Former Los Angeles Dodgers coach Tommy Lasorda has died at age 93, the team announced.
He suffered a sudden cardiopulmonary arrest at home Thursday night and was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead less than an hour later.
Lasorda led the Dodgers from 1976 to 1996, winning two World Series titles, four National League banners — eight division crowns. He was named National League Manager of the Year twice and won 1,599 games in his career.
Lasorda was born on September 22, 1927 and grew up in the working-class city of Norristown, Pennsylvania, on the outskirts of Philadelphia. In 1945, at the age of 18, the left-handed pitcher had his great opportunity to sign with the local Filis organization.
“I didn’t have much skill, but I guarantee you one thing, when I stopped on this hill of emotions, I didn’t think there was any living man who could beat me,” Lasorda said. in 1997. “And if they hit me, what they did, I thought it was an accident.” The Lasorda baseball race was interrupted in 1946 and 1947 due to military service with the United States Army. Lasorda returned in 1948 and did not lose pace; on May 31 of that year, he struck out 25 batters in Schenectady’s victory at 15 innings over Amsterdam and connected a single in the decisive race. After that season, Lasorda was selected by the Brooklyn Dodgers in the minor league draft, beginning a long-standing relationship with the franchise.
Lasorda reached the greats with the Dodgers in 1954 and 1955. He also pitched for the Kansas City Athletics in 1956, but never played in the Major Leagues again after that season. He retired from pitching in 1960.
With his career as a player over, Lasorda remained with the Dodgers. He was a team scout until he became coach of minor leagues from 1965 to 1972. Seventy-five players who led Lasorda to the minor ones went on to play in the major leagues.
In 1973, Lasorda was the Dodgers’ third-base coach under Walter Alston Hall of Fame. When Alston retired in 1976, Lasorda was named his replacement.
Lasorda quickly found success in Los Angeles. In 1977 and 1978, he led the Dodgers to the National League title, but lost to the Yankees in the World Series in both seasons. In 1981, Lasorda finally won his first World Series title when the Dodgers defeated the Yankees in 6 games. The Dodgers also won the World Series in 1988 with Lasorda.
After 20 seasons, Lasorda retired as manager of the Dodgers in 1996 due to health issues. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997 by the veterans committee, but Lasorda remained active in the sport. He played various roles with the Dodgers and was manager of the American team that won the gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics over the favored Cuba. Lasorda was also the official ambassador of the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009.
Lasorda was also a distant relative of Hall of Fame receiver Mike Piazza, and was the godfather of Piazza’s brother, Tommy. Lasorda was instrumental in influencing the Dodgers to select Piazza in round 62 of the 1988 draft. Piazza became a 12-time All-Star with a .308 batting average in his career, one of nine rookies. of the National League Year they played for the Dodgers under Lasorda. Piazza finished with 427 homers, including a record 396 as a receiver.
In 2009, the portrait of Lasorda was hung in the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery. The No. 2 Lasorda was removed 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.
“In 50 years, we’ll still know Tommy Lasorda as a great baseball ambassador,” said former Dodgers pitcher Orel Hershiser, who spent 14 of his 18 seasons playing under Lasorda. “And I think this will be the first on his resume.”