Maybe it’s because he’s named after one of the most powerful running backs, Christian Okoye, in NFL history.

Or maybe it’s because his dad, former Portland State baseball and football player Richard Dickson, worked with his son to develop a natural home-run swing.

Or maybe it’s just 215 pounds of muscle packed into a 5-foot-11 frame.

Dickson, ranked the Los Angeles Dodgers’ No. 29 prospect by Baseball America, made his first appearance of the season Friday for the Great Lakes Loons.

The right-handed first baseman made it count, going 2-for-4 with three RBIs, three runs scored and an opposite-field homer in the Loons’ 9-8 win over the Lansing Lugnuts.

Dickson, who hit 13 homers in 48 games last season for the Ogden Raptors, hurt his hand during spring training and remained in extended spring training until it healed.

“It was frustrating, but I had to let my hand and wrist rest until it was completely healthy,” Dickson said. “There was inflammation. I tried to play through it for four games, but couldn’t do it. So much of my power is generated with my hands and wrists.”

There is plenty of power. Baseball America named Dickson the Dodgers’ top power prospect from the 2011 draft.

There is plenty of evidence to back up the ranking. As a sophomore at San Francisco Washington High School, Dickson hit a home run out of AT&T Park in a high school playoff game.

At Sonoma State, Dickson hit .341 with 11 homers and 52 RBIs. One of his homers came in the first round of the NCAA Division II playoffs against Grand Valley State, tying the game in the ninth inning.

“The whole World Series experience was incredible,” Dickson said. “We ended up two game short of the championship. We lost to West Florida, who won the championship.”

The Dodgers drafted Dickson in the 12th round of the 2011 draft and assigned him to Ogden, where he led the Pioneer League with a .603 slugging percentage.

Los Angeles Dodgers assistant general manager DeJon Watson, however, does not consider Dickson a power hitter.

“He’s a ballplayer, a hitter,” Watson said. “I don’t consider him to be a pure power guy. I just want him to be the player that he’s been, to do what he’s been doing.”

Dow Diamond, however, offers a different challenge for Dickson.

“I’ve heard about how hard it is to hit homers here,” Dickson said. “I had about 13 swings in batting practice so far, so we’ll see.

“I’m not going to change how I swing. I just look for a good pitch, try to get a good swing on it and drive it. It if goes out for a homer, great.”

Los Angeles (CNN) — The Los Angeles Dodgers, one of the most successful franchises in Major League Baseball, ushered in a new era of ownership Wednesday while ending a dismal chapter of ownership under Frank McCourt, who baseball’s commissioner described as “looting” the club of $190 million to fund an extravagant lifestyle.

At a news conference, a consortium of investors, including Los Angeles Lakers great Magic Johnson, delivered a message to fans: “We are out to win. We are out to win for the fans. It’s a new day in Dodger Town.”

On Tuesday, Guggenheim Baseball Management officially closed its $2.3 billion purchase of the club and Dodger Stadium from McCourt.

Mark Walter, CEO of Guggenheim Partners, which manages more than $125 billion in assets, will be the controlling partner with sports executive Stan Kasten as president and CEO. The investor group includes Mandalay Entertainment Chairman Peter Guber, Guggenheim Partners President Todd Boehly and Texas energy investor Bobby Patton.

Johnson, 52, broke into tears when asked what it meant being part of the franchise that broke the color barrier in baseball with the signing of Jackie Robinson (in 1947, when the Dodgers were still in Brooklyn).

“I can’t even put into words how it is,” he said. “I would not be here if it wasn’t for Jackie Robinson.”

Under the new ownership, the Dodgers face a formidable challenge of restoring a brand that once nurtured greats like Duke Snider, Sandy Koufax, Fernando Valenzuela and longtime manager Tommy Lasorda.

Kasten, former president of the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals, said he is not expecting to make any changes to team operations immediately.

“We are first committed to a culture of winning and making the experience at Dodger stadium clean, safe, affordable and entertaining,” Kasten said.

The sale of the team followed the most tumultuous off-the-field period in the franchise’s history.

After McCourt acquired the team in 2004, the Dodgers reached the postseason four times, on the heels of a decade-long drought. But just after the home opener in 2011, a San Francisco Giants fan was beaten nearly to death in the Dodger Stadium parking lot. The assault on Bryan Stow left an indelible sense of concern over safety, in spite of increased security.

