yeah, Lasorda threw six knock down pitches in the 8th inning!!?! with Tommy's ERA, he lasted 6 innings against the Yankees!!?! c'om!!! give me a break. who's he trying to kid.
Indeed, quite a "story teller"! Had to go find the two games he mentioned (5/12/56, 6/6/56)...and virtually every detail in his story is incorrect. lol Slaughter did not HR. Collins was not the first hitter. Martin did not K to end the 8th. Mantle did not double but walked. In NY, Bauer did not lead off. Tommy did not pitch 6 IP with 2 ER, but lasted 2 IP with 6 ER.
I could listen to these guys talk baseball for hours, day after day thanks to RUclips. Even if a LOT of their details are really mixed up (maybe deliberately?). Rest in peace, Tommy.
Great story, my first Yankees game. I'm 8 years old, 1968 it's best give away anywhere, it's Bat Day. We got a free Louisville Slugger and each bat has a Yankees players signature. There handed out at the entrance gate, a 14 yrs. or younger gets one, and yes I get a bat signed by The Great Mick. 52 yrs. Later and I still have that Bat. What a thrill
@Edward We're the exact same age, so I know exactly what you're talking about. My first game was Bat Day at Dodger Stadium. I got a Don Drysdale model, but unfortunately I didn't hang on to mine like you did.
I’ll give you one, I think, I went to a parochial Catholic School with Hank Jr and his sister, I think her name was Becky, not sure on that one that one, but it was a small school Hank Jr and I played catch, my arm was better than his❤️
K S - This man has GREAT Dodger stories to tell, especially about his years and years of managing minor league teams.He "raised" many a Dodger for the major league roster.
@2121skip Some of those stories about McClain are mind boggling. Like the time he convinced a General Motors executive to allow him (McClain) to fly a cargo plane at night WITHOUT having the required flying experience, with McClain sweating the whole flight, fearing he was going to crash the plane in a residential neighbourhood.
Tommy proved that and then some in 88, that year alone is HOF stuff but his decision making was fantastic that year. Especially during the world series against that A's club. Your Yanks beat my Dodgers like a cheap chinese gong in the 70's but we did get one in 81 from them Yanks.
My dad was a pilot who once flew Mr. Lasorda on a small Cessna... and as soon as they got out of the plane, Tommy let out the biggest fart my dad ever heard in his life. He held it for hours like a true gentleman. It's one of my dad's favorite stories to tell.
Growing up Back in the 70’s I always enjoyed Tommy Lasorda’s demeanor, way of managing and his overall personality. And obviously, he earned the respect of his players too, judging of how hard they played.
Grew up pulling for the Yanks cause of my Papaw Loved the Big Red Machine For obvious reasons Always been a fan of Tommy Lasorda - How could you not be? I remember an All-Star game in the late 70s or early 80s there was a camera on Billy Martin as he greeted Tommy Lasorda - You could tell the mutual respect and genuine mutual admiration shared between these two legendary Baseball Men - The look on their faces and the manner in which they embraced made it quite obvious - I distinctly remember Billy leaning in and saying something to Tommy - and Tommy literally almost fell over backwards laughing - then with a quick pat on the back they were back to the dugouts , both with huge smiles on their faces - These two were going to battle against each other yet the almost brotherly way they were engaged was truly a special moment in time - Here on my 52 nd b- day and I'll be damned if it doesn't choke me up a little
yeah, my Yankees' story is I was 15 years old and I left our box seats behind the the dugout and walked toward the batting cage (I took Bobby Richardson's picture (he was a favorite of mine). and there he was, Roger Maris! I hollered out, "Mister Maris, may I take your picture please?" he looked startled! (I found out later, New York fans didn't treat him like that), then he posed for me! he put his bat to his side, leaned on it with one hand, crossed one leg over the other, put his other hand on his hip and bent his elbow! WOW! then, 55 years later, my cousin's boyfriend was looking through photo album and exclaimed, "HEY! THAT'S ROGER MARIS!"
I'm a die hard RED SOX fan and any time a team is playing against and beating the Yankees, I'm in hog heaven lol. Tommy Lasorda was a class act. He was one HELL of an amazing manager and personality. We miss you, Tommy.
For a while Lasorda lived in the town I grew up in, Fullerton, CA. Saw him a few times and said hello. He was just a guy around town that managed the Dodgers. I was an Angels fan. He said that was ok. We can't all be perfect.
I love listening to the old-time ballplayers. "He had a face that looked like it could hold 2 days of rain!" I'm STILL laughing! My favorite ever is Casey Stengel. Man, that guy could creatively use the language better than anybody!
If Tommy said it rained unicorns I’d believe him. It’s got to be true, he’s so deliberate and uses so much detail! He’s like a witness at a crime scene - you have to believe him because he was there!!😁
Oh Tommy. In that start at Yankee Stadium, Lasorda lasted 2+ innings, allowed 6 hits, 1 base on balls, 6 runs with 5 earned runs. He faced 15 batters over those 2 innings and he took the loss in a 10-5 Yankee win. He did hit Hank Bauer with a pitch in the second inning.
It's funny how we can sometimes recall things the way we'd like them to have been. Tommy actually remembered that start he made at Yankee stadium in reverse, instead of 6 IP and 2 runs it was 2 IP and 6 runs. The next day they had him come in again for mop up duty in a 9-1 loss to the Yanks in which he gave up 3 runs in 2 IP.
The first real indicator that he was just making shit up was the 6 knock down pitches in one inning. How ludicrous is that? I've been watching baseball a long time and you're lucky if you get to see one or two hitters in an entire game get chin music. Maybe Tommy's cognitive skills were waning by the time of that interview and he actually believes the story.
