View source for Tony La Russa

{{Short description|American baseball player and manager (born 1944)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Tony La Russa
|position=[[Infielder]] / [[Manager (baseball)|Manager]]
|team= 
|number= 22
|image=Tony La Russa by Gage Skidmore.jpg
|caption=La Russa in 2017
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1944|10|4}}
|birth_place=[[Tampa, Florida]], U.S.
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=May 10
|debutyear=1963
|debutteam=Kansas City Athletics
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=April 6
|finalyear=1973
|finalteam=Chicago Cubs
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
|stat1value=.199
|stat2label=[[Hit (baseball)|Hits]]
|stat2value=35
|stat3label=[[Run batted in|Runs batted in]]
|stat3value=7
|stat4label=Managerial record
|stat4value=2,884–2,499-4
|stat5label=Winning %
|stat5value={{Winning percentage|2,884|2,499}}
|teams=
;As player
* [[Oakland Athletics|Kansas City / Oakland Athletics]] ({{mlby|1963}}, {{mlby|1968}}–{{mlby|1971}})
* [[Atlanta Braves]] ({{mlby|1971}})
* [[Chicago Cubs]] ({{mlby|1973}})
;As manager
* [[Chicago White Sox]] ({{mlby|1979}}–{{mlby|1986}})
* [[Oakland Athletics]] ({{mlby|1986}}–{{mlby|1995}})
* [[St. Louis Cardinals]] ({{mlby|1996}}–{{mlby|2011}})
* [[Chicago White Sox]] ({{mlby|2021}}–{{mlby|2022}})
;As coach
* [[Chicago White Sox]] ({{mlby|1978}}–{{mlby|1979}})
|highlights=
* 3× [[World Series champion]] ({{wsy|1989}}, {{wsy|2006}}, {{wsy|2011}})
* 4× [[Major League Baseball Manager of the Year Award|Manager of the Year]] (1983, 1988, 1992, 2002)
* [[St. Louis Cardinals#Retired numbers|St. Louis Cardinals No. 10]] retired
* [[Athletics Hall of Fame]]
* [[St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum|St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame]] 
|hoflink = National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
|hoftype = National
|hofdate=[[2014 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|2014]]
|hofvote=100%
|hofmethod=Expansion Era Committee
}}

'''Anthony La Russa Jr.''' ({{IPAc-en|l|ə|ˈ|r|uː|s|ə}}; born October 4, 1944) is an American former professional [[baseball]] player, coach, and [[manager (baseball)|manager]]. His [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the [[St. Louis Cardinals]], [[Oakland Athletics]], and [[Chicago White Sox]]. In 35 seasons as a [[Manager (baseball)|manager]], La Russa guided his teams to three [[World Series]] titles, six league championships, and 13 division titles. His managerial total of 2,884 MLB wins is [[Major League Baseball all-time managerial wins|second only]] to [[Connie Mack]]'s.

As a player, La Russa made his major league debut in 1963 and spent parts of five major league seasons with the [[Oakland Athletics|Kansas City / Oakland Athletics]], [[Atlanta Braves]], and [[Chicago Cubs]]. After a shoulder injury during the 1964–65 off-season, he returned to college and received a degree from the [[University of South Florida]] before playing much of the remainder of his career in the [[Minor League Baseball|minor leagues]] until retiring in 1977. He then earned a [[Juris Doctor]] degree from [[Florida State University College of Law|Florida State University]].

Named [[List of Chicago White Sox managers|manager]] of the White Sox in the middle of the 1979 season, La Russa guided the team to an [[American League West]] division title four seasons later. In the middle of the 1986 season, he was fired by the White Sox and hired less than three weeks later by the Athletics. La Russa led the A's to three consecutive [[American League]] [[List of American League pennant winners|championships]] from 1988 to 1990 and the [[1989 World Series]] title. He left Oakland after the 1995 season to manage the Cardinals, whom he led to three [[National League (baseball)|National League]] [[List of National League pennant winners|championships]] and the {{wsy|2006}} and [[2011 World Series]] titles. La Russa retired after winning the 2011 title and 34 seasons as a major league manager. Three months later, he accepted a position helping fellow former manager [[Joe Torre]], the executive vice president for MLB operations. In 2014, he became the chief baseball officer for the [[Arizona Diamondbacks]]. In November 2019, he joined the [[Los Angeles Angels]] as a senior advisor of baseball operations. In the 2021 offseason, he was named the manager of the White Sox; he retired in 2022 due to health concerns.

In 2013, La Russa was unanimously elected to the [[Baseball Hall of Fame|Hall of Fame]] by the 16-member [[Veterans Committee]]. The induction ceremony was held at [[Cooperstown, New York]], on July 27, 2014.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Goold |first1=Derrick |last2=Hummel |first2=Rick |author-link2=Rick Hummel |date=December 9, 2013 |title=La Russa, Torre, Cox unanimously elected to Hall |url=http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/la-russa-torre-cox-unanimously-elected-to-hall/article_943c3ec2-30c0-5d64-b85d-ed05f9087463.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140828212450/http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/la-russa-torre-cox-unanimously-elected-to-hall/article_943c3ec2-30c0-5d64-b85d-ed05f9087463.html |archive-date=August 28, 2014 |access-date=December 9, 2013 |website=[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]}}</ref> On August 16, 2014, he was inducted into the [[St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum]].

