Former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda has died at the age of 93, the team announced.
He suddenly suffered a cardiopulmonary arrest in his home on Thursday night and was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead less than an hour later.
Lasorda was admitted to hospital on November 8 with heart problems and only returned home on Tuesday.
He managed the Dodgers from 1976 to 1996 and won two World Series titles, four National League lashes and eight division titles. He was twice named NL Manager of the Year and won 1,599 career games.
– Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) 8 January 2021
Lasorda was born on September 22, 1927 and grew up in the city of Norristown, Pennsylvania, just outside Philadelphia. In 1945, at the age of 18, the left-handed pitcher made his big breakthrough by signing with the hometown Phillies organization.
“I did not have much ability, but I will guarantee you one thing, when I stood on that hill of excitement, I did not believe there was anyone who could beat me,” Lasorda said in 1997. “And when they hit me, they thought it was an accident.”
Lasorda’s baseball career was interrupted in 1946 and 1947 due to military service in the US Army. Lasorda returned in 1948 and did not miss a beat; On 31 May that year, he hit 25 batsmen in Schenectady’s 15-over victory over Amsterdam and made it to the deciding run. After that season, Lasorda was selected by the Brooklyn Dodgers in the minor league, which began a long relationship with the franchise.
Lasorda reached the majors in 1954 and played with the Dodgers in 1954 and 1955. He also played for the Kansas City Athletics in 1956, but he never played in the major leagues again. He retired in 1960.
After finishing his career, Lasorda stayed with the Dodgers. He was a scout of the team until he became a minor league manager from 1965 to 1972. Seventy-five players representing Lasorda in the minor group played in the major leagues.
In 1973, Lasorda was the third base coach for the Dodgers under Hall of Fame manager Walter Alston. When Alston retired in 1976, Lasorda was named his replacement.
Lasorda quickly achieved success in Los Angeles. In 1977 and 1978, he led the Dodgers to the National League pennant, but lost both seasons to the Yankees in the World Series. In 1981, Lasorda finally won its first World Series title when the Dodgers defeated the Yankees in six games. The Dodgers also won the 1988 World Series under Lasorda. He took part in the 6-team victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in October, which clinched the Dodgers’ first World Series championship since Lasorda’s 1988 team.
After twenty seasons, Lasorda retired as manager of Dodgers in 1996 due to health issues. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1997, but Lasorda remained active in the sport. He played various roles at the Dodgers and was manager of the American team that won the gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics as Cuba. Lasorda was also the official ambassador of the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009.
“His passion, success, charisma and sense of humor have transformed him into an international celebrity, which he has used to grow our sport,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement on Friday. “Tommy welcomed Dodger players from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Japan, South Korea and elsewhere, making baseball a stronger, more diverse and better game.”
Hall of Fame announcer Vin Scully, who was the voice of the Dodgers for 67 years, fondly remembered Lasorda’s energy and effort.
“There are two things about Tommy that I will always remember,” Scully said in a statement. “The first is his boundless enthusiasm. Tommy will get up full of beans in the morning and keep it up as long as he is with someone else.
“The other was his determination. He was a man with limited ability and he encouraged himself to be a very good Triple-A pitcher. He never had that extra thing that makes an important player, but it “It was not because he was one of those things: his competitive spirit, his determination and above all this boundless energy and confidence. His heart was bigger than his talent, and there were no dirty lines for his enthusiasm.”
A secluded relative of Hall of Fame catcher Mike Piazza and the godfather of Piazza’s brother Tommy, Lasorda were instrumental in persuading the Dodgers to select Piazza in the 62nd round of the 1988 draft. Piazza then became a 12-time All-Star with a batting average of 308, one of nine NL Rookies of the Year who played for the Dodgers under Lasorda. Piazza finished with 427 home runs, including a record of 396 as catchers.
In 2009, Lasorda had his portrait hung in the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution. Lasorda’s No. 2 was retired by the Dodgers in 1997, and the main street leading to the entrance to the Dodgers complex in Vero Beach, Florida, was renamed Tommy Lasorda Lane that year.
“Fifty years from now we are going to know Tommy Lasorda as a great ambassador for baseball,” said former Dodgers pitcher Orel Hershiser. He has played 14 of his 18 seasons under Lasorda. “And I think that’s going to be the number one thing in his resume.”