@@Dana-wq5tp It was different then. Pitcher's did go inside. But they weren't all throwing 99 mph stuff either. I do think Bob Gibson or Drysdale would have done that. But Tommy might be a bit too fond of his efforts.
@@dashiellrohan981 Yes, in those days, pitching inside was part of a pitcher's strategy but 6 knockdown pitches? Even Gibson would never go to that extreme and he sure as hell was a lot better talent than Lasorda.
Yeah. I just looked up the box scores of the two games and they don't come very close to matching the story. I put details in another comment. If he faced Mantle at all in that first game, he didn't follow Bauer in the lineup and Lasorda walked him. Mantle was 2-2 with 3 walks. His two hits were a double and a HR, but both came before Lasorda entered the game. I don't expect him to remember every detail after all those years, but the Mantle part and him getting knocked out of the game early in the second game... Kind of makes it hard to believe anything else.
I made it to a 2020 Dodger spring training game and he was there as usual! Seemed like this guy never missed a game even in spring training too! He’s in his 90s
A few years ago, the wife wanted to go to New York City and do all the NY things. I said ok, but only if we could go to a Yankees game as it was the last year of the original Yankee Stadium. I'm not even a Yankees fan, but there was something about going to that stadium that was special.
AppliedArtsProds You weren’t at the original Yankee Stadium as it was completely renovated in 1975. The version you are referring to was nothing like the original. Nevertheless place you visited was special in its own way, housed some great teams and was100x better than the monstrosity that exists today. Peace.
Former Braves and Dodgers catcher Del Crandall used to live around the corner from me, here in Brea, California, in a senior mobile home park. I went to his coach for some baseball chat. i asked him about his biggest thrill. #2 - He came up in the bottom of the ninth, two out, bases loaded down 4-1. He hit a grand slam to win the game. He then says, "But beating THOSE yankees in '57! Beating the Yankees. And then we had 'em in 58 3-1 and they came back and beat us." I then told him a favorite pitcher for game 7 of the World Series. As much as Koufax is my favorite, I would pitch Bob Gibson. Mr. Crandall answered back, "Sam McDowell. Hands down, Sudden sam. He scared the daylights out of every batter that faced him."
Best Mickey story was how the mob was trying to win bets against the Yankees when they were heavy favorites. So they figured getting Mickey to play bad would help. Since he was a notorious partier, they'd keep him out all night. They got two hookers to stay by his side and had him up drinking the whole night through. It was a day game the next day. They figured they couldn't lose. MIckey sat in the dugout with a wet towel around his head the whole game. The ploy failed however when Mick hit a two run homerun to win the game in the ninth inning.
@@MaynardGKrebs-gv4vy Jim Bouton told a story (below link starting at 3:57) about an extra innings game in Minnesota where Mickey Mantle, sleeping on the bench and hungover the entire game, had to be woken and went into the game as a 12th inning pinch hitter, hitting a tremendous homerun in the center field bleachers to win the game. As Bouton tells the story, Mickey had been drinking the night before, so much so that he tried to make a telephone call from a grandfather's clock in a bar. I've heard similar stories from other players, however, I'm not sure they weren't referring to this particular game. ruclips.net/video/CGmZgqfqQGM/видео.html
The truth is Lasorda started 1 game against the Yankees in his career. Lasorda claims he pitched 6 innings and gave up 2 runs. In fact, he pitched 2 innings, gave up 5 earned runs, and got the loss.
As someone that knew Smokey Alston very well and Tommy Lasorda well enough to escort him to a school where he was helping raise funds, my thoughts about what somebody else replied considering Alston are totally opposite. Alston was an incredible man, not just a manager. He didn't need to raise his voice to get his points across. Alston and Lasorda were both winners, but they were 180-degree polar opposites that just happened to be as close as twin brothers. If Lasorda heard somebody disparaging Alston, they would have gotten a verbal tongue-lashing and maybe more. BTW, as a youngster and nephew of a Major League Scout in the 1950's and 60's, I had the fortune of being allowed to attend a couple of Dodgertown camps. At almost all sports camps tied to a team or university, you hardly ever see the head coach or manager. Not with Dodgertown. Alston talked for 45 minutes on the basic fundamentals and "The Dodger Way." He used a chalkboard like it was math class. He was out there on the field correcting our sliding technique, teaching us how to line up for cutting off the ball from the outfield, AND most importantly, because he valued the opinions of Dodger Math Genius Allan Roth, he stressed the importance of taking pitches and forcing the pitcher to throw inside the strike zone before we swung at a pitch. He taught me how to lead every league I ever played in before college in walks.
Ok you do know what wop stands for? ( With Out Papers ) Tommy had his papers...but i agree with you on never mess with a pissed of Italiano/Sciliano #facts
@@cominghometorome811 ya, I know he is more American than most Americans I met him once about 30 years ago He was a great man A true American Dodger Blue all the Way
Always remember in a big league dugout it doesnt take long to figure out if the manager isnt the smartest baseball man in the dugout. Lasorda passed the test. He was the smartest and a great manager too.
Wow! Watch Yankees at old Griffith in DC and later at RFK. Mickey only one to clear Bleachers at Griffith in 1953. A monster shot of All time .Was a old Senators fan but rooted for Yankees in World Series.
Mr Lasorda was one of the great managers, raconteur of thee game of Baseball and warm human being....Can never forget the World Series games versus the Yanks and Dodgers in 1977 & 1978
I looked up that start in NY. He did not go six innings while just giving up a couple of runs. His line was: 2+ IP, 6 H, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 6 runs, 5 ER. They knocked him out in the third inning. Also, Mantle did not hit a double off of him in the previous game in KC; Lasorda walked him. Very little of this story seems to be true.