And Frank and Jamie McCourt’s bitter divorce became a cloud over the franchise. Attendance declined dramatically; whole sections of one of the game’s most picturesque ballparks were completely empty on many game days.

Eventually, McCourt’s financial turmoil led MLB Commissioner Bud Selig to take over day-to-day operations while the league conducted an investigation into McCourt’s finances.

Last June, when Selig declined to approve a $3 billion agreement between Fox and the Dodgers to extend television broadcast rights, McCourt filed for bankruptcy. McCourt became embroiled in so much debt that he needed to borrow millions just to meet a monthly player payroll.

Near the end of the two-year divorce battle, court documents revealed that the McCourts used team revenue to purchase estates in Holmby Hills and Malibu, California, traveled around the world in private jets, and spent lavishly on hair and makeup.

During bankruptcy proceedings, McCourt finally agreed to sell the team under a bidding process that granted him authority to approve the new owner.

In March, Guggenheim was selected from a list of three finalists. Based on a settlement with MLB and overseen by the bankruptcy court, McCourt had until Monday to close the sale. The settlement also required McCourt to pay his former wife a $131 million divorce settlement by April 30.

As part of the sale, Guggenheim paid an additional $150 million for a 50% interest in the property surrounding Chavez Ravine and the Dodger Stadium parking lots, in a joint venture with McCourt.

In the end, McCourt is expected to make a $1 billion profit.

On Wednesday, Walter, the Guggenheim CEO, was dismissive about McCourt’s role in future Dodger operations.

“Every aspect of the operation in Chavez Ravine that relates to baseball, parking, everything, is controlled and managed by us and all of those revenues go to this organization.”

Johnson was more emphatic about any future role of McCourt.

“Frank’s not here, he’s not a part of the Dodgers anymore. We should be clapping for just that,” he said.

The Dodgers have started this season as one of the hottest teams in the majors and are vying for an opportunity to win a sixth World Series (their last was in 1988).

But the cost of rebuilding a franchise, with a staggering $2.3 billion investment and future renovations expected, leaves big questions about generating revenue.

Johnson sought to ease concerns Wednesday about the prospect of higher ticket prices.

“We’re not here to price-gouge the fans just because we paid a nice sum for this franchise,” he said, noting that parking rates will be reduced from $15 to $10.

Despite any peripheral future role for the former owner in the development of the parking facilities, Selig sought to put the McCourt saga behind.

“After a long and difficult road, the sale of the Dodgers is now complete, and I am pleased that the club can have the fresh start it deserves under new ownership,” said Selig in a statement.

Walter echoed that sentiment: “We’ll focus on making this the finest organization possible, make this a place that everyone wants to be, that it accessible to a really broad range of people.”

Surrounded by former Dodgers Don Newcombe, Maury Wills, Ron Cey, Steve Garvey and Eric Karros, Johnson reflected on his successful basketball career, saying he is now solely focused on bringing his winning ways to baseball.

“We were able to accomplish great things with the Lakers,” Johnson said, “and I think we are going to accomplish great things with the Dodgers — I can promise you.”

Los Angeles (CNN) — The Los Angeles Dodgers, one of the most successful franchises in Major League Baseball, ushered in a new era of ownership Wednesday while ending a dismal chapter of ownership under Frank McCourt, who baseball’s commissioner described as “looting” the club of $190 million to fund an extravagant lifestyle.

At a news conference, a consortium of investors, including Los Angeles Lakers great Magic Johnson, delivered a message to fans: “We are out to win. We are out to win for the fans. It’s a new day in Dodger Town.”

On Tuesday, Guggenheim Baseball Management officially closed its $2.3 billion purchase of the club and Dodger Stadium from McCourt.

Mark Walter, CEO of Guggenheim Partners, which manages more than $125 billion in assets, will be the controlling partner with sports executive Stan Kasten as president and CEO. The investor group includes Mandalay Entertainment Chairman Peter Guber, Guggenheim Partners President Todd Boehly and Texas energy investor Bobby Patton.

Johnson, 52, broke into tears when asked what it meant being part of the franchise that broke the color barrier in baseball with the signing of Jackie Robinson (in 1947, when the Dodgers were still in Brooklyn).

“I can’t even put into words how it is,” he said. “I would not be here if it wasn’t for Jackie Robinson.”

