Rate the class of 2006

I'll do a brief summary

I gave them a C overall.
Matt Kemp B I was very excited about Kemp when he first came up. The Dodgers have always had power problems, and Kemp was a guy known for power. Had an MVP calibar season in 2011(robbed), and has always had the biggest upside in the group. I just wish his injury problems would go away for good, but he has made 2 all star appearances with us and been an MVP candidate twice.

Andre Ethier B- Ethier isn't the same player he used to be, but he's still a 285 career hitter for us and has provided some very memorable moments. The second year we lost to the Phillies in the NLCS, Andre provided some of the clutchest moments I've ever witnessed as a Dodgers fan. For the most part, he was a 280 20-25 HR guy for us, which is pretty damn good considering we gave up Milton Bradley for him.

Russell Martin- B Martin seemed like he'd be a Dodger for life when he first came up. He possessed skills at the catcher position that are rare. The ability to hit for average, power, and steal bases. His first full season with us he posted 293/19/87 and 21 SBs which is insanely good for a catcher. But sadly he progressed season after season for us, and forced us to look elsewhere at catcher. It's amazing that we bitched about him hitting 248 and 250 his last couple of seasons with low power numbers, but currently those numbers would be a big upgrade over what we have lol.

Andy Laroche F Huge disappointment. 3rd base has always been a weakness for us, and the guy was not only supposed to fill the position, but he was hyped up to be an all star. Absolutely terrible in the majors for us and we gave him a lot of chances too.

James Loney- C I remember in 2007 when the season went to utter shit and Loney came up. I kept watching because I got excited every time Loney came up the plate. I thought he was going to be a star for us and be one of the best hitters in baseball. He destroyed the baseball in September of 2007 and ended with a 331 average/15 HR/ and 67 RBI in just 97 games played. He never hit over 300 again, and provided low power numbers the rest of his career with us. For his position, he was a huge liability in the lineup. Like Martin, he seemed to just regress season after season as a Dodger.

Delwyn Young-D- Provided false hope in 07 when he came up, but that proved to be a small sample size. Just never showed the ability to hit consistently in the MLB.

Jonathan Broxton-F- fucking choker. Just kidding, I'd give him a C-. At times for us, Broxton would appear so dominat. He was so good in the setup role with Saito closing when he first came up and for a while looked like he'd be a really good closer for us. But the guy was just a mental midget in the big moments. Seemed like he'd blow a save at the worst times possible in the regular season, and he'll always be remembered for choking vs the Phillies two years in a row in game 4s where we could have tied the series at 2-2. I just won't ever be able to forgive him for blowing it in the playoffs. Especially the first year vs the Phillies. I wasn't too confident we could beat the Yankees in 09 in the WS because they were loaded, but in 08 I thought we could definitely beat the Rays due to their inexperience on the big stage. Who knows what would have happened if we went into game 5 tied at 2-2. We looked defeated before game 5 started after Broxton's choke job both years.

Chad Billingsley- C Chad showed great potential when he came up, but he turned out to be just a middle of the rotation type pitcher, and only had one 200 inning season for us. Possessed the same mental strength as Broxton when it came to big moments it appeared. Still, a 3.65 career ERA is pretty damn solid, but it appears his days as a Dodger are over with his injury issues.

Kuo- C Kuo was the shit in 2010. He was unhittable out of the pen, but he was an injury waiting to happen. His stint as a starter didn't last long due to his injuries and inability to keep a decent pitch count. But for awhile, he was pretty damn good out of the pen.

 

I remember I thought so highly of them that my name at PSD was "Dodgers07champs" lol. Should have probably thought that one through...

 

I remember that Jacksonville Suns team. They were awarded Minor League "Team of the Year." I actually thought about ordering some of their merchandise, so I could wear it proudly and brag about how the Dodgers were set for years. I really thought there were some potential future Hall of Famers in the group. Sadly, that wasn't the case, although at the beginning they sure were exciting to watch, as jbl described above. How did Loney go from such a hot start to pretty much nothing? Where was his "Mark Grace-type gap power" that was projected? And I loved Russ as our future catcher for years, but he seemed to get worn down quickly. I was also a huge fan of Ethier, thinking he, Kemp, and whoever would give us a top OF trio for years. But slowly that faded for me as he went from a really good OF'er to an average one to a crappy one, and now I'm left with negative thoughts when he bats in a key situation. Billingsley is the pitcher who's never had a losing season, and he played for some shitty McCourt teams. What else could you ask for? Yes, his success didn't carry over to the postseason, but it's a small sample size. I would've liked to see him get another chance to get that monkey off his back. Who knows what his future holds - he may still get that chance, albeit likely somewhere else. I loved the intimidation factor that Broxton brought to the mound, throwing straight heat. But his problem was he never evolved his repertoire, and eventually the league caught up to him. Seemed like they'd just foul-off 6-7 fastballs in a row until they found one they could drive. He was too stubborn to develop a change-of-pace pitch to get swings-and-misses once he had the heater set up. Kuo was good for a while, but not long enough. Obviously guys like LaRoche, Young, Guzman, Miller, that asian SS whose name I don't recall, and others were major letdowns. This leaves Kemp. He's the one guy I haven't given up on yet, holding out hope that he can return to 2011 numbers. He's still relatively young, and if he can remain healthy (and I know that's a big if), he can still potentially put up some monster numbers for the Dodgers. I really hope the book isn't closed on him for many years. We will see.

 

or would they be better described as poopy crap or crappy poop?