@@CoutureThug Here's the game he was talking about where he came out of the bullpen. www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/KC1/KC1195605210.shtml He walked The Mick, then threw a wild pitch and Mickey advanced to 2nd. These are the 2 games Tommy started against the Yankees, Mickey had a single each time. www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA195606060.shtml www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA195606070.shtml 5
Looked it up in the Baseball Almanac: May 21, 1956 - 2 IP / 0 R / 1BB / 2 SO’s. (This was the brawl game & it is almost exactly as he described. they didn’t full on fight as the Umps got between them as they were swinging. Bauer was indeed trying to get at him though. They had pictures in the paper the next day. June 6, 1956 - 2 IP/5 ER/6H/1BB/3 SO June 7, 1956 - 2 IP/2 ER/2H/1BB/2 SO
I think we lost tommy a few years ago he is missed i remember watching baseball years ago...an he was coaching the dodgers who were originally ftom brooklyn my italian grandfather used to remind me ....with that upset look...deserters.he didnt say it but i got it...
He made 26 pitching appearances for the Athletics. They traded him to the Yankees, but he only pitched in their minor system. He won 107 games for the minor league team the Montreal Royals.
I vaguely remember a story about him and Billy fighting so there's some truth there. Poor KC back in those days was like a Yankee farm team. That's who they got Maris from!
The mangers laid it on thick they where characters...i remaber when Sparky Anderson was the tigers manager and he would talk to the sports reporters on the news and he would start telling stories lol the news reporters would roll there eyes and smirk as if to say ok sparky we love you but we know your laying it on a little thick here for the tiger fans at home... sure miss a lot of those old-school managers back then Earl Weaver , Billy Martin , Tommy Lasorda , Sparky Anderson
Nice story, but the facts don't quite match the way he told it. The first game was May 21, 1956. He got the batting order wrong (Bauer led off and Martin was 2nd, among other mistakes). Lasorda did pitch the 8th and 9th so he got that right, but Mantle hit his double in the 7th inning off of Santiago. Mantle was 2-2 with 3 walks. His other hit was a HR in the 5th inning off Burtschy so if Lasorda faced him that day he walked him. The second game was June 6, 1956 and that was pure fiction, other than him starting. Again he got the Yankees batting order wrong, but more importantly, he didn't pitch 6 innings and give up 2 runs. He pitched 2 innings and gave up 6 runs. He sure did try to make an 0-4 career pitcher seem a lot better than he was.
It’s amazing how ball players remember the exact scores and scenarios of games decades ago. I think it’s because of the 3 hour drama of each game, a part of it gets permanently filed away in the memory bank 🤔
Well who was that kid that pitched when the Dodgers was still in New York in the World Series? He said you mean no Mickey Mantle today he’s not playing, oh well I can win this game and he did. But if Mickey Mantle didn’t intimidate someone or if the Yankees didn’t intimidate you, you had to be ignorant as a box of rocks or in a coma. Mickey hit 18 World Series home runs, still the record.
I read that Lasorda actually grew up a Yankee fan and his favorite player was Joe DiMaggio. Lasorda was also once property of the Phillies as he played in their farm system. He was actually blocked onto making the Dodgers by Sandy Koufax who lacked command from 1955 to 1958. Koufax straightened out his control problems in 1959.
Tommy's memory evidently was a bit shaky according to Baseball Reference. He pitched in the AL for 1 year, for the KC Athletics in 1956. He did pitch 2 scoreless innings in relief against the Yankees in KC on May 21 and got Martin and Bauer out, as he said. But Mantle walked, he didn't hit a double. And Tommy did have one start in Yankee Stadium, as he said. It was on June 6. However, he gave up 6 ER in 2 innings and was the losing pitcher, instead of 2 ER in 6 innings. On July 11, he was traded to the Yankees and was sent to the minor leagues without pitching a game. He never appeared in another ML game.
The thing is that, when we were kids, of course the names like Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford, Don Drysdale, Yogi Berra, Lou Gehrig, Babe, Joe D., and the famous others were well known to every person who loved baseball. This "Hank Bauer" guy was not even considered or his name bandied about like the others. Weird how the nobodies gain fame later on in life even though no one had the slightest idea who they were when they were supposedly "famous".
1960 night game Yankee stadium first MLB game ever had my glove had a nose bleed seat behind home plate leftside, Senator player hits a foul ball it's coming right at me I put my glove up closed my eyes and the guy in front of me jumps up makes a bare handed catch, one disappointed 12 year old fan. Lineup, Skowron on first Richardson on second Mc Dougall at Short, Kubek on third, Elston Howard catching, Yogi in left the Mick in Center and Maris in right field Turley was pitching.
When I was a pitcher in Babe Ruth Leauge I threw intentionally at guys if the ump said that I hit them the previous at bat and we all know that I didn't hit them. The next time up it was straight at them. And I was fast. they never got out of the way in time. That was when baseball was fun. Before this pussy bullshit they play now.
Tommy was the best manager in baseball... Cincinnati Reds of 75 + 76 Big Red Machine were a top 5 team of all time.. Tommy in his FIRST SEASON as manager for the Dodgers in 77 + 78 lead them all the way to the World Series, supplanting the Reds.. that speaks for itself..
Well.....how hard did Tommy throw? What was his velocity? He had a cup of coffee in the majors at a time with many fewer teams and greater competition for those jobs. Tommy John didn't throw hard. Neither did Greg Maddux. And please, NOT that I'm comparing Lasorda to those guys.
