 In the early 20th century, the team, then sometimes called the Brooklyn Robins after manager Wilbert Robinson, won league pennants in 1916 and 1920, losing the World Series both times, first to Boston and then Cleveland.In the 1930s, the team officially adopted the Dodgers nickname, which had been in use since the 1890s, named after the Brooklyn pedestrians who dodged the streetcars in the city.In 1941, the Dodgers captured their third National League pennant, only to lose to the New York Yankees.