1972 Los Angeles Dodgers season
The 1972 Los Angeles Dodgers finished the season 85-70, good for second place in the National League West division.
Offseason
- October 21: Tommy Hutton was traded by the Dodgers to the Philadelphia Phillies for Larry Hisle.
- October 22, 1971: Bobby Darwin was traded by the Dodgers to the Minnesota Twins for Paul Powell.
- October 24, 1971: Maury Wills was released by the Dodgers.
- December 2, 1971: Doyle Alexander, Bob O'Brien, Sergio Robles and Royle Stillman were traded by the Dodgers to the Baltimore Orioles for Frank Robinson and Pete Richert.
- December 2, 1971: Dick Allen was traded by the Dodgers to the Chicago White Sox for Tommy John and Steve Huntz.
- December 2, 1971: Tom Haller was traded by the Dodgers to the Detroit Tigers for a player to be named later and cash. The Tigers completed the deal by sending Bernie Beckman to the Dodgers on March 31, 1972.
- December 17, 1971: Chris Cannizzaro was claimed off waivers by the Dodgers from the Chicago Cubs.
- March 27, 1972: Bill Sudakis was claimed off waivers from the Dodgers by the New York Mets.
Regular season
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Opening Day lineup
Notable transactions
- April 14, 1972: Dick Dietz was claimed off waivers by the Dodgers from the San Francisco Giants.
Roster
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| CF | 149 | 615 | 178 | .289 | 19 | 79 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| 31 | 202.2 | 9 | 9 | 2.98 | 117 | |
| 29 | 186.2 | 11 | 5 | 2.89 | 117 |
Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| 51 | 8 | 7 | 17 | 1.26 | 69 | |
| 37 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 2.25 | 38 |
Awards and honors
- NL Player of the Month
- *Don Sutton
All-Stars
- 1972 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
- *Don Sutton reserve
- Gold Glove Awards
- *Wes Parker
- *Willie Davis
Farm system
1972 Major League Baseball draft
This was the eighth year of a Major League Baseball Draft. The Dodgers drafted 42 players in the June draft and eight in the January draft.This was a weak draft class whose most notable player was Dennis Lewallyn, a pitcher who played for the Dodgers and two other teams from 1975–1981 with a 4–4 record and 4.48 ERA. The top draft pick was shortstop John Harbin from Newberry College who played in only 83 games in the Dodgers farm system in 1972 and was quickly out of baseball.
January draft
| Round | Name | Position | School | Signed | Career span | Highest level |
| 1 | John Adams | RHP | Yes | 1972–1974 | A | |
| 2 | Tim Hosler | OF | South Georgia College | No | ||
| 3 | Allen Polofsky | LHP | Miami Dade College | No |
January Secondary phase
| Round | Name | Position | School | Signed | Career span | Highest level |
| 1 | Dennis Lewallyn | RHP | Chipola College | Yes | 1972–1987 | MLB |
| 2 | James Van Der Beek | RHP | Lafayette College | Yes | 1972–1976 | AAA |
| 3 | Francis Sansosti | RHP | Community College of Baltimore County | No Cardinals-1975 | 1975 | A |
| 4 | Mike Siani | SS | Villanova University | No | ||
| 5 | Robert Sans | 1B | Texas A&M University | Yes | 1972 | A |
June draft
| Round | Name | Position | School | Signed | Career span | Highest level |
| 1 | John Harbin | SS | Newberry College | Yes | 1972 | A- |
| 2 | Cleo Smith | 1B | Ells High School | Yes | 1972–1979 | AAA |
| 3 | Bob Detherage | RHP | Hillcrest High School | Yes | 1973–1981 | MLB |
| 4 | Larry Corrigan | C | Iowa State University | Yes | 1973–1978 | AAA |
| 5 | Mitchell Bobinger | LHP | Chico High School | Yes | 1972–1978 | AAA |
| 6 | Alton Torregano | C | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | Yes | 1972–1973 | A |
| 7 | James Fleming | SS | St. Peter's High School | Yes | 1973–1976 | AA |
| 8 | Stephen Plut | OF | St. Francis High School | No Angels – 1975 | 1975–1978 | AA |
| 9 | Robert Stewart | RHP | Magnolia High School | Yes | 1972–1977 | AA |
| 10 | William Kooyman | 3B | Saint Mary's College of California | Yes | 1972–1974 | A |
| 11 | Terry Zorger | 3B | Huntington University | Yes | 1972–1973 | A- |
| 12 | Jere Nolan | OF | University of California, Berkeley | Yes | 1972–1974 | AA |
| 13 | Hank Boguszewski | RHP | Glen Cove High School | No | ||
| 14 | Michael Rushde | OF | Fontana High School | Yes | 1972–1977 | AA |
| 15 | Jason Thompson | LHP | Apple Valley High School | Yes | 1975–1986 | MLB |
| 16 | Douglas Schaefer | RHP | Lindbergh High School | No Giants-1975 | 1975–1981 | AAA |
| 17 | Glenn Burke | OF | Merritt College | Yes | 1972–1980 | MLB |
| 18 | Richard Magner | C | Rollins College | Yes | 1972–1977 | AAA |
| 19 | Leonard Wouters | RHP | Hampton Bays High School | Yes | 1972–1976 | A |
| 20 | John Littlefield | RHP | Azusa High School | No Cardinals-1976 | 1976–1982 | AAA |
| 21 | John Freedman | 3B | Claremont High School | No | 1974 | A- |
| 22 | Richard Jacobs | LHP | University of Oklahoma | No | ||
| 23 | Dale Forchetti | SS | Neshaminy High School | No | ||
| 24 | Don Redoglia | SS | Pasadena City College | No Cardinals-1975 | 1975 | A |
| 25 | Kenneth Smith | OF | Jefferson High School | No | ||
| 26 | Buff White | LHP | Folsom High School | No | ||
| 27 | David Rothermel | 3B | Hillcrest High School | No | ||
| 28 | Steven O'Brien | RHP | Maryvale High School | Yes | 1972–1977 | AAA |
| 29 | Samuel Roberts | 1B | Tennessee High School | No | ||
| 30 | Brian Felda | OF | University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh | Yes | 1972–1975 | A |
| 31 | Michael Parnow | 2B | College of Marin | Yes | 1972–1973 | A- |
| 32 | James Fiack | C | University of California, Davis | Yes | 1972–1973 | A |
| 33 | Charles Walker | OF | Atlanta Baptist College | Yes | 1972 | A- |
| 34 | Jeff Chandler | LHP | Davis High School | No Reds-1973 | 1973–1978 | AA |
| 35 | Craig Minetto | LHP | Amos Alonzo Stagg High School | No Expos-1974 | 1974–1984 | MLB |
| 36 | David Baker | C | Pacific High School | No Phillies-1975 | 1975–1976 | AA |
| 37 | Tom Haley | C | Binger High School | No | ||
| 38 | Bob Shirley | LHP | Putnam City High School | No Padres-1976 | 1976–1988 | MLB |
| 39 | Timothy Lewis | LHP | Germantown Academy | No Yankees-1976 | 1976–1981 | AAA |
June secondary phase
| Round | Name | Position | School | Signed | Career span | Highest level |
| 1 | Robert Lesslie | RHP | Kansas State University | Yes | 1972–1977 | AAA |
| 2 | Walter Rzepiennik | RHP | Community College of Baltimore | Yes | 1972–1974 | A |
| 3 | Robin Ogle | 1B | Miami-Dade College | No Padres-1975 | 1975 | A- |