He gave up 2 runs, 1 BB, and 5 hits in 2 innings in the game he started in NY. He struck out 2 in 2 innings in the game in KC. I mean, it's a nice story and all, but there's a credibility factor, so the whole knocking down guys multiple times and Mickey Mantle even knowing who this 6 ERA schlub is, is pretty questionable.
@@billyratchet6463 Thanks. He actually pitched in a world series game? Is there any film of him pitching? How did he pitch against the Yankees if it was not in the world series?
Gave up 6 runs (5 earned) in 2 innings in the game he described that he started. And Mantle didn't hit a double off him in that first game. Mantle was 2-2 in that game with a double and a HR, but both came before Lasorda went into the game. He also walked 3 times, so if anything, Lasorda walked him.
lasorda needed to throw at people, he couldn't get them out throwing strikes. with the k.c. a's in 1956 he was 0-4, he gave up (for the year) 45 walks and 40 hits in 40 innings. and amazingly only 31 earned runs for a 6.15 era. rip tommy, you were a character.
Tommy was and will always been one of the greatest story tellers in the history of the game. What a treasure and what a man. Thank you, Mr. Lasorda.
Yeah except all he really talks about is beaning hitters, cussing at players, and fighting. It is all bull shit.
yeah, Lasorda threw six knock down pitches in the 8th inning!!?! with Tommy's ERA, he lasted 6 innings against the Yankees!!?! c'om!!! give me a break. who's he trying to kid.
Indeed, quite a "story teller"! Had to go find the two games he mentioned (5/12/56, 6/6/56)...and virtually every detail in his story is incorrect. lol Slaughter did not HR. Collins was not the first hitter. Martin did not K to end the 8th. Mantle did not double but walked. In NY, Bauer did not lead off. Tommy did not pitch 6 IP with 2 ER, but lasted 2 IP with 6 ER.
I could listen to these guys talk baseball for hours, day after day thanks to RUclips. Even if a LOT of their details are really mixed up (maybe deliberately?).
Rest in peace, Tommy.
With your stuff tommy I wouldn’t get anywhere near the plate !
RIP Tommy! As a Yankee fan I’ve always respected you. You’re a legend!
t
Great story, my first Yankees game. I'm 8 years old, 1968 it's best give away anywhere, it's Bat Day. We got a free Louisville Slugger and each bat has a Yankees players signature. There handed out at the entrance gate, a 14 yrs. or younger gets one, and yes I get a bat signed by The Great Mick. 52 yrs. Later and I still have that Bat. What a thrill
@Edward We're the exact same age, so I know exactly what you're talking about. My first game was Bat Day at Dodger Stadium. I got a Don Drysdale model, but unfortunately I didn't hang on to mine like you did.
Lucky snuck! 👍
@@jefflane3073 I guess Lucky Snuck beats Sucky Luck... 😉
Mine was Roy White still have it
I went to Bat Day at Yankee Stadium in 1973. I didn't get Mickey Mantle though. I got Ron Swoboda! LOL 😆
I could listen to stories like this all day long.
2121skip Found the McLain tape and it’s a classic too. Thanks
I’ll give you one, I think, I went to a parochial Catholic School with Hank Jr and his sister, I think her name was Becky, not sure on that one that one, but it was a small school Hank Jr and I played catch, my arm was better than his❤️
K S - This man has GREAT Dodger stories to tell, especially about his years and years of managing minor league teams.He
"raised" many a Dodger for the major league roster.
@2121skip Some of those stories about McClain are mind boggling. Like the time he convinced a General Motors executive to allow him (McClain) to fly a cargo plane at night WITHOUT having the required flying experience, with McClain sweating the whole flight, fearing he was going to crash the plane in a residential neighbourhood.
Mr Tommy Lasorda , a mans man . From an era gone bye .........never to be enjoyed again , thank you Mr Lasorda and all like you .
I grew up a Yankee fan But I always like Tommy Lasorda . A Hell of a Manager .
Tommy proved that and then some in 88, that year alone is HOF stuff but his decision making was fantastic that year. Especially during the world series against that A's club. Your Yanks beat my Dodgers like a cheap chinese gong in the 70's but we did get one in 81 from them Yanks.
My dad was a pilot who once flew Mr. Lasorda on a small Cessna... and as soon as they got out of the plane, Tommy let out the biggest fart my dad ever heard in his life. He held it for hours like a true gentleman. It's one of my dad's favorite stories to tell.
ronjon83 hahaha....that’s hilarious!!!
My opinion of Mr. Lasorda has risen several levels due to this hilarious story. A true gentleman, indeed.
@MANCHESTER UNITED we, la de freakin da
It must've been from all that Linguini... Or the Slim Fast diet drink he endorsed.
MANCHESTER UNITED F.C who gives a crap? It's like watching paint dry. Fun to play but boring as hell to watch. To each their own ...
Growing up Back in the 70’s I always enjoyed Tommy Lasorda’s demeanor, way of managing and his overall personality. And obviously, he earned the respect of his players too, judging of how hard they played.
