Throughout their long and rich history, the Dodgers and Yankees have been intertwined. In 2008, the Dodgers are hoping the man who returned the Bronx Bombers to the pinnacle of the sport can do the same for their languishing franchise.

When Los Angeles hired Joe Torre as manager Nov. 1, it did so with the intent of ending a 20-year drought between World Series appearances, the longest-such dry spell for the franchise since the then-Brooklyn Dodgers went from 1920 to 1941 between trips to the Fall Classic.

For one of baseball’s traditional powerhouse franchises, that’s a long time without playing for the title. Consider the 47 seasons after 1940: the Dodgers appeared in 16 World Series, including eight in their first 33 seasons in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles has not been to the World Series since shocking the Oakland A’s in 1988, Kirk Gibson’s epic pinch-hit homer off Dennis Eckersley to win Game 1 setting the tone for a series L.A. won in five games. In fact, the Dodgers have not won a postseason series since.

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ATLANTA – The conventional wisdom surrounding the Atlanta Braves’ hole in center field dictated the Braves would try to find a stop-gap measure to bridge the gap between Andruw Jones and Jordan Schafer.

Conventional wisdom gave way to open opportunity this weekend, when Atlanta general manager Frank Wren wrestled Mark Kotsay away from Oakland for reliever Joey Devine.

Kotsay, who bats and throws left-handed, is a proven veteran who is owed $7 million. Word is Oakland will pick up at least $5 million of the tab for Kotsay, provided his balky back (which limited him to 56 games in 2007) passes a Monday physical in Atlanta.

The deal is expected to be formally announced Tuesday; sources with both teams have confirmed the trade.

Kotsay, 32, gives the Braves a veteran presence in the middle of their outfield, which would’ve been missing after Jones – the starter since 1997 – signed a free-agent deal with the Dodgers last month. He’s a .282 career hitter in 11 major-league seasons, and comes with a reputation for playing hard and being a leader in the clubhouse. In 2004 with Oakland, Kotsay hit .314 with 15 homers and 82 RBIs. He’s also played with San Diego and Florida. Defensively, Kotsay has six seasons with double-figures in outfield assists.

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ATLANTA – Quick, name the last player not named Andruw Jones to patrol center field for the Atlanta Braves on a consistent basis.

Braves fans may remember it was Marquis Grissom – who gloved Carlos Baerga’s fly ball for the final out of the 1995 World Series. Grissom manned center field during 1996, the year Jones started by playing at Class A Durham. By October 1996, Jones was belting two home runs in Game 1 of the World Series, and center field was his to keep.

Until now.

The Braves allowed Jones to leave as a free agent following last season, a season in which the stubborn slugger hit an abysmal .222 (including a not-so-stellar .143 in June and .207 in September). Now the property of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the 30-year-old looks to bounce back from the worst season of his career.

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