Fred Claire: My 30 Years in Dodger Blue

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.