Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and let's get right to No. 8 in our countdown.
The 25 greatest Dodgers, No. 8: Tommy Lasorda (101 first-place votes, 19,256)
Tommy Lasorda began his pro baseball career in 1945 as a left-handed pitcher in the minors for the Philadelphia Phillies. After spending two years in the Army, he pitched one more season in the minors for the Phillies before the Dodgers drafted him in 1949. That began a long association with the Dodgers that continues to this day, with only a brief interruption to pitch for the Kansas City A's in 1956 and as a minor leaguer with the Yankees in 1956 and 1957 before being reacquired by the Dodgers in 1957.