YAPHANK, N.Y – Steel Sports, a social impact organization with the mission of inspiring youth, announces the opening of Lasorda Legacy Park to honor the legendary L.A. Dodgers Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda.
Formerly Baseball Heaven, Lasorda Legacy Park is a state-of-the-art baseball and softball facility home to Team Steel NY, the National Youth Baseball Championships, and dozens of baseball and softball tournaments where more than 250,000 families attend per year.
After being introduced to Lasorda in 2009, Steel Partners executive chairman Warren Lichtenstein founded Steel Sports in 2011 in an office at Dodger Stadium. Lasorda was a key figure in creating the Steel Sports Coaching System-The Lasorda Way.
“Lasorda Legacy Park is a place where kids, coaches, and families can build their legacy through Tommy’s ‘You Gotta Believe’ philosophy,” said Lichtenstein. “We will honor Tommy’s vision that providing a positive and fun environment is essential to keeping kids in sports so they can gain the character traits that make them successful in all walks of life.”
Lasorda was named Dodgers manager in 1976, and in his Hall of Fame trajectory, he compiled 1599 wins, four National League pennants, and two World Series titles in 1981 and 1988.
Tommy had his #2 jersey retired by the Dodgers and was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2000, he led Team USA to an Olympic gold medal win over Cuba.
“Lasorda Legacy Park is a national focal point for our Kids First mission and core values of teamwork, respect, integrity, and commitment. We named our seven fields after these and other values to remind all who play and come here what the true priority of youth sports is teaching success in life,” said Martin Brown, president of Steel Sports.
Steel Sports is a wholly owned subsidiary of Steel Partners, a global holding company. The Steel Sports advisory board includes Dodgers great Eric Karros, legendary managers Bobby Valentine and Dusty Baker, USWNT World Cup and Olympic Champion Julie Foudy, basketball legend Nancy Lieberman, and Lasorda who served until his passing in 2021.
“Tommy was more than a Hall of Fame manager. He was a husband, father, friend, mentor, icon, baseball’s ultimate ambassador, and inspiration to so many. He taught us about teamwork, where you play for the name on the front of the jersey, not the back,” said Eric Karros, who played for Lasorda for 11 years and was the 1992 National League Rookie of the Year. “Tommy’s legacy lives on at Lasorda Legacy Park and wherever kids who believe in themselves play.”
A grand opening ceremony is planned for Sunday, September 19th at the newly branded facility in Yaphank, Long Island. Families and players will hear from those coached by Lasorda, his family, and friends, and begin to building their own legacy through sports.