Under the new ownership, the Dodgers face a formidable challenge of restoring a brand that once nurtured greats like Duke Snider, Sandy Koufax, Fernando Valenzuela and longtime manager Tommy Lasorda.

Kasten, former president of the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals, said he is not expecting to make any changes to team operations immediately.

“We are first committed to a culture of winning and making the experience at Dodger stadium clean, safe, affordable and entertaining,” Kasten said.

The sale of the team followed the most tumultuous off-the-field period in the franchise’s history.

After McCourt acquired the team in 2004, the Dodgers reached the postseason four times, on the heels of a decade-long drought. But just after the home opener in 2011, a San Francisco Giants fan was beaten nearly to death in the Dodger Stadium parking lot. The assault on Bryan Stow left an indelible sense of concern over safety, in spite of increased security.

And Frank and Jamie McCourt’s bitter divorce became a cloud over the franchise. Attendance declined dramatically; whole sections of one of the game’s most picturesque ballparks were completely empty on many game days.

Eventually, McCourt’s financial turmoil led MLB Commissioner Bud Selig to take over day-to-day operations while the league conducted an investigation into McCourt’s finances.

Last June, when Selig declined to approve a $3 billion agreement between Fox and the Dodgers to extend television broadcast rights, McCourt filed for bankruptcy. McCourt became embroiled in so much debt that he needed to borrow millions just to meet a monthly player payroll.

Near the end of the two-year divorce battle, court documents revealed that the McCourts used team revenue to purchase estates in Holmby Hills and Malibu, California, traveled around the world in private jets, and spent lavishly on hair and makeup.

During bankruptcy proceedings, McCourt finally agreed to sell the team under a bidding process that granted him authority to approve the new owner.

In March, Guggenheim was selected from a list of three finalists. Based on a settlement with MLB and overseen by the bankruptcy court, McCourt had until Monday to close the sale. The settlement also required McCourt to pay his former wife a $131 million divorce settlement by April 30.

As part of the sale, Guggenheim paid an additional $150 million for a 50% interest in the property surrounding Chavez Ravine and the Dodger Stadium parking lots, in a joint venture with McCourt.

In the end, McCourt is expected to make a $1 billion profit.

On Wednesday, Walter, the Guggenheim CEO, was dismissive about McCourt’s role in future Dodger operations.

“Every aspect of the operation in Chavez Ravine that relates to baseball, parking, everything, is controlled and managed by us and all of those revenues go to this organization.”

Johnson was more emphatic about any future role of McCourt.

“Frank’s not here, he’s not a part of the Dodgers anymore. We should be clapping for just that,” he said.

The Dodgers have started this season as one of the hottest teams in the majors and are vying for an opportunity to win a sixth World Series (their last was in 1988).

But the cost of rebuilding a franchise, with a staggering $2.3 billion investment and future renovations expected, leaves big questions about generating revenue.

Johnson sought to ease concerns Wednesday about the prospect of higher ticket prices.

“We’re not here to price-gouge the fans just because we paid a nice sum for this franchise,” he said, noting that parking rates will be reduced from $15 to $10.

Despite any peripheral future role for the former owner in the development of the parking facilities, Selig sought to put the McCourt saga behind.

“After a long and difficult road, the sale of the Dodgers is now complete, and I am pleased that the club can have the fresh start it deserves under new ownership,” said Selig in a statement.

Walter echoed that sentiment: “We’ll focus on making this the finest organization possible, make this a place that everyone wants to be, that it accessible to a really broad range of people.”

Surrounded by former Dodgers Don Newcombe, Maury Wills, Ron Cey, Steve Garvey and Eric Karros, Johnson reflected on his successful basketball career, saying he is now solely focused on bringing his winning ways to baseball.

“We were able to accomplish great things with the Lakers,” Johnson said, “and I think we are going to accomplish great things with the Dodgers — I can promise you.”

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The tumultuous Frank McCourt era is over for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The $2 billion sale of the team to Guggenheim Baseball Management, a group that includes former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson, was finalized Tuesday.

McCourt met with Dodgers employees Tuesday, expressing his appreciation, and introduced new controlling owner Mark Walter, said Howard Sunkin, a spokesman for McCourt.

Walter is chief executive officer of the financial services firm Guggenheim Partners. The team will be run by former Atlanta Braves President Stan Kasten. They will hold a news conference Wednesday at Dodger Stadium.

