Oakland Athletics: 30 Worst Players in Franchise History

Tommy Lasorda

Tommy Lasorda had an lengthy Minor League career, yet only three season of big league playing time under his belt. In one of those seasons, he played with the Kansas City Athletics. Although Lasorda is now a storied baseball veteran, what he was not cut out for is being a major league pitcher.

While with the Kansas City Athletics, Lasorda had a 6.15 ERA with 49 runs allowed over just 58.1 innings pitched. Over his entire major league career, Lasorda had a 6.48 ERA in 26 games. During his playing days, Lasorda pitched in both the Athletics and Dodgers organizations, but he just could not figure out how to be a successful pitcher in the big leagues.

Thankfully for him, he did much better as a coach. He first became a Minor League scout in 1961 and rose through the ranks until be became the Los Angeles Dodgers’ manager in 1976, where managed the team for two decades. Lasorda was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a manager in 1997. He’s the perfect example of someone who doesn’t have the physical talent to succeed himself, but understand the fundamentals so well that he can still be a high quality coach and manager.

Next: The Worst A's Players in History: Scott Hemond