Let’s be honest here, comparing former Dodgers owners Frank and Jamie McCourt to Guggenheim Baseball Management group is like comparing apples to rutabagas; there simply is no comparison. But for all of the McCourt’s shortcomings as Dodgers owners – and there were a few – they did one thing so very very right.

On March 29, 2008, the 50th anniversary of the Dodgers moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, the McCourts put on one of the most spectacular anniversary celebrations in Dodgers (and Major League Baseball) history, when they hosted a ‘Return to the LA Memorial Coliseum’ preseason game between the Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox (Frank’s hometown team growing up) to benefit ThinkCure, the Dodgers then official charity.

“Fifty years after moving to Los Angeles, the Dodgers are returning to their California roots at the Coliseum for one historic game,” said Frank McCourt, when the event was first announced. “Giving back to the Los Angeles community is a core value of the franchise and we’re thrilled to be able to host an event of this magnitude to benefit ThinkCure.”

It was an enormous undertaking that undoubtedly cost the McCourts an absolute fortune. But it was also a huge success … historically so. In fact, it set a new Guinness World Record for the largest crowd to ever attend a baseball game.

On March 29, 2008, 115,300 fans attended the exhibition game between the Dodgers and Red Sox to set a new all-time LA Coliseum attendance record. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

Even though the Dodgers lost to the Red Sox by a score of 7-4 on that chilly Southern California evening in front of the largest crowd in baseball history, the mere fact that the McCourt’s were able to reconfigure LA’s oldest and most recognizable sporting venue to replicate that of the Dodgers’ home from 1958 through 1961 – which included a World Series championship in 1959 – to near perfection was absolutely remarkable.

Yet, here we are less than a month away from the beginning of the 2018 season – the Dodgers 60th in Los Angeles – and there has been no mention of an anniversary celebration even remotely close to the historic celebration that the (now-divorced) McCourts gave Dodger fans back in 2008.

Granted, one can certainly argue that a 50th anniversary is far more significant milestone than is a 60th, and current Dodgers ownership has already indicated that there will be a number of special 60th anniversary events throughout the 2018 season, but still…

What the Dodgers will be doing this season is each uniformed member will have a commemorative 60th anniversary patch on the right sleeve of their jersey throughout the 2018 season and (hopefully) through the postseason, so there’s that.

Not being one to miss a golden marketing opportunity, fans who absolutely must have the latest jersey of their favorite Dodger(s) will be able to purchase said jersey(s) that will feature the colorful 60th anniversary patch.
(Photo courtesy of LA Dodgers)

Even though it appears that Guggenheim Baseball Management missed a perfect opportunity for a second chance to make a first impression, it’s hard to argue that the product that they have been putting on the field since acquiring the team from Frank McCourt in 2012 (to the tune of $2.15 billion) has been exceptionally good; this in spite of a relatively quite 2017-2018 off-season. That being said and for as ridiculously expensive as another ‘Return to the LA Memorial Coliseum’ anniversary event would have been, it sure would be nice if GBM invested some of the money the that they didn’t spend on a 60th anniversary exhibition game to acquire a proven MLB starting pitcher.

…just saying.