Grew up pulling for the Yanks cause of my Papaw
Loved the Big Red Machine
For obvious reasons
Always been a fan of Tommy Lasorda - How could you not be? I remember an All-Star game in the late 70s or early 80s there was a camera on Billy Martin as he greeted Tommy Lasorda - You could tell the mutual respect and genuine mutual admiration shared between these two legendary Baseball Men -
The look on their faces and the manner in which they embraced made it quite obvious -
I distinctly remember Billy leaning in and saying something to Tommy - and Tommy literally almost fell over backwards laughing - then with a quick pat on the back they were back to the dugouts , both with huge smiles on their faces -
These two were going to battle against each other yet
the almost brotherly way they were engaged was truly a special moment in time -
Here on my 52 nd b- day and I'll be damned if it doesn't choke me up a little
Loved Tommy Lasorda such a great ambassador for the game. RIP
yeah, my Yankees' story is I was 15 years old and I left our box seats behind the the dugout and walked toward the batting cage (I took Bobby Richardson's picture (he was a favorite of mine). and there he was, Roger Maris! I hollered out, "Mister Maris, may I take your picture please?" he looked startled! (I found out later, New York fans didn't treat him like that), then he posed for me! he put his bat to his side, leaned on it with one hand, crossed one leg over the other, put his other hand on his hip and bent his elbow! WOW! then, 55 years later, my cousin's boyfriend was looking through photo album and exclaimed, "HEY! THAT'S ROGER MARIS!"
Love great story tellers,thanks Tommy!
An Underrated manager and an amazing story teller. One of the great ambassadors of the game. R.I.P. Mr. Lasorda
How is he an underated manager?
@@tommyfu9271 I don't think he's an underrated manager.
@@kevinmiller6380 Overrated, if anything.
The GREAT Tommy LaSorda !!
I'm a die hard RED SOX fan and any time a team is playing against and beating the Yankees, I'm in hog heaven lol.
Tommy Lasorda was a class act. He was one HELL of an amazing manager and personality. We miss you, Tommy.
For a while Lasorda lived in the town I grew up in, Fullerton, CA. Saw him a few times and said hello. He was just a guy around town that managed the Dodgers. I was an Angels fan. He said that was ok. We can't all be perfect.
as a long time Yankee fan l still have alot of respect for guys like Tommy Lasorda its what made the game fun great ball players on both sides.
I was a diehard Yankee fan for some 60 years. When they took a knee, I discarded them. Now I root for their opponent.
Great stuff from a Dodger legend.
Love theses old stories
Baseball taught us about life. Heros of my childhood!
I loved baseball, stickball, softball. Great memories that taught me about baseball, stickball, and softball. ...Nothing about life.
I love listening to the old-time ballplayers. "He had a face that looked like it could hold 2 days of rain!" I'm STILL laughing!
My favorite ever is Casey Stengel. Man, that guy could creatively use the language better than anybody!
There's no pitcher in the History of baseball that knocks down 5 players in a row and not get his ass kicked !
Bob Tav Yeah,I think Lasorda stretches the truth a little.
Bob Gibson
It was commonplace in the '50s and 60's. Look up Sal Maglie, Don Drysdale, Bob Gibson et al.
If Tommy said it rained unicorns I’d believe him. It’s got to be true, he’s so deliberate and uses so much detail! He’s like a witness at a crime scene - you have to believe him because he was there!!😁
@@EADGBESTRAT But the difference is that Gibson was a legend.
Fantastic story.
Oh Tommy. In that start at Yankee Stadium, Lasorda lasted 2+ innings, allowed 6 hits, 1 base on balls, 6 runs with 5 earned runs. He faced 15 batters over those 2 innings and he took the loss in a 10-5 Yankee win. He did hit Hank Bauer with a pitch in the second inning.
It's funny how we can sometimes recall things the way we'd like them to have been. Tommy actually remembered that start he made at Yankee stadium in reverse, instead of 6 IP and 2 runs it was 2 IP and 6 runs. The next day they had him come in again for mop up duty in a 9-1 loss to the Yanks in which he gave up 3 runs in 2 IP.
The first real indicator that he was just making shit up was the 6 knock down pitches in one inning. How ludicrous is that? I've been watching baseball a long time and you're lucky if you get to see one or two hitters in an entire game get chin music. Maybe Tommy's cognitive skills were waning by the time of that interview and he actually believes the story.
@@Dana-wq5tp It was different then. Pitcher's did go inside. But they weren't all throwing 99 mph stuff either. I do think Bob Gibson or Drysdale would have done that. But Tommy might be a bit too fond of his efforts.
@@dashiellrohan981 Yes, in those days, pitching inside was part of a pitcher's strategy but 6 knockdown pitches? Even Gibson would never go to that extreme and he sure as hell was a lot better talent than Lasorda.
Yeah. I just looked up the box scores of the two games and they don't come very close to matching the story. I put details in another comment. If he faced Mantle at all in that first game, he didn't follow Bauer in the lineup and Lasorda walked him. Mantle was 2-2 with 3 walks. His two hits were a double and a HR, but both came before Lasorda entered the game. I don't expect him to remember every detail after all those years, but the Mantle part and him getting knocked out of the game early in the second game... Kind of makes it hard to believe anything else.
@@Dana-wq5tp To put it bluntly, Lasorda is full of sh*t. There was very little in that story that checks out when you look at the box scores.
I made it to a 2020 Dodger spring training game and he was there as usual! Seemed like this guy never missed a game even in spring training too!
He’s in his 90s
💙TOMMY
As a lifelong S.F. Giants fan, i will always think of Tommy Lasorda is an absolute treasure, and a true Baseball Legend.
You gotta loveTommy Lasorta!
Tommy Lasorda is Dodger and MLB royalty
RIP. Growing up without grandparents you don't get stories like this.
Great story Tommy of the golden 🎉golden age. gone forever, but the baseball game that i love and miss🎉🎉
A few years ago, the wife wanted to go to New York City and do all the NY things. I said ok, but only if we could go to a Yankees game as it was the last year of the original Yankee Stadium. I'm not even a Yankees fan, but there was something about going to that stadium that was special.
AppliedArtsProds You weren’t at the original Yankee Stadium as it was completely renovated in 1975. The version you are referring to was nothing like the original. Nevertheless place you visited was special in its own way, housed some great teams and was100x better than the monstrosity that exists today. Peace.
