Dees Bums- A neighborly reflection of former Dodgers Hanley Ramirez, Matt Kemp and Dee Gordon in the 1930s

Dees Bums

By Milt Higgins

      The Los Angeles Dodgers made quite a few changes last week to arguably the best NL team over the past two years, with nothing but two division titles to show for themselves and left some Dodgers fans questioning if this is actually a dismantling of “Dees Bums.”

Hanley Ramirez, gone.  Matt Kemp, gone. Dee Gordon, gone.  Sure, it’s only three players, but these three played a prominent role in the limelight of a high payroll team and left us with a flood of emotions from good times, what-ifs and head scratching moments.

Before going any further let’s remember in the grand scheme of things, these three weren’t really on the field at the same time for a long period. Let’s also remember “Dem Bums” is a Brooklyn Dodgers nickname for a team who had a neighborhood-like feel to it.   

The nickname “Dem Bums” supposedly came from the late 1930’s depression years when the Dodgers reputation as lovable losers earned them the nickname. A New York cabbie replied to “New York World Telegram” sports cartoonist Willard Mullin’s question, “How did the Dodgers do today?”  The cabbie’s reply, “Dem (sic) bums are bums,” according to the Baseball-Reference website. The name took off from there, when Mullin created the Brooklyn Bum cartoon character.

What makes these three high-paid superstars (Dee Gordon’s salary only $515,000 in 2014) so lovable? Why do they get the nickname “Dees Bums?”

The Dodgers acquired Hanley Ramirez July 25, 2012 from Miami, a little more than halfway through the season.  The Dodgers trailed the soon-to-be world champion Giants by 2.5 games. Many considered him the best shortstop in MLB stuck on bad Miami/Florida teams and labeled as a bad attitude guy.  

The former Rookie of the Year, three-time all-star, who finished second behind Albert Pujols in the 2009 MVP ballots didn't swallow his pride when the Marlins moved him from shortstop to third base. A one-two punch of Ramirez and Kemp in the lineup for the Dodgers (this is one month prior to the Adrian Gonzalez acquisition) seemed like a great move.

Ramirez hit 10 HRs with 44 RBIs in 64 games with the Dodgers to finish the 2012 season.  Dees Bums finished eight games behind the Giants and missed the playoff wildcard by two games behind who else?  The St. Louis Cardinals.

In 2013 Ramirez' early injury contributed to Dees Bums horrible start. Then 42-8 happened.  Yes, some will credit Yasiel Puig's arrival for this, but lost in the hype of the rookie was the return of Hanley Ramirez.  Ramirez’ first name may as well have been Manny because of the line drive rockets he was hitting all over the field, on his way to finishing the season with a .345 batting average, 20 HRs, and 57 RBIs in 84 games. 

Dees Bums fell short of a World Series appearance to the St. Louis Cardinals in six games in the NLCS.  Ramirez’ ribs were fractured, when he was hit by a Joe Kelly fastball in his first at bat of the NLCS. He finished the 13 inning game with two hits, but the Dodgers still lost.

He did not play in the game 2, 1-0  loss, despite only two St. Louis hits.  Up until the NLCS, Ramirez was batting .444, 4 doubles, 1 triple, and 1 HR in the postseason.   After the fractured rib, Ramirez went 2-13, 1 RBI, 0 extra-base hits, 4 strike outs.

"They made a trade for me, and it means a lot for me," Ramirez said before Game 3 of that NLCS, with the Dodgers in a 2-0 hole. “Since the first day that I got here, they showed me a lot of love and a lot of respect. I'll do anything for this team and this city.”

Imagine that being said in 1930’s Brooklyn.  Sounds very neighborly.

Watching Ramirez for those two and half years in Dodger Blue would make opponents gulp and leave fans frustrated at the same time.   His long slow motion stride to the plate demanded attention.  His swing and misses caused his helmet to fly off leaving the do-rag he wore to cover his braids exposed and kept viewers asking why doesn’t he get a bigger helmet?

His demeanor didn’t express how he really felt.  Baseball experts said they could tell the difference in Ramirez once he got a taste of winning.

Dodgers fanatics gasped and prayed he wasn’t hurt if and when he hustled to first base on an infield grounder, or stretch for an extra base which required a slide.  Any thing that required him to lift himself off the ground caused anxiety and pain to the Dodger fateful.

Lets face it, Hanley got injured quite a bit. It almost seemed like bad luck followed him, but despite all of that and a down-year in 2014, his name and presence in that lineup demanded respect.  He was family.

Just like that, that “bum” is gone.

For nine seasons Matt Kemp graced the Dodgers with his presence.  Best described as the star to be, the star, the star that was, and the star making his comeback. The great thing about this, he was one of our own.

