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Former Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda died Thursday, January 7, 2020, at the age of 93.

Posted January 08, 2021 12:00 am

By John Starks

In this Oct. 3, 1983, file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tom Lasorda starts a team meeting in the clubhouse at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. San Diego Padres infielder Kurt Bevacqua learned the hard way when he suggested the "fat little Italian" should have been fined when Dodgers reliever Tom Niedenfuer was dinged by MLB for throwing at San Diego's Joe Lefebvre in 1983. An ordinary pitcher during his brief stint in the majors, Lasorda took a shot at Bevacqua's struggles at the plate (he was a .236 hitter) saying he would "send a limousine" to pick Bevacqua up to make sure Bevacqua was in the lineup so he could "kick" Bevacqua's (behind) any day of the week. Associated Press

Former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda died in his home at the age of 93. He managed the Dodgers from 1976 to 1996, winning two World Series titles, four National League pennants and eight division crowns. He was named NL Manager of the Year twice and won 1,599 career games.

Longtime Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda gets emotional as he addresses Dodger Stadium about his retirement prior to the start of the game against the Florida Marlins in Los Angeles, in this Tuesday, July 30, 1996, file photo. Lasorda, who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Jo Lasorda, wife of Los Angeles Dodgers' manager Tommy Lasorda, leans up to give him a good luck kiss on the start of his 35th season with the Dodger organization, in Los Angeles in this April 4, 1984, file photo. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Actress Jane Fonda listens to Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda as he whispers in her ear on Thursday, Nov. 13, 1986 at Dodgertown training camp in Vero Beach, Florida. Fonda appeared in Vero Beach on Wednesday to join her husband, Tom Hayden, a regular participant in the Dodgers adult baseball camps. Fonda also led the team in calisthenics. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodgers special adviser Tommy Lasorda sits for his photo on the baseball team's photo day Thursday, Feb. 20, 2014 in Glendale, Ariz. Associated Press

Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, background, pretends to put a choke hold on Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda during practice for the All-Star Game in Seattle, in this July 16, 1979, file photo. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Tom Lasorda, pictured March 16, 1977, who worked untiringly in the Los Angeles Dodger organization for 28 years as a second rate pitcher, scout, coach and minor league manager, is the new skipper of the Dodgers. Lasorda says he "just prayed that my contributions to the organization, my dedications and loyalty would be rewarded." Associated Press

In this Oct. 11, 1981, file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, right, has the victory champagne rubbed into his face by Derrel Thomas after the Dodgers defeated the Houston Astros, 4-0, to win the National League Western Division Series Playoff title in Los Angeles. Long before they made it to the World Series from separate leagues, the Astros and Dodgers were plenty familiar with each other. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tom Lasorda leaps from the dugout as the Dodgers beat the New York Yankees, 8-7 to tie the World Series at two games apiece in Los Angeles, in this Saturday, Oct. 24, 1981, file photo. Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Resuscitation attempts were made on the way to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly before 11 p.m. Thursday. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tom Lasorda gets a champagne bath from Doug Rau after the Dodgers clinched the National League West with a 3-1 win over the San Francisco Giants at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, in this Sept. 21, 1977, file photo. Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tom Lasorda celebrates after the Dodgers beat the Montreal Expos for the National League title in Montreal, in this Monday, Oct. 19, 1981, file photo. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda laughs as he reaches out for fans' hands on as he is driven around Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles for a farewell lap following a ceremony in his honor, in this Friday, Sept. 7, 1996, file photo. Lasorda, who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Resuscitation attempts were made on the way to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly before 11 p.m. Thursday. Associated Press

In this Oct. 6, 1980, file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, left, and first baseman Steve Garvey sit in the dugout after their 7-1 loss to the Houston Astros in a baseball game for the National League West title in Los Angeles. The Dodgers took three in a row from the Astros in the final series of the regular season to knot things up atop the division, but they fell short in this tiebreaker. The Associated Press takes a look at the nine one-game playoffs in major league history. Associated Press

