Former Dodger Thome joins Hall of Fame
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LOS ANGELES -- It was only 20 total at-bats, but Jim Thome was a Dodger in 2009, and now he's a former Dodger and a Hall of Famer.
There were seven candidates on the ballot who wore a Dodgers uniform at some point in their careers, not counting Vladimir Guerrero, who spent a few weeks at the Dodgers' Dominican Republic Academy as an amateur, but didn't impress enough to warrant a signing.
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Thome was acquired by the Dodgers for the 2009 stretch drive, but he was limited to 17 regular-season at-bats by a foot injury. He went 1-for-3 that postseason.
Of the other six former Dodgers on the ballot, Fred McGriff came closest to election, getting his name checked on 23.2 percent of the ballots cast. It takes 75 percent for election. McGriff played 86 games for the Dodgers in 2003, his penultimate season, hitting .249 with 13 homers.
Manny Ramirez (22 percent of the vote) spent parts of three seasons with the Dodgers and was suspended once during that time for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs, but what he did after being acquired in a jaw-dropping 2008 Deadline trade still boggles the mind -- 17 homers and 53 RBIs in 53 games, .396 average, 1.232 OPS. That postseason he went 13-for-25 with a 1.746 OPS, four homers and 10 RBIs in eight games.
Jeff Kent (14.5 percent) played the last four seasons of his career with the Dodgers, earning an All-Star selection and a Silver Slugger Award while slugging 75 home runs.
Gary Sheffield (11.1 percent) played 3 1/2 seasons with the Dodgers after coming over from the Marlins in the Mike Piazza trade. He was twice an All-Star and slugged 34, 43 and 36 home runs in his three full seasons in Los Angeles.
Andruw Jones (7.3 percent) signed a two-year free-agent deal with the Dodgers, but was released after a hugely disappointing 2008 season. Orlando Hudson spent only one season with the Dodgers, 2009, but he became the first Dodgers player in 39 years to hit for the cycle. Hudson didn't receive any votes and will be dropped from the ballot.