Kemp came through  “our” farm system.  The Dodgers trained this guy. The Dodgers didn’t buy him off like the mafia, he earned his big payday when he reached Clayton Kershaw peak with his play in 2011.  

Kemp finished second in the MVP race to the Milwaukee Brewer’s Ryan Braun.  Mainly because Braun’s team made the playoffs and as later found the use of Braun's performance enhancement measures.

Kemp exemplified everything L.A.  Born and raised in Oklahoma, but an attitude that said SoCal.  He dated the big name girlfriend (Rihanna), he held the great looks, and the way he spoke reminded us of the great Sublime song in the 90s, “Doin’ Time,”  a loose cover of George Gershwin’s “Summertime.”

The living seemed easy for Kemp. A proven outstanding all-around athlete.  The 2011 season brought hope, if the Dodgers could put some more talent around him, the sky was the limit for the organization.

Kemp played in playoff games already.  Two of those younger Dodgers teams bowed out to the Philadelphia Phillies.  The Phillies for two consecutive years proved simply better than the Dodgers, but Kemp, James Loney, Andre Ethier and Russell Martin were the future offensive powers for years to come. Some thought maybe the new Garvey, Lopes, Cey and Russell.

On Aug. 28, 2012, a month after acquiring Hanley Ramirez and three days after the Dodgers traded for Adrian Gonzalez, Kemp crashed into the Coors Field wall chasing a fly ball off the bat of Josh Rutledge in the bottom of the first inning.  One batter later, after he received medical attention from the Dodgers medical staff, Jordan Pacheco hit a soft fly ball to right-center and Kemp laid his body out, coming up short.  Kemp left the game in what was reported as a right knee contusion (Hanley Ramirez homered in this game).

    It wasn’t the knee. It was the left shoulder.  Kemp came back and batted only .214 with 15 RBIs in the final 28 games of the season after missing only two games because of the injury .  The Dodgers fell five more games out of playoff contention during that timeframe, but hey things were looking great for 2013.

"I already asked the doctor, 'If I played on it (shoulder), could I damage it any more than it's already damaged?' and he said 'No,' so I kept playing on it," Kemp said. "They went in and were surprised I was still playing on it. They said it was worse than they thought. They sewed it back together, and I'll start my rehab,” as reported by Mark Saxon of ESPN, Los Angeles in October 2012, regarding Kemp’s shoulder injury.

In 2013 Dodgers fans watched with anticipation for Kemp’s shoulder to “get right.”  Clearly his bat speed or power didn’t seem the same.  When he hit the ball, it didn’t fire off the bat like it used to.

His first home run of the season didn’t come until game 20 in New York against the Mets rookie phenom Matt Harvey. Kemp couldn’t even enjoy that homer, because he made contact late and the ball barely made it over the right field fence which led to a review by umpires, and add the fact the Dodgers lost the game.  Kemp wasn’t quite back yet, but the homer may get his confidence going.

Through May 29, 2013 Kemp was batting .251, 2 HRs,  and 17 RBIs, before missing the next 22 games with a hamstring injury.  He came back for 10 more games and went 9-33 (.272), 1 double, 2 HRs, and 7 RBIs.  He hit homers in back to back games in Colorado which gave the Dodgers fans a sense of "he’s back."

Meanwhile, the Dodgers tear started.  Their amazing 50 game stretch (42-8)  would eventually make them the favorites to win the NL pennant.  During the beginning of the stretch, Kemp had to be placed on the DL after grabbing his shoulder during an at bat in the second inning in San Francisco.

    Kemp in a well-documented gesture a month and half earlier gave his game worn jersey off his back including his cleats to Joshua Jones, 19, who was battling brain cancer after losing three close games at AT&T Ballpark.  Kemp made Dodgers fans proud, while possibly dealing with his own frustrations of finding pre-Coors Field wall Kemp.

If Kemp was frustrated at that point, the blow that may have changed his game forever came July 21, 2013.  Kemp missed another 11 games after the shoulder injury and came back against the Washington Nationals.  In his first game and the Dodger’s last at-bat, with two outs and the Dodgers comfortably about to sweep the series, Kemp was hurt at home plate.

Carl Crawford hit a slow roller to first with the bases loaded.  Inning over, play defense, series over. Not so fast.  Because of Crawford’s speed, Nationals pitcher Fernando Abad couldn’t outrun him to cover first base.  Once the Nationals first basemen Chad Tracy realized this, he fired the ball home to force Kemp out, who clearly failed to run full speed towards home, but rather watched the play at first.  Kemp accelerated when he realized a throw to the plate was the only play, forcing an awkward twist of his ankle while he tried to score standing up.

