Long Cleveland Guardians -Larry Dolan has died at the age of 94, the team announced on Monday.
The Dolan family is the longest-rented owner in the franchise history, and its patriarch is a lifelong Clevelander that affected his community both on and off the field over the years.
“We are saddened by the loss of our father, but lucky to have him as part of our lives as long as we did,” Dolan’s son, chairman and CEO Paul Dolan said in a statement. “He was a loving husband, father and grandfather who are passionate about his family, work, our community and his love for our local sports team, including owning Cleveland Guardians.”
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Larry Dolan bought the Cleveland baseball team for $ 320 million. (IMagn)
The guardians added a video to his message about Dolan’s death and said “Cleveland unfortunately lost one of his own today.”
“Born in Cleveland Heights in 1931, Lawrence J. Dolan invested all his life in Greater Cleveland and affected our society on so many levels,” the narrator says over a montage of Dolan pictures. “From his service to our country as the first lieutenant of the United States Marine’s Sport.”
Dolan was a multisport star at Saint Ignatius High School, where he played both running and defensive back on the football team and starred as a catcher on the base ball diamond.
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“He was blessed to realize two dreams [of] Almost every Cleveland -Athlet in his generation: To play on the field at Cleveland Stadium, where his boy’s dollar, Lou Boudreau, starred, and to own one of our city’s professional sports teams, “the narrator continues.
“In February 2000 he bought his beloved hometown -baseball team. We are eternally grateful for his passion and support the northeastern Ohio community and Cleveland Guardians organization.”
The then manager Charlie Manuel, Left, shares a dugout chat with owner Larry Dolan before opening day 2000. (IMagn)
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred also released a statement about Dolan expressing his condolance with the family and the organization.
“I am saddened by the adoption of Cleveland Native Larry Dolan, whose family’s ownership of a quarter century has made their hometown team a consistent winner and a staple in their community,” Manfred wrote in a statement. “Larry was a lifelong baseball fan who served our country as the first lieutenant of the United States Marines. He strongly believed in mentoring young people and using the guardians as a way of influencing Greater Cleveland.”
Dolan bought his hometown team for “323 million from Richard Jacobs, and he saw Cleveland Post 14 winning seasons and nine trips to the post season since then.”
In 2016, they reached the World Series like the American League Pennant winners, but fell to Chicago Cubs at home in an exciting game.
Paul Dolan eventually took over as the primary owner of the franchise in 2013 and eventually monitored the team’s name change to Guardians in 2021.
