In the days of the old Brooklyn Dodgers, fans affectionately called the team “Dem Bums,” until they finally won a World Series in 1955. Then there were no more cries of “Wait ‘til next year!” But since the Dodgers came west in 1958, a Dodger bum is just that – a player who either didn’t earn his salary, caused trouble or showed a lack of appreciation for the organization (or a little of all three).

Most of the players on this "Bums List" were signed as free agents by the Dodgers, though not all of them. However, all of these players came with at least great potential – and then, in the vernacular, stunk up the joint.

Therefore, you won’t find on this list pinch hitters, utility infielders or crafty veterans trying to tack on one more season. Few people expect much from such players. Nor will you find any young players that came up from the Minor Leagues for a short time and then disappeared. There are way too many of those players to be put on any such list. And they aren't bums either, because everybody can't play Major League Baseball. Furthermore, out of respect for the departed, no deceased players are on this list.

Now here’s the countdown for the Ten WORST Los Angeles Dodger Bums:

10. The Dodgers signed free agent J. D. Drew to a five-year $55 million contract after the 2004 season. Unfortunately, Drew spent most of the 2005 season on the disabled list, prompting some folks to label him “D.L.” Drew. That year he hit a tepid .286 with 15 home runs and 36 RBIs. The following year, now healthy, he hit .283 with 20 home runs and 100 RBIs. These weren’t stellar stats, but at least the Dodgers were getting a decent return on their investment and hoped for lots more in the next three seasons. (Remember, almost all free agent money these days is guaranteed.) But, during the off season, Drew took advantage of an “opt-out” clause in his contract and became a free agent, eventually signing with the Boston Red Sox. Some gratitude! If the Dodgers haven’t given you enough money, Mr. Drew, then by all means get the heck out of La-La Land!

9. Odalis Perez or “Odious” Perez, one might say, was traded by the Atlanta Braves to the Dodgers after the 2001 season (a deal that sent Gary Sheffield to the Braves) and went 15 and 10 with a 3.00 ERA; and then in 2002 he won 12 games, two of them one-hitters. Hey, he was damn good then! So, after the 2003 season, the Dodgers signed Odalis as a free agent for three years at $24 million, after which he won seven games each of the following two years. Seven victories from a healthy starting pitcher is not very good, especially when he's making $8 million a year. At one point, after being relegated to the bullpen, Odalis said the Dodgers were “treating him like trash.” Then after the 2005 season the Dodgers dumped Odalis – good riddance to bad rubbish, you might say – but had to eat the final $8 million on the last year of his contract. Don’t baseball fans hate it when their team has to pay millions of dollars for a player who is . . . no longer on the team!

8. Hee-Seop Choi or Hee-Seop “the Flop,” as some Dodger fans eventually labeled the Korean import, was traded from the Florida Marlins to the Los Angeles Dodgers in July of the 2004 season, a deal involving six players. (Many Dodger fans think the Dodgers got the dirty end of the stick on this unpopular deal.) The Dodgers gave Hee-Seop, a left-handed-hitting slugger, the job at first base, where he was supposed to provide middle of the order pop. Unfortunately, Hee-Seop did little except strike out and end rallies. In limited playing time in 2004, he hit zero home runs and had 6 RBIs. In 2005, he delivered 15 home runs, 40 RBIs and a .253 batting average. Not terrible stats, actually. But he didn’t hit left-handers well, was a clod-hopper on the base paths and played average defense at best. In spring training the following year, the Dodgers waived Hee-Seop and then he never played in the majors again. Hee-Seop was the typical player with lots of power and little else. (Remember the Dodgers’ Billy Ashley?) Why the Dodgers didn’t spot Hee-Seop’s deficiencies before they traded for him is probably a great mystery to many Dodger fans. In favor of Hee-Seop, at least the Dodgers didn’t spend millions on him!

7. Delino DeShields never lived up to the Dodgers expectations of becoming a quality leadoff hitter in the middle 1990s. After the 1993 season, Delino was acquired in a trade with the old Montreal Expos in exchange for – get this! – Pedro Martinez, one of the best starting pitchers in recent decades and perhaps of all time. During Delino’s three seasons with the Dodgers, he never hit above .256, though his on-base percentage stayed around .350 until his final season, when it plummeted to .288. It seemed that Delino would have a good week and then lie fallow for another. Also, during the playoffs in 1995 and 1996, Delino was a nonentity. He just never got it going for the Dodgers and, of course, the infamous and lopsided comparison with the player for whom he was traded will haunt him forever. Should he be crowned Delino “De Bum”?

6. Darren Dreifort had one of the greatest sliders of all time and a 95-mph fastball. When he started pitching for the Dodgers in 1994, he was a short reliever, then in 1999 they moved him to the starting rotation, a move they probably never should have made. As a starter, Dreifort never won more than 13 games a season, and never had an ERA below 4.00. Nevertheless, apparently seeing unhittable sliders in their minds’ eyes, before the 2001 season the Dodgers signed Dreifort to a five-year $55 million free-agent contact. Then Dreifort started having injury trouble, including two Tommy John elbow surgeries, as well as hip, shoulder and knee trouble. Whew! You’d think the guy had fought in Iraq! During that entire contract, he never won more than four games in any season and didn’t even pitch in two out of five of those seasons. If the Dodgers had kept Dreifort as a reliever, maybe his body would have held up better. Maybe. As for Darren Dreifort’s nickname, Don Drysdale was known as Big D and Don Sutton was Little D. Therefore, forevermore, Darren Dreifort will be nicknamed The Big Dump.

