The 15 greatest L.A. Dodgers of all time, No. 4: Tommy Lasorda
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Continuing our countdown of the 15 greatest L.A. Dodgers of all time, as chosen by our readers.
No. 4: Tommy Lasorda (551 first-place votes, 40,298 points):
After spending years with the team as a player, scout and coach, Lasorda became the Dodgers manager with four games remaining in the 1976 season after Walter Alston announced his retirement.
Lasorda, all the while talking about ‘bleeding Dodger blue’ and ‘the big Dodger in the sky,’ compiled a 1,599-1,439 record as Dodgers manager, won two World Series titles (1981, 1988), four National League pennants (1977, 1978, 1981, 1988) and eight division titles (1977, 1978, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1994 and 1995).
Lasorda had a heart attack on June 24, 1996, took a leave of absence from managing the team while recovering, and announced his retirement on July 29, 1996. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997 in his first year of eligibility. The Dodgers retired his uniform number (2) on Aug. 15, 1997.
-- Houston Mitchell
Previously:
No. 5: Maury Wills
No. 6: Steve Garvey
No. 7: Orel Hershiser
No. 8: Fernando Valenzuela
No. 9: Mike Piazza
No. 10: Don Sutton
No. 11: Walter Alston
No. 12: Ron Cey
No. 13: Walter O’Malley
No. 14: Tommy Davis
No. 15: Kirk Gibson