What a terrible story
This will send me off to bed smiling.
Former Braves and Dodgers catcher Del Crandall used to live around the corner from me, here in Brea, California, in a senior mobile home park. I went to his coach for some baseball chat. i asked him about his biggest thrill. #2 - He came up in the bottom of the ninth, two out, bases loaded down 4-1. He hit a grand slam to win the game. He then says, "But beating THOSE yankees in '57! Beating the Yankees. And then we had 'em in 58 3-1 and they came back and beat us." I then told him a favorite pitcher for game 7 of the World Series. As much as Koufax is my favorite, I would pitch Bob Gibson. Mr. Crandall answered back, "Sam McDowell. Hands down, Sudden sam. He scared the daylights out of every batter that faced him."
Wasn't it Del Crandall who told Sandy Koufax he didn't have to throw every pitch 100 mph and that started Koufax on the road to superstardom?
@@christopherwood2290 Larry Sherry, I think.
@@marcschneider4845 Norm Sherry I heard
Great stories.
99% bullshit however.
Best Mickey story was how the mob was trying to win bets against the Yankees when they were heavy favorites. So they figured getting Mickey to play bad would help. Since he was a notorious partier, they'd keep him out all night. They got two hookers to stay by his side and had him up drinking the whole night through. It was a day game the next day. They figured they couldn't lose. MIckey sat in the dugout with a wet towel around his head the whole game. The ploy failed however when Mick hit a two run homerun to win the game in the ninth inning.
@@moncorp1 I have never heard that. Was that ever verified by Mickey himself? And if so, please cite the source.
@@MaynardGKrebs-gv4vy Jim Bouton told a story (below link starting at 3:57) about an extra innings game in Minnesota where Mickey Mantle, sleeping on the bench and hungover the entire game, had to be woken and went into the game as a 12th inning pinch hitter, hitting a tremendous homerun in the center field bleachers to win the game. As Bouton tells the story, Mickey had been drinking the night before, so much so that he tried to make a telephone call from a grandfather's clock in a bar.
I've heard similar stories from other players, however, I'm not sure they weren't referring to this particular game.
ruclips.net/video/CGmZgqfqQGM/видео.html
The truth is Lasorda started 1 game against the Yankees in his career. Lasorda claims he pitched 6 innings and gave up 2 runs. In fact, he pitched 2 innings, gave up 5 earned runs, and got the loss.
So much of this is fantasy, yet he believes it like it happened. Maybe he's talking about a game he played on his xbox.
And Tommy never ever told anybody throw at nobody.
@@terrywho22 LMAO
that lying SOB.!!!!!!!!! 🤣
He probably just has a few games mixed up. I think he pitched in a lot of games, maybe even a dozen. It's hard to keep all 11 or 12 of them straight
Tommy loved the Dodgers even when he played for someone else.
As someone that knew Smokey Alston very well and Tommy Lasorda well enough to escort him to a school where he was helping raise funds, my thoughts about what somebody else replied considering Alston are totally opposite.
Alston was an incredible man, not just a manager. He didn't need to raise his voice to get his points across. Alston and Lasorda were both winners, but they were 180-degree polar opposites that just happened to be as close as twin brothers. If Lasorda heard somebody disparaging Alston, they would have gotten a verbal tongue-lashing and maybe more.
BTW, as a youngster and nephew of a Major League Scout in the 1950's and 60's, I had the fortune of being allowed to attend a couple of Dodgertown camps. At almost all sports camps tied to a team or university, you hardly ever see the head coach or manager. Not with Dodgertown. Alston talked for 45 minutes on the basic fundamentals and "The Dodger Way." He used a chalkboard like it was math class. He was out there on the field correcting our sliding technique, teaching us how to line up for cutting off the ball from the outfield, AND most importantly, because he valued the opinions of Dodger Math Genius Allan Roth, he stressed the importance of taking pitches and forcing the pitcher to throw inside the strike zone before we swung at a pitch. He taught me how to lead every league I ever played in before college in walks.
Even as a huge Yankees fan, you have to respect Tommy Lasorda. He's amazing!
Boxers, former fierce opponents, have some of the best stories too.
But what was his opinion of Kingman’s performance?
That's a hell of a question for you ask him.
Sky King. Either a strike out or a home run. Usually the former.
And they said Satchel Paige told whoppers.
I’ve always loved this story. My grandpa is Tom Sturdivant. He was a real sob!
Even Lasorda knew how great they were.
Don't mess with a pissed off WOP!!!
especially Tommy "gun" Lasorda R. I. P.
We miss you Tommy
Ok you do know what wop stands for? ( With Out Papers ) Tommy had his papers...but i agree with you on never mess with a pissed of Italiano/Sciliano #facts
@@cominghometorome811 ya, I know he is more American than most Americans
I met him once about 30 years ago
He was a great man
A true American
Dodger Blue all the Way
Suitcase Simpson was underrated
yeah, and he got traded a lot!
Always remember in a big league dugout it doesnt take long to figure out if the manager isnt the smartest baseball man in the dugout. Lasorda passed the test. He was the smartest and a great manager too.
Wow! Watch Yankees at old Griffith in DC and later at RFK. Mickey only one to clear Bleachers at Griffith in 1953. A monster shot of All time .Was a old Senators fan but rooted for Yankees in World Series.
Would loved to have seen a tussle between him and the legendary Marine Hank Bauer who was reputed to be one of baseball's toughest guys.
Billy Martin was more in Lasorda's size and weight class. Hank Bauer you'd do your best to avoid.