Kemp went 3-4, with a double and 3 RBIs before limping back to the third base dugout.  This  may be the first time Dodger’s fans showed frustration with Kemp.  Not necessarily because he injured himself again, but more because what Dodger's fans viewed as a lack of hustle, even with the game out of reach. 

It’s ironic that a guy people viewed as laid back coincidentally changed the course of career in laid back fashion.

Kemp stayed out of the lineup until September 16. He returned for 11 games through game 160 going 11-35 (.314), 3 doubles, 1 HR, 6 RBIs. This guy finished a season half the player he used to be and still batted .270. 

Kemp never saw the playing field during the 2013 playoffs. His name excluded from the postseason roster due to the ankle injury. It was more serious than thought and he’d never run the same again.

Fast forward to the 2013 NLCS game 1 and Carlos Beltran (a one man show) at the plate with a 3-1 count.  Beltran belted a Zack Grienke change-up to centerfield.  Andre Ethier (his ankle ailing too) goes back and almost completes a difficult, but MLB catchable play on the wall.

Does a healthy ankle and taller Matt Kemp make that play?  The Beltran double in the third inning tied the score and it stood until the 13th, when once again Beltran doubled to win game 1.  Dees Bums were eliminated five games later.

2014 brought another challenge to Kemp. During the offseason he had surgery on the ankle and his shoulder operated on again for clean up work.  He missed the first five games of the season.

When he returned to the line-up, the Dodgers outfield became crowded with five solid players. Kemp didn’t start every game, but played in all except five. When he did start, he no longer patrolled centerfield, but played more in left.  Through July 17 his line read: .269, 21 doubles, 2 triples, 8 HRs, 35 RBIs.

Kemp’s declined mobility was on display for the world to see. 

Then as reported by LA Times, Dylan Hernandez:

"I want to play every day, if it's with the Dodgers, if it's with somebody else," Kemp said. "I love playing baseball, man. It's what I love to do. I'm not here to sit and watch.”

This is what everyone saw on July 18, 2014, the day after his agent Dave Stewart said his client and him were open to whatever the Dodgers wanted to do with Kemp as long as it was favorable and Kemp eventually got to play everyday and hopefully back in centerfield according to Fox Sports.  Kemp said in spring training he wasn’t open to platooning.

The statement came at the wrong time.  The Dodgers division race still tight and only half a game separated them in front of the Giants.  Diversion from their first goal of a division title was the last thing needed.

Kemp's acknowledgment of his fielding woes may have been overlooked in the same story. Immediately fans perceived him more about himself than about the team.

The Dodgers placed Kemp in right field, a position he frequented when he came up in the minor leagues and all the attention from the article was quickly forgotten when Kemp offensively put the Dodgers on his back for the final 64 games.  He batted .311, 17 doubles, 1 triple, 17 HRs, 54 RBIs during Ramirez and Puig’s power outage.  The Dodgers won the division and equally as important,   the real Matt Kemp displayed a glimpse of his 2011-self.

Dees Bums made another early exit from postseason against St. Louis.  In the NLDS game 2 and a must-win situation, and what is now considered his final at bat in Dodger Blue at Dodger Stadium, Matt Kemp stepped to the plate against all-star Pat Neshek in the bottom of the eighth with the game tied. Kemp drove a 2-1 pitch long and high over the left field fence for the deciding run, giving the Dodgers the win.

If Dodger fans knew then what they know now, they would’ve had the same reaction as J.P. Howell in the dugout. Howell’s hands placed above his head and neared tears as he thanked the heavens above. 

Kemp gave everything he had with his SoCal attitude including those non-traditional dugout foam parties after every Dodger home run in the 2014 season.  Something fans could identify with when they came to the ballpark. He helped put the fun back in baseball.

Just like that, that “bum” is gone.

  Dee Gordon represented the "American dream." He represented the guy who worked the daily grind, but with lightning speed. He was the guy who worked his way up the chain with setbacks in the organization and slowly found success.

Let’s be honest, the last time Dodgers fans thought Gordon would show any relevance was the 2013 NLDS Game 2 vs Atlanta. Gordon represented the tying run when he pinch ran for A.J. Ellis in the top of ninth and was thrown out by Gerald Laird when he attempted to steal 2B for the second out in the inning in a one run ballgame. Controversial call, but the out call stood.

  Gordon, son of Tom “Flash” Gordon came up through the Dodgers farm system.  Another Dodger guy that was ours. He went 3-5 with a stolen base when he made his debut start at shortstop with the major league team on June 7, 2011.

If someone viewed Gordon from the side he could easily be overlooked. His thin and small 5-11, 160 pound frame was an anomaly.  Almost circus-like.

