Fred Claire: My 30 Years in Dodger Blue

by Fred Claire, Steve Springer (Contributor)

Al Campanis' appearance on Nightline, the selling of the Dodgers to corporate giant Fox and the trading of Mike Piazza. All great stories that have never been fully told, but are now laid bare by a man who was privy to the inner workings of the Los Angeles Dodgers for 30 years. From sportswriter to publicity director to executive vicepresident and general manager, Fred Claire has been an integral part of one of baseball's most colorful, popular and successful franchises. Now, in My 30 Years in Dodger Blue, he opens the door to his private office to offer a unique perspective on headline-making events-including some that were never made public, like the day Manager Tommy Lasorda threatened to quit and the Dodgers decided Joe Morgan would be an ideal replacement, the bizarre scene in the Dodger Stadium parking lot the night both Claire and manager Bill Russell were fired, the eerie night Claire and Don Newcombe invaded Maury Wills' house in order to save his life, and more. From Jackie Robinson to Darryl Strawberry, from Walter O'Malley to Rupert Murdoch, from the triumph of the 1988 championship to the turmoil of the 1998 Fox purchase, Claire takes you there in My 30 Years in Dodger Blue. There has never been a work on the Los Angeles Dodgers this definitive-until now.

Genres: Baseball, Sports

160 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2004

Reviews

[Reid Mccormick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a Dodger fan since I came out of the womb. I bleed Dodger blue, and growing up I had only one dream: to be the starting catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Naturally, as a kid, my favorite Dodger was Mike Piazza.

Piazza was larger than life. He was a decent catcher with a powerful bat. My first and only Dodger uniform was a crisp, blue #31 Piazza jersey. When I wore that jersey, I could faintly hear Vin Scully calling my name over the radio.

So you can imagine my confusion when the Dodgers traded the Piazza and his glorious mullet to the teal-toting Florida Marlins. Back then I didn’t understand contract negotiations, free agency, salary obligations, and so forth. All I knew was that the best hitting catcher in baseball was now in Florida and not a Dodger. (I later fell in love with Pal LoDuca).

Fred Claire was the Dodger general manager from 1987 to 1998, but fortunately, he was not responsible for the ill-conceived Piazza/Zeile to Florida trade. That honor goes to the executives at the Fox Entertainment Group. And from 1998 to 2012 (the end of the McCourt era) it wasn’t a fun time to be a Dodger fan.

If you’re an avid Dodger fan, none of these stories will be new or shocking, however, it is fun to hear it straight from the general manager’s mouth.

[Mark Barkawitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when it first came out. I liked the way it started at the end—the end of Fred’s 30 years as a Dodger—then transitioned into a autobiography about Fred’s life and climb to the pinnacle of baseball success as GM of the World Champion ’88 Dodgers. Admittedly, I was drawn to the book as a life-long Dodger fan. I remember the incident that led to Claire’s demise as General Manager—his refusal to take credit for something he didn’t do. Claire refused to lie to the fans as ordered by his bosses at Fox, who then owned the Dodgers. It cost him his job. Being a man of integrity has its consequences. If the new owners are smart, which they are, they’ll reach out to Fred and invite him back into the Dodger family where he belongs as the last truly successful GM of their storied franchise. Without Claire, Kirk Gibson never would’ve been around to hit the most-storied homerun in Dodgers baseball history!

[Brian Stark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad inside look at the Dodgers from the end of the 60's to now. Tommy Lasorda comes off as a bit of a jerk, but most of us baseball fans thought his act was a little overblown, anyway and are not surprised.