Tommy Lasorda and his wife Jo wave as they watch a video tribute to Tommy prior to the Los Angeles Dodgers' baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in Los Angeles, in this Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013, file photo. Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Resuscitation attempts were made on the way to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly before 11 p.m. Thursday. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda goes through congratulatory mail after the Dodgers won the 1981 World Series is in his office in Los Angeles, in this Oct. 29, 1981, file photo. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, right, and Fred Claire, Dodger Vice President, hoist the World Series trophy following their team's 5-2 win over the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif., in this Oct. 20, 1988, file photo. Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

In this Feb. 28, 2012, file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers' Tommy Lasorda during a spring training baseball workout in Phoenix. The Dodgers said Lasorda has been hospitalized after having what the team called a "mild" heart attack in New York on Tuesday, June 5, 2012. Associated Press

Baseball legend Tommy Lasorda tells a joke prior to signing copies of his book at Borders in Schaumburg. Photo by Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com

Tommy Lasorda poses with his Hall of Fame plaque after his induction in Cooperstown, N.Y., in this Aug. 3, 1997, file photo. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Resuscitation attempts were made on the way to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly before 11 p.m. Thursday. Associated Press

Tom Lasorda looks on during the first inning of their baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2011, in Los Angeles. Rookie manager Don Mattingly asked Lasorda to serve as an honorary coach for the team's home finale against the San Francisco Giants being played on Lasorda's 84th birthday. Associated Press

Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda waves to the crowd before a baseball game at Yankee Stadium in New York, in this June 10, 2015, file photo. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press Associated Press

Schaumburg Boomers owner Patrick A. Salvi, left, with baseball legend Tommy Lasorda, has won the first ever Tommy Lasorda Legends Award from the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame. Photo courtesy of Patrick A. Salvi

From left, Los Angeles Dodger manager Tom Lasorda, baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, New York Yankees manager Billy Martin, and Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tommy John meet the press in New York, Oct. 12, 1977, before the second game of the 1977 World Series. Pitcher John has been named as the starter for the third game of the Series which will be played in Los Angeles. Associated Press

In this April 11, 2018, file photo, former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda attends a news conference in Los Angeles. Tommy Lasorda, the fiery Hall of Fame manager who guided the Los Angeles Dodgers to two World Series titles and later became an ambassador for the sport he loved during his 71 years with the franchise, has died. He was 93. The Dodgers said Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, that he had a heart attack at his home in Fullerton, California. Associated Press

Former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda looks on from the dugout before a spring training baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020, in Glendale, Ariz. Associated Press

New York Yankees' manager Billy Martin, left, seems to offer a reluctant smile as Tom Lasorda, right, manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Yanks' rival in the 1977 World Series, wraps an arm around the World Championship trophy during the 55th annual dinner of the New York chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association in New York, Jan. 29, 1978. Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn keeps an arm around both managers. If Martin is protective of the trophy, it's for good reason - it was presented to the Yankees after their series win over the Dodgers. Associated Press

Al Campanis, left, vice president of player personnel for the Los Angeles Dodgers is joined by Mayor Tom Bradley and Dodgers manager Tom Lasorda during Dodger Day parade through the streets of Los Angeles, Oct. 31, 1981. More than 300,000 person lined the city sidewalks to acknowledge their appreciation of the 1981 World Series champions. Associated Press

In this Oct. 17, 1978 file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers Manager Tom Lasorda, left, and first baseman Steve Garvey look dejected in the dugout during a loss to the New York Yankees in Game 6 of the World Series. It's been 33 years since teams from these cities played for a title. The rivalry could be lost on many fans when the Kings and Rangers meet for the Stanley Cup. Associated Press

Los Angeles Dodger manager Tom Lasorda (right) stands with former Dodger great Carl Erskine outside the Sesquicentennial Chapel in Oxford, Ohio on Oct. 5, 1984, prior to services for former Dodger manager Walt Alston. Associated Press

Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, second from right, leads guests at his party celebrating the 75th anniversary of the World Series, in cutting into a giant cake in New York, Oct. 13, 1978. Others, from left are: Tommy Lasorda, manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers; Al Rosen, New York Yankees general manager; Kuhn, and Al Campanis, Dodgers vice president and general manager. Associated Press

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