“The Dodgers move forward with confidence in a strong financial position as a premier Major League Baseball franchise and as an integral part of and representative of the Los Angeles community,” according to a joint statement by McCourt and the new owners.

Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said he’s pleased the sale is finished and the Dodgers can have a fresh start after the “unbecoming events of recent years.”

“It is my great hope and firm expectation that today’s change in ownership marks the start of a new era for the Los Angeles Dodgers and that this historic franchise will once again make the city of Los Angeles proud,” Selig said in a statement.

The timing couldn’t have come at a better time for Dodgers fans, who are excited about having their team leading the National League. The team moved to 17-7 after holding off Colorado 7-6 on Tuesday night at Coors Field.

“I think the fans of L.A. are pretty excited about the new ownership and what it’s bringing. As long as L.A. is happy, I’m happy,” slugger Matt Kemp said. “As long as we’re winning, I’m happy.”

The Dodgers have won six World Series titles but none since 1988, when they were still owned by the O’Malley family that moved the team from Brooklyn to California after the 1957 season.

The sale was part of a reorganization plan after McCourt took the team into bankruptcy last June. A federal judge approved the deal last month.

The sale was supposed to close Monday, the day McCourt was to make a $131 million payment to former wife Jamie McCourt as part of their divorce settlement. The team’s statement said all claims will be paid. Jamie McCourt did receive her payout on Monday.

McCourt bought the team, Dodger Stadium and 250 acres of land that includes the parking lots from the Fox division of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. in a $430 million deal in 2004. Fox bought the team in 1998, then sold it to McCourt.

Despite the Dodgers making the playoffs the first four out of six seasons under McCourt’s ownership, the off-the-field saga took attention away from the team as he and Jamie McCourt became involved in a protracted divorce battle during which their lavish spending habits were revealed in court documents and testimony.

In April 2011, MLB appointed former Texas Rangers President Tom Schieffer to monitor the Dodgers on behalf of Selig, who said he was concerned about the team’s finances and how the Dodgers were being run.

The team filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after Selig rejected a proposed broadcast rights deal with Fox Sports that McCourt said would have alleviated worries about covering payroll.

The team’s debt stood at $579 million as of January, according to a court filing, but McCourt stands to make hundreds of millions of dollars.

The sale price set a record; Stephen Ross forked out $1.1 billion for the NFL’s Miami Dolphins in 2009, and Malcolm Glazer and his family took over England’s Manchester United soccer club seven years ago in a deal then valued at $1.47 billion.

The previous record for a baseball franchise was the $845 million paid by the Ricketts family for the Chicago Cubs in 2009.

NL Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw said the ownership issues didn’t weigh on the team last year because it was out of the players’ control. He said the squad has had an opportunity to meet the new owners and he’s excited about the future.

“It’s the end but it’s also the beginning,” Kershaw said. “It’s a cool time.”

___

AP Sports Writer Pat Graham in Denver contributed to this report

LOS ANGELES — Frank McCourt officially surrendered ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday, closing a turbulent chapter in the history of one of baseball’s most historic franchises.

The new owners wired the final payment on the record $2.15-billion purchase price Tuesday, closing the transaction that ended the McCourt era and ushering in Guggenheim Baseball as the Dodgers’ third owner since the O’Malley family sold the team in 1998.

A teary-eyed McCourt thanked the Dodgers’ employees at a morning meeting, according to several people in attendance. He introduced the staff to Mark Walter, the new controlling owner, and Stan Kasten, the incoming club president.

Magic Johnson, the face of the new ownership group, is scheduled to join Walter and Kasten in a televised news conference Wednesday morning at Dodger Stadium.

The new ownership will be charged with returning the Dodgers to the World Series for the first time since 1988. Every other team in the National League West has played in the World Series since then.

“The Dodgers move forward as a well-capitalized organization, strong both on and off the field,” McCourt wrote in a farewell note to employees. “This is how it should be for the Dodgers — one of the truly storied and best-known franchises in not just baseball, but all of sports.”

McCourt bought the team in 2004 with “not a penny” of his own cash, according to one of his divorce attorneys. He restored the Dodgers to profitability and delivered four playoff trips in his first six seasons of ownership.

However, his final two seasons were overshadowed by divorce proceedings that revealed he and his ex-wife, Jamie, had spent lavishly on themselves while saddling the Dodgers with more than $500 million in debt.

