The Dodgers don't have a written "criteria" for retiring uniform numbers. But with one notable exception, each of the franchise's retired numbers was worn by a player who played a majority of his career with the Dodgers and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The one exception is longtime Dodger Jim Gilliam, who was the club's first-base coach when he died at age 49 just before the start of the 1978 World Series. His number was immediately retired.
Number retired on July 1, 1984
Harold Pee Wee Reese played 16 seasons at shortstop for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers (1940-42, 1946-58) and was a member of seven Brooklyn pennant-winning teams, including the World Championship club of 1955. A 10-time National League all-star, Reese appeared in more games at shortstop (2,014) than any player in franchise history and is also the Dodgers all-time leader in runs scored (1,338) and walks (1,210). His leadership qualities were recognized by Manager Walter Alston, who appointed The Little Colonel as team captain. Reese was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.
Number retired on August 15, 1997
Tommy Lasorda had a tough act to follow when he succeeded future Hall of Famer Walter Alston as Dodger manager with four games left in the 1976 season. But like Alston, Lasorda went on to enjoy a lengthy and highly successful tenure at the helm. Piloting the Dodgers until the 1996 campaign, he racked up 1,599 victories to rank 13th on the all-time Major League managerial list, winning two World Series titles (1981 and 1988), four NL pennants and eight division titles. Prior to joining the big league staff as a coach in 1973, he had a successful eight-year stint as a minor league manager, helping the development of several future Dodger stars. The former Brooklyn Dodger pitcher was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.
Number retired on July 6, 1980
The Duke of Flatbush was among the game's most feared hitters during his 16 seasons with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers (1947-62), playing on a pair of World Championship teams (1955 and 1959) and in six World Series overall. The seven-time All-Star center fielder ranks as the franchises career leader in home runs (389) and runs batted in (1,271) and during the 1950s, he topped all Major Leaguers with 326 homers and 1,031 RBI. He slugged four home runs in both the 1952 and 1955 World Series and he holds the Brooklyn Dodger single-season mark of 43 homers, which which led the National League in 1956. His 136 RBI in 1955 topped the NL. Snider was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980.
Number retired on October 10, 1978
Junior Gilliam played his entire 14-year Major League career (1953-66) in a Dodger uniform, both in Brooklyn and Los Angeles, contributing to four World Championship clubs (1955, 1959, 1963 and 1965) and seven pennant-winners overall. He appeared in 1,976 games to rank fifth on the franchise s all-time games played list, seeing action at second base, third base and in the outfield. In 1953, he was selected as the National League Rookie of the Year. Following his playing career, the two-time all-star served as a Dodger coach until his untimely death at the age of 49 prior to the start of the 1978 World Series, at which time his number was retired and the Dodgers wore a commemorative patch on their sleeve in his honor.
Number retired on August 14, 1998
The durable right-hander spent 16 of his 23 Major League seasons with the Dodgers and more than made his mark in team history, ranking as the franchise all-time leader in wins (233), games pitched (550), innings pitched (3,814), strikeouts (2,696) and shutouts (52). A four-time All-Star, he pitched in three World Series (1974, 1977 and 1978) with the Dodgers, led the National League in shutouts (9) in 1972, was the NL ERA leader (2.21) in 1980 and a 21-game winner in 1976. He made his big league debut with the Dodgers in 1966 and stayed with the team through 1980, before leaving and rejoining the club in 1988. Sutton finished his career with 324 wins and 3,574 strikeouts and was enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998.
Number retired on June 5, 1977
Walter Emmons Alston was a virtual unknown when he took over the helm of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1954, but he became well-known in a hurry. The longtime minor league skipper guided his first Dodger team to 92 wins and followed that by piloting the 1955 Dodgers to 98 victories and their first World Championship in franchise history. He went on to lead the Dodgers to six more National League pennants and three more World Series titles (1959, 1963 and 1965) in a 23-year career in which he tallied 2,040 victories to place sixth on the all-time managerial wins list. His 3,658 total games managed rank eighth all-time. Alston, who played in one Major League game, that with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1934, was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983.
Number retired on June 4, 1972
Among the most dominating pitchers in the games history, the left-hander won 165 games and compiled 2,396 strikeouts in 2,324.1 innings with 40 shutouts in his 12-year Dodger career (1955-66). A three-time Cy Young Award winner and the National League MVP in 1963, Koufax was also World Series MVP in both 1963 and 1965, when he hurled a pair of shutouts. He led the NL in ERA five straight seasons from 1962-66, was the strikeouts leader four times and was tops in wins on three occasions with totals of 27, 26 and 25. In addition, Koufax pitched an NL-record four no-hitters, including a perfect game in 1965, and set the national single-season mark with 382 strikeouts in 1965. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
Number retired on June 4, 1972
In 10 seasons with the Brooklyn Dodgers (1948-57), Campy was a force both at the plate and behind the plate. The catcher played on five pennant-winning clubs, including the World Champions of 1955. That season, the eight-time all-star became a three-time National League Most Valuable Player award winner after collecting 32 home runs and 107 RBI. He also garnered MVP honors in 1951 and 1953, when he led the league with a Brooklyn-record 142 RBI to go with a career-high 41 home runs. Campanella, whose career was cut short due to a tragic automobile accident which left him paralyzed, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969.
Number retired on June 4, 1972
Jack Roosevelt Robinson made a historic entrance into Major League Baseball in 1947 as the first African-American player in the history of the game. His outstanding debut season netted him the inaugural Rookie of the Year award, which now bears his name, and spring-boarded him to a stellar 10-season career in which he was part of six Brooklyn Dodger pennant-winners, among them the World Championship club of 1955. In 1949, the six-time All-Star won the National League batting title (.342) en route to earning MVP honors. Robinson, a first baseman as a rookie, starred as a second baseman for the next five seasons, before moving on to play third base and the outfield. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
Number retired on July 1, 1984
One of the game's fiercest competitors, the hard-throwing right-hander pitched 14 seasons (1956-69) for the Brooklyn and L.A. Dodgers, ranking second on the franchise career list in wins (209), games pitched (518), strikeouts (2,486), innings pitched (3,432.1) and shutouts (49). The NL strikeout leader in 1959 and 1960, Big D earned the league's Cy Young Award in 1962, when he won 25 and topped the league in strikeouts for a third time. A member of three World Championship clubs (1959, 1963 and 1965) and two other pennant winners (1956 and 1966), he set a then-Major League record in 1968, tossing 58-2/3 consecutive scoreless innings, including a record six straight shutouts. Drysdale gained induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.
