1982

March 1, 1982

Dodger third baseman Ron Cey is interviewed on the "Today" morning television show from Dodgertown. Also, on this date, when informed by Playboy magazine that Dodger manager Tom Lasorda was named the best baseball manager on earth, Lasorda replied, "I can't argue with that." 1

March 14, 1982

Dodgertown tradition is that when anyone who has ever been a part of the Dodger organization is elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, a street on the base is named in their honor. This year, broadcaster Vin Scully, the 1982 winner of the Ford Frick Award, will be inducted into Cooperstown in July. On this day, a new street is dedicated this spring and so it is that the path that leads from the Dodgertown clubhouse to Holman Stadium will be forever known as "Vin Scully Way."

March 23, 1982

Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda is the victim of pranksters on the Dodgertown base and the likely culprits are his own players. One day when Lasorda was on the field, a person or persons got into Lasorda's suite on the base and disabled the speaking device on his room telephone. Next, they waited until he had fallen asleep that night and then tied a rope to the doorknob of the room and attached the rope around a tree. The next morning when Lasorda tried to leave his room, the taut rope on the outside kept him from opening the door and leaving the room. Next, when Lasorda tried to use his phone to call for assistance from the front desk, he was frustrated again. He could call out, but the person on the other end could not hear anything spoken from the manager. He was a captive in his own room until help finally arrived. No one was ever identified as the perpetrator or perpetrators and no one ever stepped forward to take credit. 2

March 24, 1982

Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda has his coaches take care of business on the field as he travels to Washington D.C. as an invited guest for a luncheon at the White House with President Reagan.

March 27, 1982

Television host David Hartman of "Good Morning America" is in Dodgertown to film Spring Training for a segment on the show. When the Dodger game with the Cardinals is postponed for rain in Vero Beach, Hartman begins an interview with Tom Lasorda in the manager's office. In the middle of the interview, Dodger players Mark Belanger, Jay Johnstone, Rick Monday, Jerry Reuss and Steve Yeager intervene to pick up Lasorda and throw him in the whirlpool bath in the training room. 3 Also, on this date, editor Dick Kaegel of The Sporting News gives his views of Spring Training and writes, "Dodgertown is the showplace of Spring Training baseball." 4

April 24, 1982

Vero Beach Dodger left hand pitcher Sid Fernandez throws a no-hitter, strikes out 16, retires 27 of 28 hitters as he defeats the Winter Haven Red Sox, 5-0 at Holman Stadium in Dodgertown. Fernandez hit a batter on the elbow on an 0-2 pitch to spoil a perfect game. 5

April 24, 1982

Despite losing two dates to rain at Holman Stadium, the Dodgers set a Florida Spring Training attendance record as 59,587 fans came to see the 1981 World Champions play 11 games at Dodgertown. 6

May 14, 1982

Vero Beach Dodger left hand pitcher Sid Fernandez sets a Florida State League record for most strikeouts in a game when he fans 21 Lakeland Tigers in a game at Holman Stadium in Dodgertown. Fernandez' achievement broke the record of then Dodger scout Bob Bishop who fanned 20 in a game in 1962. 7

November 8, 1982

Sportswriter Gordon Verrell writes of the reputation of Dodgertown that "The Dodgers gained a reputation as a fundamentally sound organization, top to bottom. That was primarily the result of their vast Spring Training complex, Dodgertown, in Vero Beach, Florida; their emphasis on scouting and their instruction throughout their minor league system." 8

1 ^ Ken Gurnick, Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, March 1, 1982

2 ^ Ken Gurnick, Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, March 23, 1982

3 ^ Ken Gurnick, Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, March 28, 1982

4 ^ Dick Kaegel, The Sporting News, March 27, 1982

5 ^ The Sporting News, August 2, 1982

6 ^ Bill Conlin, The Sporting News, April 24, 1982

7 ^ The Sporting News, August 2, 1982

8 ^ Gordon Verrell, The Sporting News, November 8, 1982

For more on the history of the Dodgers Spring Training visit walteromalley.com