@@jamesanthony5681 Billy was very self-conscious about his nose. I have a feeling the 🍌 nose comment is what set him off... 😉
Bauer had a face that could hold two days of rain.
you can look up Foreman Norton, Shavers Norton or Tyson Spinks on RUclips to get a good idea of how it would have gone
Great story!
Big tommy⚾️
RIP Tommy 💙⚾️😭
Say what's up to Kobe 💜💛
Mr Lasorda was one of the great managers, raconteur of thee game of Baseball and warm human being....Can never forget the World Series games versus the Yanks and Dodgers in 1977 & 1978
I looked up that start in NY. He did not go six innings while just giving up a couple of runs. His line was: 2+ IP, 6 H, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 6 runs, 5 ER. They knocked him out in the third inning. Also, Mantle did not hit a double off of him in the previous game in KC; Lasorda walked him. Very little of this story seems to be true.
lol LASORDA likes to use his success as a manager to lie
Thanks for giving us his pitching line you white knight! get a fucking life dude.
Show us the proof where you found those stats
@@CoutureThug
Here's the game he was talking about where he came out of the bullpen.
www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/KC1/KC1195605210.shtml
He walked The Mick, then threw a wild pitch and Mickey advanced to 2nd.
These are the 2 games Tommy started against the Yankees, Mickey had a single each time.
www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA195606060.shtml
www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA195606070.shtml
5
Oh wow you fact checked an 87 year old dude...what a hero
Miss Lasorda! A true baseball legend in the greatest game ever created. ❤️👍
"Suitcase Simpson" - well we're off to a great start! Wow - great clip!
I love how Tommy describes giving up two runs in six innings as "they got me out." If he did that today, he would be making eight figures per year.
MaM8ii says r mt mb. ZaaZzZz.zzzzzz.zzaaaaaazzz z oz. oz. zzz's i you p1 ou it poqNjay [[ oo io ni 83a q.09o trip aal]@!ree
They did get to him. He gave up 6 runs in 2 innings. Knocked out in the third. Easy to look up now.
Looked it up in the Baseball Almanac:
May 21, 1956 - 2 IP / 0 R / 1BB / 2 SO’s.
(This was the brawl game & it is almost exactly as he described. they didn’t full on fight as the Umps got between them as they were swinging. Bauer was indeed trying to get at him though. They had pictures in the paper the next day.
June 6, 1956 - 2 IP/5 ER/6H/1BB/3 SO
June 7, 1956 - 2 IP/2 ER/2H/1BB/2 SO
I think we lost tommy a few years ago he is missed i remember watching baseball years ago...an he was coaching the dodgers who were originally ftom brooklyn my italian grandfather used to remind me ....with that upset look...deserters.he didnt say it but i got it...
He made 26 pitching appearances for the Athletics. They traded him to the Yankees, but he only pitched in their minor system. He won 107 games for the minor league team the Montreal Royals.
I used to listen to Costas coast to coast. Great stories of all sports especially baseball. Ted Williams, Tony Gwynn and more.
theres probably a kernel of truth to this but if you look at the game logs for lasordas season in kc, a lot of this never happened
More like 1 inning, six is bs you can sense he is lying. Lasorda is a punk
I vaguely remember a story about him and Billy fighting so there's some truth there. Poor KC back in those days was like a Yankee farm team. That's who they got Maris from!
The mangers laid it on thick they where characters...i remaber when Sparky Anderson was the tigers manager and he would talk to the sports reporters on the news and he would start telling stories lol the news reporters would roll there eyes and smirk as if to say ok sparky we love you but we know your laying it on a little thick here for the tiger fans at home... sure miss a lot of those old-school managers back then Earl Weaver , Billy Martin , Tommy Lasorda , Sparky Anderson
@@duanecatton7505 2 innings, 6 runs. Knocked out of the game in the 3rd with no outs.
A small dose of Lasorda goes a very long way.
OP ~ are you kidding? I could listen to him tell stories all day.
Nice story, but the facts don't quite match the way he told it. The first game was May 21, 1956. He got the batting order wrong (Bauer led off and Martin was 2nd, among other mistakes). Lasorda did pitch the 8th and 9th so he got that right, but Mantle hit his double in the 7th inning off of Santiago. Mantle was 2-2 with 3 walks. His other hit was a HR in the 5th inning off Burtschy so if Lasorda faced him that day he walked him. The second game was June 6, 1956 and that was pure fiction, other than him starting. Again he got the Yankees batting order wrong, but more importantly, he didn't pitch 6 innings and give up 2 runs. He pitched 2 innings and gave up 6 runs. He sure did try to make an 0-4 career pitcher seem a lot better than he was.
It’s amazing how ball players remember the exact scores and scenarios of games decades ago. I think it’s because of the 3 hour drama of each game, a part of it gets permanently filed away in the memory bank 🤔
He got most of it wrong. The box scores are out there to look at. May 21, 1956 and June 6, 1956.
Well who was that kid that pitched when the Dodgers was still in New York in the World Series? He said you mean no Mickey Mantle today he’s not playing, oh well I can win this game and he did. But if Mickey Mantle didn’t intimidate someone or if the Yankees didn’t intimidate you, you had to be ignorant as a box of rocks or in a coma. Mickey hit 18 World Series home runs, still the record.
tommy, u r so great
Jeff Dahlmer's Slim Fast Diet: A shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, and a sensible Tommy Lasorda for dinner........
suitcase simpson!? you knew the great suitcase simpson?!
He was a good friend of Gary 'Suitcase' Smith of the 1970 California Golden Seals hockey team.
@@jamesanthony5681 was he a cousin of suitcase simpson?
@@jameshudson169 No.
