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LOS ANGELES – Tommy Lasorda, son of Italian immigrants and professional pitcher turned legendary Dodgers manager, world baseball ambassador and national treasure, died Thursday. He was 93 years old.
Commissioner Rob Manfred made the following statement:
“Tommy Lasorda was one of the best managers our game has ever known. He loved Dodger’s life. His career began as a pitcher in 1949, but he is, of course, best known as the manager of two World Series champions and four pennant-winning clubs. His passion, success, charisma and sense of humor have made him an international celebrity, a stature he has used to develop our sport. Tommy has hosted Dodger players from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Japan, South Korea and elsewhere – making baseball a stronger, more diverse and better game. He served Major League Baseball as the World Ambassador for the first two editions of the World Baseball Classic and led the United States to gold at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney . Tommy loved family, the United States, the National Pastime and the Dodgers, and he made them all proud during a memorable baseball life.
“I am extremely fortunate to have developed a wonderful friendship with Tommy and I will miss him. It seems fitting that in his final months he saw his beloved Dodgers win the World Series for the first time since his team in 1988. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my deepest condolences to his 70-year-old wife, Jo, and their entire family, the Dodger organization and their generations of loyal fans.
In three seasons as a Major League pitcher, Lasorda has gone 0-4 and hasn’t reminded anyone of Sandy Koufax, who replaced him on Brooklyn’s roster. But as manager of the Dodgers for two decades, Lasorda created a job that earned him a place alongside Koufax in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Before his death, Lasorda was the oldest living Hall of Fame, a distinction that now passes to Willie Mays, 89.
He passed away after serving in his 71st season with the Dodgers, an extraordinary display of loyalty. He has spent the last two decades as a special advisor to the President (currently Mark Walter), after being rescued by former President Frank McCourt from imposed exile when News Corp. bought the club from Peter O’Malley and to his sister, Terry Seidler.
“My family, partners and I were fortunate to have spent a lot of time with Tommy,” Walter said in a statement. “He was a great ambassador for the team and baseball, a mentor for the players and coaches, he always had time for an autograph and a story for his many fans and he was a good friend. He will be sorely missed. “
– Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) January 8, 2021
Lasorda’s career began as a small left-handed pitcher with a big heart and a fighting spirit. When that dream ended he moved on to screening and then built a resume as Minor League manager, Major League third baseman, Major League Hall of Fame manager, GM. interim and senior vice president.
He earned eight honorary doctorates, had an asteroid named after him by Cal Tech, had a 70-year-old wife (Jo) and still made appearances every year on behalf of the Dodgers and MLB. He’s in 17 Halls of Fame, and if they had one to eat, he would be there too. He savored the “fruits of victory”, not to mention the industrial portions of linguini and clams.
Lasorda was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997 with more than 20 seasons at the helm of the Dodgers (1976-96). He’s one of only four managers in the history of the big leagues to manage the same team for 20 years or more – the others being Connie Mack, John McGraw and Lasorda’s predecessor, Walter Alston.
“In a franchise that has celebrated such great legends in the game, no one who wears the uniform has embodied the Dodger spirit as much as Tommy Lasorda,” said Stan Kasten, CEO of Dodger. “A tireless spokesperson for baseball, his dedication to the sport and to the team he loved was second to none. He was a champion who, at critical moments, apparently made his teams want to win. He will be sadly missed by the Dodgers and their fans. Tommy is simply irreplaceable … and unforgettable. “
Lasorda retired as manager after suffering a heart attack in 1996, having won the World Series in 1981 and 1988, plus four National League pennants and eight division titles. He was 3-1 as an All-Star manager. His 1,599 wins rank 22nd all-time.
Baseball’s undisputed goodwill ambassador led the US Olympic baseball team to a gold medal in 2000. In 2009, his portrait hung in the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institute. In 2008, he received the Order of the Rising Sun, Golden Rays with Rosette from the Emperor of Japan, one of the many heads of state that Lasorda considered his friends.
Lasorda is one of only two managers in baseball history to win pennants in his first two years of management, joining Gabby Street, who did so with the Cardinals in 1930 and 31. Lasorda has managed nine National League Rookie of the Year, a Major League record. And he was the official ambassador for the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and ’09.
As a pitcher, he was best known for his fights. He never got to make that final step from Triple-A dominance to Major League success as a pitcher, compiling a 0-4 record in brief tries with the Dodgers and Kansas City A.
Alston led Lasorda to Triple-A Montreal and Brooklyn and considered the southpaw a better cheerleader than the pitcher. When the Dodgers fired Lasorda at Triple-A in 1955, it was to clear a spot on the roster for a newly signed bonus baby – Koufax.
Lasorda, however, was to become a baseball glory and fortune that no one could have predicted, not even him. It was mentor and scouting director Al Campanis who told Lasorda in 1960 that his playing days were over, cushioning the news by hiring him as a scout. When Campanis became general manager, he made Lasorda a manager of the Recruit League, first in Pocatello, Idaho, then Ogden, Utah.
It was there, and later to Triple-A Spokane, where Lasorda formed the bond with what would become the core of the 1970s Dodgers – Steve Garvey, Bobby Valentine, Bill Russell, Willie Crawford, Charlie Hough, Tom Paciorek. , Bill Buckner, Tommy Hutton, Ron Cey and others.
Lasorda, who has credited Ralph Houk as his role model, honed his motivational skills by teaching these raw talents how to play and win. He led the way as a manager who became close to his players, and Joe Torre said it was Lasorda who brought the management embrace into the game. Lasorda socialized with his players, usually over dinner, while commanding their respect.
Lasorda was secular, sometimes profound, always entertaining. He was effective enough as a teacher that 75 players he led in the minor leagues reach the major leagues.
Lasorda is survived by his wife, Jo; daughter, Laura and granddaughter, Emily. Lasorda’s son, Tom Jr., died in 1991.
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