He took the Dodgers into bankruptcy last year, and into a legal showdown with Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, who subsequently accused McCourt with “looting” $189 million from team coffers.

“It is my great hope and firm expectation that … this historic franchise will once again make the city of Los Angeles proud.” Selig said Tuesday in a statement.

He added: “I am grateful that the unbecoming events of recent years are behind us.”

Selig’s statement did not address MLB’s role in approving McCourt as an owner, or in approving the transaction in which he established a new entity to control the Dodger Stadium parking lots, enabling McCourt to keep half-ownership of the lots even as he sold the team.

The Dodgers’ new owners will collect parking fees, but they have not said how that revenue might be split with McCourt, or what development they might have envisioned for the parking lots. A spokesman for the new owners declined to discuss those issues again Tuesday. What is known is that no development can take place on the site unless McCourt and the new owners agree, according to people familiar with the sale agreement.

No major changes to the team are expected immediately. The Dodgers’ executive departures Tuesday included McCourt and two of his closest lieutenants, vice chairman Jeff Ingram and senior vice president Howard Sunkin.

Kasten, the former president of the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals, is expected to evaluate the Dodgers’ front office personnel before considering additional changes. General Manager Ned Colletti remains in place.

McCourt had said he intended to use the bankruptcy filing as a means to retain ownership of the Dodgers.

The Los Angeles Dodgers‘ third-place finish in the NL West likely played a part in Matt Kemp getting beaten out for the 2011 MVP by Ryan Braun, who led the Milwaukee Brewers to their first division title in nearly three decades.

If there was early voting for the award in 2012, Kemp would be the runaway winner after helping Los Angeles get off to its best start in 31 years.

Kemp and the major league-leading Dodgers look to open 10-1 for the first time since moving to Los Angeles, while the host Brewers try to snap a four-game losing streak Tuesday night.

Kemp finished second to Braun for MVP after hitting .324 with league highs of 39 homers and 126 RBIs, along with a career-best 40 steals. Braun got 56 more votes following a season in which he finished second in the NL in batting at .332 and had 33 homers with 111 RBIs. He added a career-high 33 steals.

The difference may have been Braun helping Milwaukee to a franchise-record 96 wins and the NL Central title, while the Dodgers finished 11 1/2 games back. In the early going this season, though, there’s no question who the top player in the NL – and baseball – has been.

Kemp is batting .487 with six homers and 16 RBIs, and he homered for the fourth time in three games in a 5-4 victory over San Diego on Sunday.

The Dodgers completed a 6-0 homestand and are 9-1 for the first time since 1981, when they won the World Series.

“He’s not going to be able to keep up this pace, I’ll say that. But it’s legit,” manager Don Mattingly told the team’s official website. “You don’t just do some of the things that he’s been doing.”

No Dodgers team has opened 10-1 since the Brooklyn Dodgers began 11-1 in 1955 – when the franchise won its first World Series title.

Giving the ball to Chad Billingsley (2-0, 0.63 ERA) could help Los Angeles move closer to that mark. The right-hander has 15 strikeouts and one walk in two starts.

Billingsley gave up one run in six innings of a 4-1 victory over Pittsburgh on Wednesday, throwing only 77 pitches.

“He’s pounding the strike zone and making guys miss,” said right fielder Andre Ethier, among the major league leaders with 15 RBIs.

Billingsley will face a Brewers team that batted .215 and posted a 7.31 ERA while losing four straight to end its seven-game trip.

“If we play like this we’re going to get beat everywhere,” manager Ron Roenicke said following a 7-4 defeat to Atlanta on Sunday. “We can’t continue like this.”

The Brewers (4-6) will look to avoid their first five-game skid since Sept. 6-10 with Yovani Gallardo (1-1, 5.91) on the hill. Milwaukee is winless since the right-hander pitched seven innings of one-run ball in a 2-1 road victory over Chicago on Wednesday.

Gallardo is 0-3 with a 7.66 ERA in four starts against Los Angeles. It’s his highest ERA against any team he’s faced more than once.

Kemp, 4 for 12 with a double off Gallardo, didn’t drive in a run as the Dodgers lost three of four in their last visit to Miller Park from Aug. 15-18.

Braun, batting .343 this season, went 8 for 22 with one homer as Milwaukee took four of six from Los Angeles in 2011.