@James What a great nickname! 😊
I knew his brother "Skidrow"
I read that Lasorda actually grew up a Yankee fan and his favorite player was Joe DiMaggio. Lasorda was also once property of the Phillies as he played in their farm system. He was actually blocked onto making the Dodgers by Sandy Koufax who lacked command from 1955 to 1958. Koufax straightened out his control problems in 1959.
He was blocked by sucking
Tommy's memory evidently was a bit shaky according to Baseball Reference. He pitched in the AL for 1 year, for the KC Athletics in 1956. He did pitch 2 scoreless innings in relief against the Yankees in KC on May 21 and got Martin and Bauer out, as he said. But Mantle walked, he didn't hit a double.
And Tommy did have one start in Yankee Stadium, as he said. It was on June 6. However, he gave up 6 ER in 2 innings and was the losing pitcher, instead of 2 ER in 6 innings.
On July 11, he was traded to the Yankees and was sent to the minor leagues without pitching a game. He never appeared in another ML game.
How has this story not gone viral?
Carmine’s pizza Tommy. You know it!!
The thing is that, when we were kids, of course the names like Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford, Don Drysdale, Yogi Berra, Lou Gehrig, Babe, Joe D., and the famous others were well known to every person who loved baseball. This "Hank Bauer" guy was not even considered or his name bandied about like the others. Weird how the nobodies gain fame later on in life even though no one had the slightest idea who they were when they were supposedly "famous".
HEY BANANA NOSE!
😅😂
1960 night game Yankee stadium first MLB game ever had my glove had a nose bleed seat behind home plate leftside, Senator player hits a foul ball it's coming right at me I put my glove up closed my eyes and the guy in front of me jumps up makes a bare handed catch, one disappointed 12 year old fan. Lineup, Skowron on first Richardson on second Mc Dougall at Short, Kubek on third, Elston Howard catching, Yogi in left the Mick in Center and Maris in right field Turley was pitching.
I wish he would have been on the 1955 season and stayed with the team so he would have got his ring.
God love Lasorda!
Actually, Billy Martin got a hit off of him and the rest of his story is a lie, but I love Lasrda anyway.
Tommy's the best
That's when baseball was baseball. Not the crap we see today! Miss those days.
"A face that can hold 2 days of water." Tommy Lasorda
@MANCHESTER UNITED I didnt need to think hard. i knew right away youre an american
tommy is the best
@MANCHESTER UNITED Kickball sucks pal, it's not even a real sport in the US.
@MANCHESTER UNITED Hey pal, there are less than 200 countries in the world, and in a number of them soccer is NOT a massive sport.
Best thing about Baseball the stories
lasorda was a pitcher??
Yup.
Think his lifetime record was 0-3. But he was a very good pitcher in the minor leagues in Montreal.
@@rhelob Lasorda told the story that he was the last pitcher cut at a Dodger training camp, and it came down to between him and Sandy Koufax.
@@rhelob no kidding, I'm surprised but hey
Even though he had a good minor league career, he walked a lot of guys. Lefty with a curveball that had trouble finding the strike zone at times.
Back in candlestick park when this man had to hit the showers.
It was a long walk.
I think we can safely say that Tommy was a much better manager than pitcher
I was a pitcher. Never had to throw at anybody to get them out and never would.
Did you pitch in the pros?
When I was a pitcher in Babe Ruth Leauge I threw intentionally at guys if the ump said that I hit them the previous at bat and we all know that I didn't hit them. The next time up it was straight at them. And I was fast. they never got out of the way in time. That was when baseball was fun. Before this pussy bullshit they play now.
I would have liked to play for Mr. Lasorda.
Tommy was the best manager in baseball... Cincinnati Reds of 75 + 76 Big Red Machine were a top 5 team of all time.. Tommy in his FIRST SEASON as manager for the Dodgers in 77 + 78 lead them all the way to the World Series, supplanting the Reds.. that speaks for itself..
Only problem with this story is that Lasorda couldn't break a pane of glass.
Well.....how hard did Tommy throw? What was his velocity? He had a cup of coffee in the majors at a time with many fewer teams and greater competition for those jobs. Tommy John didn't throw hard. Neither did Greg Maddux. And please, NOT that I'm comparing Lasorda to those guys.
"Banana nose" (Billy Martin) 🤣
when players were players
Master manager of small ball ...
He gave up 2 runs, 1 BB, and 5 hits in 2 innings in the game he started in NY. He struck out 2 in 2 innings in the game in KC. I mean, it's a nice story and all, but there's a credibility factor, so the whole knocking down guys multiple times and Mickey Mantle even knowing who this 6 ERA schlub is, is pretty questionable.
He was a good BS artist and entertaining to listen to but you are right.
What year was he talking about when this supposedly happened?
1956. Got the info off of Baseball Reference
@@billyratchet6463
Thanks.
He actually pitched in a world series game?
Is there any film of him pitching?
How did he pitch against the Yankees if it
was not in the world series?
Gave up 6 runs (5 earned) in 2 innings in the game he described that he started. And Mantle didn't hit a double off him in that first game. Mantle was 2-2 in that game with a double and a HR, but both came before Lasorda went into the game. He also walked 3 times, so if anything, Lasorda walked him.
La sorda was a great man !
lasorda needed to throw at people, he couldn't get them out throwing strikes. with the k.c. a's in 1956 he was 0-4, he gave up (for the year) 45 walks and 40 hits in 40 innings. and amazingly only 31 earned runs for a 6.15 era. rip tommy, you were a character.
Old school. You dont here hear "he dissed me, they dissed me.
Lasorda played in only 26 career games and was 0-4. These stories sound made up.
He DID have one save to his credit, though, in his 0-4 career.
Rip🕊