Former Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Fred Claire was a guest Thursday on KOAL’s Drive Time Sports for a three-part interview.
During the first segment, Claire talked about the early portion of his tenure as general manager of the Dodgers. After making several calculated moves, the Dodgers defeated the Oakland A’s in the 1988 World Series.
Part two of Claire’s interview begins with a look at the use of analytics and how the Dodgers used it to create a World Championship team. Moving past 88′, Claire discusses the signing of Darryl Strawberry in the fall of 1990 and also the 1993 trade that sent future Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez to the Expos for Delino DeShields.
Part three of Claire’s time on the show dissects the trade that signaled the end of his tenure with the Dodgers: Under new ownership, the Dodgers sent fan favorite and future Hall of Fame catcher Mike Piazza to the Florida Marlins against Claire’s wishes. The conversation then shifts to 2015: Claire was diagnosed with skin cancer that later migrated to his jaw. The odds were against his survival, but he was determined. This time, he found his championship team at City of Hope National Medical center in Duarte, California.