Lasorda University: A Recollection of My Summer of '68 with Tommy Lasorda and the Ogden Dodgers

It was the summer of 1968 . . . Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy had been assassinated, the war in Vietnam raged on, the Democratic National Convention rocked Chicago, we were a year away from Woodstock and landing on the moon, and there I was tucked away in Ogden, Utah. I was a 16-year- old kid spending my third summer as the clubhouse manager for the Ogden Dodgers, an entry level professional baseball team, under the tutelage of the great Tommy Lasorda.

For me, it turned out to be a summer like no other. Not only did I get to witness the blossoming of several future superstars of the sport, like Steve Garvey, Bobby Valentine, Tom Paciorek, and Bill Buckner, but I learned about leadership and life from one of the greatest baseball managers of all time. It was to be Tommy's last year managing a team in the Pioneer League, and the team was engaged in a tough race for the pennant.

This is the story of that magical season where those three short months were transformed into a lifetime of experience. It's many things - my coming of age story, my rite of passage tale, but mostly it pro- vides a highly personal glimpse of Tommy Lasorda as few knew him. It's his story as well. In the book I recount how I watched as he took a bunch of young, raw, inexperienced players who had never played professionally before and transformed them into a championship caliber team.

Please join me as I, and some of the members of that summer's 1968 Pioneer League Team, re- count the remembrances and recollections of the man himself and that one, magical season. It was a time where the boys of summer became men, and Tommy Lasorda began his ascent to baseball greatness.

ZACK MINASIAN'S passion for baseball and his unique and deep connection to the sport prompted him to share his experiences through his first book, Lasorda University. As a teenager Zack worked as the "clubbie" for the Ogden Dodgers in the late 1960's, a rookie league Dodger affiliate, managed by the great Tommy Lasorda. Zack's time with Lasorda was nothing less than an education. His acquired skill poured over into his later roles as the visiting clubhouse manager for the Texas Rangers from 1988-1994; home clubhouse and equipment manager for the Rangers from 1995-2009; and as the administrative assistant to the field manager for the Boston Red Sox in 2012.

Having spent much of his professional life in and around clubhouses, Zack revolutionized clubhouse operation and equipment management and set a high bar for the thousands of coaches, ballplayers and staff that he took care of over the years. George Steinbrenner once called Zack's visiting clubhouse "the best in baseball." Chuck Finley said, "If we had Zack we'd probably win 20 more games," and Bo Jackson described Zack's clubhouse as the "Taj Mahal of all clubhouses."

Zack hosted the American League Club at the 1995 All-Star Game, was a part of 3 Western Division Championships in Texas and was selected by his peers as the Equipment Manager of the Year in 2008. He has been active in the charitable organization "Caps For Kids" and was instrumental in bringing in the Major League Equipment Managers Association to support this great cause for the past three decades.

After more than 25 years in professional baseball, Zack is proud that the family legacy continues with three of his four sons in various roles with three different major league clubs.

Author: Zack Minasian
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: 09/05/2022
Pages: 236
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.71lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.50d
ISBN13: 9798351146331
ISBN10: 8351146331
BISAC Categories:
- Sports & Recreation | Baseball | Essays & Writings

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