This issue of Life magazine is readily available on Ebay. I’d seen it many times and always loved the cover. So, last month I thought ‘what the heck!’ and finally bought a copy. I forgot how large Life magazine is and the cover really is a thing of beauty at that size. It begs to be framed.
It’s great to see all those big league hopefulls. They probably watched the 1947 World Series where the Dodgers almost got their hands on their first title. 550 players were brought up by Branch Rickey to Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Florida. Rickey, a visionary, had clear goals for his Dodgers: win at least five pennants in the next ten years. I wonder what readers would have thought about that statement at the time. As we all know now he did just that AND won a World Series title to boot.
The Dodger's Way
Or, more precisely: Rickey's way! The rookies all got their chance to prove their fitness, their speed, ability to hit and field. Every possible trick was used to asses a players abilities.
Every trick in the book, but also some new ones. Rickey was a master in conjouring up new ways to test the players. He used batting cages and pitching machines. Protecting them was important as well, he introduced the batting helmet.
Looking at that cover again, I wonder how many of these guys made it to the majors and maybe even played in the 1955 World Series when the Bums finally were Bums no more.
This issue of Life is a great addition to any Dodgers collection and not too costly. If you get your hands on a copy, the article can be found on pages 117 through 120.
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