Fans knew about his speed, but weren’t too familiar with his glove and arm at shortstop. In 51 starts, he made 10 errors, but batted .304 with 24 steals on 31 attempts. This tiny guy was the future shortstop in L.A.

When the 2012 season began, he started at shortstop until July 5. The day before, Gordon injured his thumb and expected to be out for six weeks.  Ironically, the next day the team activated second baseman Mark Ellis from the DL and Nate Eovaldi (later traded for Hanley Ramirez 20 days later) earned his first win of the 2012 season over the Diamondbacks.  

 
Dee Gordon didn’t originally lose his job to Hanley Ramirez, he lost it because he got hurt.   The Dodgers led the Giants by 1.5 games prior to Gordon’s injury.  He hit only .229, 36 runs, 9 doubles,  2 triples, 1 HR, 17 RBIs, with 30 stolen bases.  He committed 18 errors and his fielding average, .946.

Gordon filled in during Ramirez' absence from the line-up in 2013, but pinch running was his main duty.

      The Dodgers signed Cuban infielder Alex Guerrero after elimination by St. Louis in 2013.  Guerrero's signing slated fans to assume he'd be the starting second baseman in 2014, despite no minor league or MLB experience. The Dodgers opted not to re-sign 2013 starter Mark Ellis.

The 2014 spring training saw Gordon playing second base and outfield.  He played anywhere needed to be a part of the major league club.  Spring turned out to be successful for him.

Gordon started the year playing second base and eventually never looked over his shoulder thanks to Miguel Olivio, who bit Guerrero’s ear off in Albuquerque in May. Yes, an ear was bitten off in 2014.

Gordon caught his big break with his own performance and Guerrero’s ear.  Gordon batted .289 (was above .300 a week prior to the all-star game), 52 runs, 14 doubles, 9 triples, 2 HRs, 26 RBIs, and 43 stolen bases on his way to an all-star selection. 

To see Gordon hit stand-up triples ignited the Dodgers and their fans.  He made a mess of opposing pitchers when he stood on first base.  Gordon became the small-ball player on a team built for the long-ball.  

Gordon did everything at full speed.  It was like you put your son out there on the field with a bunch of superstars and he played right alongside them without missing a beat. 
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He’d finally become everything the Dodgers organization thought he’d be, but at a different position. In 144 games he made only 12 errors, turned 85 double plays with arguably the worst fielding shortstop in the league, and stole a MLB leading 64 bases on 83 attempts.

His stolen base numbers fell toward the end of the season according to the LA Times.  In his first 36 stolen base attempts he was thrown out only three times, but in his last 46 attempts he was thrown out 16 times. 

Still, Gordon represented the small blue collar guy, putting a lot of weight on his shoulders to get things started for the rest of the crew to follow.  It's fine to reference the 1992 “Calvin working at McDonalds” commercials. Some may view him as a guy growing up on his dad’s MLB money and MLB pedigree reputation, but his work ethic never faltered.  It will be missed.

Just like that, that “bum” is gone.

It’s easy to sit here and say what if this had happened the Dodgers would’ve brought home some World Series rings. MLB postseason rosters allow 25 professional players to be assigned.  The San Francisco Giants had Travis Ishikawa step-up and hit a walk-off NLCS home run this year and the Yankees had Brian Doyle in the 1978 World Series fill-in for an ailing Wille Randolph and bat .438 in 6 games against who else… the Dodgers.

These aren't excuses, it’s about how much the Dodgers will miss them.  Maybe if this happened anywhere else but the home of the second largest city in the country whom supposedly don’t care enough to keep a professional football team, but possess one of the most storied baseball franchises  the fans would feel it more.  Maybe if it was the 1930’s neighborhood team, more tears would flow

Maybe if you look past the high payroll and the fact they never won a World Series or a pennant, you could see they really cared, like we cared.  Hopefully the Dodgers never have the Joni Mitchell lyric “Don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone” thrown in their face and hopefully Dodger fans remember, 2012-2014 “Dees Bums” were our bums.


Note:  Milt Higgins has been a Dodgers fan since 1976.  He grew up in Lexington, Ky and his dislike for the Big Red Machine of the 70s drew him to the Dodgers.  He's never lived in LA or SoCal, but did live in the San Francisco Bay Area in the mid-to late 90s before moving to Boston in 1999. He watched Red Sox fans lose their mind in 2004, then to Phoenix 2006, then back to Boston in 2009 until 2014.  He currently resides in Myrtle Beach, SC as a Journalism student at Coastal Carolina University. He has two blood types: Kentucky Blue and Dodger Blue. Favorite Dodger player: Dusty Baker.