“Considered by many to be baseball’s most popular ambassador, Lasorda has spent 71 seasons in the Dodger organization with Dodger Blue running through his veins,” said the team.
Lasorda, who won World Series titles as manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981 and 1988, played on the Brooklyn Dodgers system in 1954 and 1955. He took over as manager of Los Angeles in 1976, a position he held for 20 years, winning two National League of the Year Manager awards along with these two world championships. He also led the team to 1,599 wins during his time as coach and was the first coach of the National League to win two flags in the first two seasons.
After retiring in 1996, he was included in the baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.
“Sometimes I sit here and I can’t believe it. A blue paradise on earth,” he said. “I used to say, ‘Hey, if you want to go to heaven, you have to go through Dodger Stadium’.”
He loved it so much, he said, that he wanted to be buried under the pitcher’s mound – the position he used to play.
“And when a little southpaw outside fighting, he’ll hear a voice. ‘Calm down, son. Focus. You can do it. You have to believe in yourself. ‘ And he looks around (and says): ‘Someone is talking to me! Where? Who is this guy talking to me? ‘ And it will be Tom Lasorda, under that launch pad, “the Hall of Fame, a left-handed pitcher himself, told CNN.
The tributes are coming for the man, whose shirt # 2 was retired by the team in 1997.
Dodger owner and president Mark Walter said: “He was a great ambassador for the team and baseball, a mentor for players and coaches, always had time for an autograph and a story for his many fans and was a good friend. He will make you miss him. “
Hall of Fame announcer Vin Scully said he would also remember “boundless enthusiasm” and Lasorda’s determination.
“Tommy would get up in the morning full of beans and keep it up while he was with someone else,” he said.
Lasorda leaves his 70-year-old wife, Jo; their daughter, Laura, and granddaughter Emily Tess.
Lauren M. Johnson of CNN contributed to this report.