5. Jason Schmidt will almost certainly go down in Dodger history as one of the worst free agent signings of all time, and that list includes lots of stinkers, let me tell you! After the end of the 2006 season, this hard-throwing, right handed, starting pitcher signed a three-year, $47 million-dollar contract. During the 2007 season, Schmidt's record was 1 and 4 with a 6.31 ERA in only six starts. A dismal return on the Dodgers' investment, right? Schmidt almost certainly would have done better if his shoulder hadn’t given him trouble. In fact, during the 2008 season, Schmidt didn’t pitch at all! Two operations later and numerous rehabs in the minors and Jason Schmidt finally made it back to the majors in 2009. He compiled a 2 and 2 record with an ERA of 5.60. As slow as Jason's fastball was - 85 to 87 mph - he might as well have been throwing with Martha Stewart's arm! Think about this: Three wins in three years at $47 million dollars! So far, I haven’t found a nickname that equates with the Dodgers' profound disappointment in this player.

4. Andruw Jones, who could be called Mr. Whiff, because in 2008 he struck out more times then he got base hits or walks, as well as batting an abysmal .158 with 3 homers and 14 RBIs in 209 at-bats. Such a spectacular fiasco has never been seen during the age of free agency. Naturally, the Dodgers expected more after signing Jones to a two-year contract at $36 million, and the “boo birds” at Dodger Stadium serenaded Andruw every chance they got. What the Dodgers received for their money was a slow-afoot, Pillsbury doughboy who couldn’t hit his shoe size. Andruw Jones is yet another baseball player who lost his pop in his early 30s. There have been quite a few of those. Remember Eric Karros and Will Clark? But at least those guys contributed in other ways. In fairness to Jones, he did have some knee trouble, which probably affected his performance. Anyhow, Dodger fans must wish Mr. Whiff had stung somebody other than the Dodgers for 36 million smackers. Ouch! (The Dodgers released Andruw Jones on January 15, 2009.)

3. After being traded to the Dodgers late in the 1998 season, left-handed starting pitcher Carlos Perez pitched well enough to impress Dodger management, and the following off season the Dodgers signed him to a three-year $24 million contract. Unfortunately, as bad luck or bad baseball juju would have it, by the next season the 29-year-old pitcher had lost at least 5 mph on his fastball. Consequently, in 1999 Carlos posted a limp-wristed 2 and 10 record with a 7.47 ERA, the highest ERA that year among starting pitchers in the National League. The next year, Carlos continued to appall Dodger management and fans, throwing a 5 and 8 record with a 5.56 ERA, giving up 192 hits in 144 innings! In spring training the following season, the Dodgers had seen enough and sent Carlos packing, while taking up the yin-yang the final $8 million on his contract. Certainly fans hope the Dodgers never again sign another pitcher with the last name of Perez!

2. Milton Bradley is a switch-hitting outfielder with power and the ability to hit for a high batting average, as well as good defensive ability and base-stealing speed – a five-tool player according to some analysts. The Dodgers made a trade for Milton at the beginning of the 2004 season, quite possibly smacking their lips. But they soon learned why the Cleveland Indians had grown tired of him. Milton has a very bad temper and an outspoken nature. (Milton had had an altercation with Cleveland’s manager, prompting his exit). His first year with the Dodgers, Milton put up some decent numbers – 19 home runs and 67 RBIs and a .267 batting average. However, in 2005, because of injuries, Milton’s at-bats dropped precipitously and so did his numbers. But his bad behavior paved the way for his departure. During a ballgame at Dodger Stadium, Milton, while playing right field, got into an altercation with a fan who had thrown a water bottle at him. The game had to be stopped and Milton led from the field while yelling at the fan. Milton was suspended for the final five games of the season. The following year, fellow player Jeff Kent scolded Milton for making a base running blunder. Then Milton told the press that Kent didn’t relate well with African-American players. Later, Kent told management that either he goes or I go. So at the end of the season the Dodgers kept Kent and traded Milton. Seemingly, when Milton wasn’t injured he was getting into trouble, and one time one situation was the result of the other. During the 2007 season, while playing with the San Diego Padres, Milton seriously injured his knee while . . . arguing with an umpire! So, what’s Milton Bradley's nickname? Milton Bummer, of course.

1. Darryl Strawberry was the so-called Straw that Stirs (the offense). Eventually the Dodgers would learn the inaccuracy of that nickname. The Dodgers signed Strawberry as a free agent after the 1990 season. The contract: five years at $22 million. At the time, this was a monster deal. Strawberry was regarded as one of the greatest sluggers in baseball, having hit at least 26 home runs per year while playing eight seasons for the New York Mets. Many thought he would surely make it to the Hall of Fame. His first year with L.A., Strawberry hit 28 homers and knocked in 99 runs. Nothing great but certainly acceptable production. Then the next two seasons Strawberry battled a back injury which eventually required surgery. He hit only five home runs each of those two seasons. Then, during spring training in 1994, Strawberry seemed physically fit and ready to bat clean-up for the Dodgers with a lineup that featured young Dodger sluggers Mike Piazza and Eric Karros. Alas, this never happened because Strawberry suddenly departed. It soon became known that Strawberry was addicted to cocaine. Now the Dodgers knew what he was doing with that darn straw. The Dodgers promptly released him, and in early 1995 Strawberry was suspended from baseball for cocaine use. Like nobody before or since, Darryl Strawberry screwed the Dodgers! (He also screwed the San Francisco Giants, but who cares about them?)

Okay, there’s the list of the Ten WORST Dodger Bums. Of course, there’ll certainly be adjustments to this list in the coming years. If you think anybody else should be here, please let me know.

Play ball!