cypress College
No
6
Robert Weis
RHP
Sacramento City College
No
7
Mark Garber
RHP
Antelope Valley College
No
8
Richard Barnhart
RHP
Green River Community College
No Indians-1978
1979–1980
A
9
Rickey Lear
RHP
Valencia Community College
No Reds-1976
1976–1977
A
10
Robert Benda
SS
Palm Beach Community College
No Tigers-1978
1978–1979
A
11
Charles Young
RHP
Los Angeles Pierce College
No
January Secondary phase
Round
Name
Position
School
Signed
Career span
Highest level
1
Jack Lawson
RHP
Phoenix College
Yes
1976
A-
2
Charles Dorgan
LHP
Green River Community College
Yes
1976–1978
A
3
Larry Buckle
RHP
Long Beach City College
No Reds-1978
1978–1984
AA
June draft
Round
Name
Position
School
Signed
Career span
Highest level
1
Mike Scioscia
C
Springfield High School
Yes
1976–1994
MLB
2
Don Ruzek
SS
Lakewood High School
Yes
1976–1985
AA
3
Max Venable
OF
Cordova High School
Yes
1976–1993
MLB
4
George Kunkler
LHP
University of Oklahoma
Yes
1976–1977
AA
5
Ted Power
RHP
Kansas State University
Yes
1976–1998
MLB
6
Mike Howard
OF
Sacramento High School
Yes
1976–1984
MLB
7
Kelly Snider
1B
University of Oklahoma
Yes
1976–1982
AAA
8
Robert Kownacki
SS
Fairfield University
Yes
1976
A
9
Charles Phillips
LHP
University of Southern California
Yes
1976–1980
AAA
10
Bill Swoope
C
Norfolk Catholic High School
Yes
1976–1981
AA
11
William Martin
RHP
William Carey College
Yes
1976–1978
A
12
Jimmie Giles
OF
Alcorn State University
Yes
1976
A-
13
James Peterson
RHP
Arizona State University
Yes
1976–1977
A
14
Douglas Elliott
2B
Fullerton Union High School
No Mets-1979
1979
A-
15
Keith MacWhorter
RHP
Bryant College
Yes
1976–1984
MLB
16
Jack Perconte
2B
Murray State University
Yes
1976–1987
MLB
17
Miguel Rodriguez
RHP
Adlai Stevenson High School
Yes
1976
A-
18
Timothy Jones
C
Wooster High School
Yes
1976–1978
A
19
Eric Schmidt
LHP
Mission Viejo High School
Yes
1976–1979
A
20
Dan Henry
3B
Loyola Marymount University
Yes
1976–1978
A
21
Jeff Albert
RHP
Long Island University, C. W. Post Campus
Yes
1976–1979
AA
22
Bob Amico
1B
University at Buffalo, State University of New York
Yes
1976
A
23
Richard Martini
OF
University of California, Davis
No
24
Mickey Lashley
RHP
University of Oklahoma
Yes
1977–1979
AA
25
José Martínez
SS
South San Francisco High School
No
26
George Kaage
1B
Kankakee Community College
Yes
1976–1978
A
27
Mark Kryka
RHP
Antigo High School
Yes
1976–1978
A
28
Steven Silagi
RHP
El Rancho High School
No
29
Mickey Martin
C
Grant High School
No
30
Douglas Foster
OF
Compton High School
Yes
1976–1978
A
31
Bubba Holland
RHP
South Florence High School
No Astros-1978
1978–1985
AAA
32
Stephen Nelson
RHP
Wilson High School
No
33
Jeff Hunter
3B
Millard High School
No Red Sox-1980
1980–1982
A
34
Mark Wychopen
C
South Houston High School
No
35
Scott Fletcher
SS
Wadsworth High School
No Cubs-1979
1979–1995
MLB
36
Bruce Scheidegger
3B
Chadwick High School
No
37
Donald Brodell
OF
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Yes
1976–1977
A
38
James Riedel
RHP
University at Buffalo, State University of New York
No
39
Gerald Snow
RHP
Madras High School
No
June secondary phase
Round
Name
Position
School
Signed
Career span
Highest level
1
Joe Ferri
OF
Pasadena City College
No
2
Mike Walters
RHP
Chaffey College
No Angels-1977
1977–1985
MLB :