On Aug. 15, 1997, the Los Angeles Dodgers immortalized former manager Tommy Lasorda by retiring his No. 2 jersey during an on-field ceremony at Dodger Stadium. Lasorda joined Walter Alston (No. 24) as the only managers in Dodgers franchise history to have their numbers retired.
Overall, the Dodgers have additionally bestowed the honor on Pee Wee Reese (No. 1), Duke Snider (No. 4), Jim Gilliam (No. 19), Don Sutton (No. 20), Sandy Koufax (No. 32), Roy Campanella (No. 39), Jackie Robinson (No. 42) and Don Drysdale (No. 53).
Each has a plaque affixed in the Dodger Stadium Ring of Honor and their respective numbers located on the Top Deck. So too do Hall-of-Fame broadcasters Vin Scully and Jaime Jarrín in the form of microphones.
Former Dodgers owner Peter O’Malley, general manager Fred Claire, Bill Russell and Scully were among those to speak during Lasorda’s jersey retirement ceremony. It also included videotaped messages from Fernando Valenzuela and Kirk Gibson.
Lasorda wore No. 27 as a pitcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1950s, No. 11 when he managed at Triple-A Albuquerque and No. 52 during his four years as Dodgers third base coach. Upon succeeding Alston, Lasorda chose No. 2 in honor of former Brooklyn manager Leo Durocher.
Lasorda spent 20 seasons managing the Dodgers as he proved to be a worth successor to Alston. Lasorda went 1,599-1,439-2, won eight NL West titles, four pennants and two World Series. He of course is remembered for inspirational — fiery messages — and helping lead the Dodgers to an improbable title in 1988.
Lasorda abruptly announced his retirement in July 1996 in some part due to health concerns and at the time he transitioned into a role as Dodgers vice president and has maintained close ties and an active presence with the organization since.
Even after retiring, Lasorda returned to manage the U.S. Baseball team to a gold medal in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He then accepted an honorary role as third base coach for the NL team in the 2001 MLB All-Star Game.
Lasorda has spent over 60 years of his life in baseball and was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.