==Early life==
Born in Tampa, Florida, on October 4, 1944, to Anthony and Olivia (Cuervo) La Russa, Anthony Jr.'s paternal grandparents had emigrated from Italy (Sicily) and his mother's family from Spain. He was raised in nearby [[Ybor City, Florida]], where his parents had met while they were working in the local cigar factory.<ref name="sabr.org">{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa – Society for American Baseball Research |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/6dbc8b54 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614203456/https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/6dbc8b54 |archive-date=June 14, 2020 |access-date=November 28, 2018 |website=sabr.org}}</ref>

The La Russa family moved to [[West Tampa, Florida]], where Tony played [[American Legion Baseball|American Legion baseball]] and [[PONY Baseball and Softball|PONY League]] baseball alongside teammate [[Lou Piniella]].<ref name="htlaw">{{Cite news |last=Kay |first=Michael |date=October 17, 1990 |title=Hot-tempered Lou always had big plans for the majors |page=E8 |work=The Day |agency=(New York Daily News) |location=New London, Connecticut |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=dQohAAAAIBAJ&pg=1404%2C3522387}}</ref><ref name="rtfnlc">{{Cite news |last=Scanlon |first=Dick |date=June 17, 2005 |title=Rays to face NL-leading Cards |page=C5 |work=The Ledger |location=Lakeland, Florida |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7FJIAAAAIBAJ&pg=1453%2C6036667 |url-status=live |access-date=November 22, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072910/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7FJIAAAAIBAJ&pg=1453,6036667 |archive-date=May 27, 2021}}</ref><ref name="tnyltr">{{Cite news |last=Price |first=S.L. |date=October 16, 1990 |title=29 years later |page=24 |work=Toledo Blade |agency=Knight-Ridder |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BVtPAAAAIBAJ&pg=4940%2C4281608}}</ref>

After graduating from [[Thomas Jefferson High School (Tampa, Florida)|Jefferson High School]] in Tampa, La Russa was signed by the [[Kansas City Athletics]] in June 1962 as a middle [[infielder]], with a clause that the Athletics pay for his college education at the [[University of South Florida]].<ref name="sabr.org" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=News & Event Details |url=https://www.usfalumni.org/s/861/02-alumni/index.aspx?sid=861&gid=1&pgid=252&cid=8459&ecid=8459&crid=0&calpgid=61&calcid=5197 |access-date=May 6, 2022 |website=www.usfalumni.org |language=en}}</ref>

==Professional playing career==
La Russa made his major league debut with the Kansas City A's on May 10, [[1963 Kansas City Athletics season|1963]], after having played 76 games with A's affiliates [[Binghamton Triplets]] and [[Daytona Beach Islanders]] in 1962. He spent the entire 1963 season in the majors, as was required by his signing as a "[[Bonus rule|bonus baby]]".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa Minor & Winter Leagues Statistics & History |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=laruss001ant |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181129100121/https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=laruss001ant |archive-date=November 29, 2018 |access-date=November 28, 2018 |website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> He had suffered an off-season shoulder injury while playing [[softball]] with friends, and this limited him to only 34 games in 1963, in which he hit .250. The injured shoulder bothered him through the remainder of his playing career.<ref name="sabr.org" />

Over the next six seasons, La Russa spent most of his time in the [[Minor League Baseball|minor leagues]]. He made it back up to the A's, which had since moved to Oakland, in 1968 and 1969. He spent the entire 1970 season with the A's, and then late in 1971 the A's traded him to the [[Atlanta Braves]]. His final big league playing stop was with the [[Chicago Cubs]], where he appeared as a [[pinch runner]] in one game, on April 6, 1973, scoring the walk-off winning run. He also spent time in the organizations of the [[Pittsburgh Pirates]], [[Chicago White Sox]], and St. Louis Cardinals.

In total, he played 132 major-league games, 40 in the starting lineup. He went 35-for-176, for a [[batting average (baseball)|batting average]] of .199. His 23 [[Base on balls|walks]] pushed his [[on-base percentage]] to .292. He had 7 [[Run batted in|RBI]] and scored 15 [[run (baseball)|runs]]. He made 63 appearances at [[second base]], 18 at [[shortstop]], and two at [[third base]], fielding .960 in 249 total chances and participating in 34 [[double plays]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa Statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/l/larusto01.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080920033343/http://www.baseball-reference.com/l/larusto01.shtml |archive-date=September 20, 2008 |access-date=April 28, 2007 |publisher=Baseball Reference}}</ref>

It was as a player with the A's that La Russa first met catcher [[Dave Duncan (baseball)|Dave Duncan]], who would join his coaching staff in Chicago in 1983. The two worked together on every La Russa-managed team thereafter, and he often credits Duncan as playing a key role in his success.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hummel |first=Rick |title=Duncan sounds like he's done in the dugout |url=https://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/duncan-sounds-like-he-s-done-in-the-dugout/article_15d10b5c-7210-5f1b-ad66-c71f84259c26.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072908/https://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/duncan-sounds-like-he-s-done-in-the-dugout/article_15d10b5c-7210-5f1b-ad66-c71f84259c26.html |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |access-date=January 1, 2019 |website=stltoday.com|date=July 12, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Waldstein |first=David |date=August 30, 2009 |title=Cardinals' Dave Duncan Is Still Working Wonders |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/31/sports/baseball/31duncan.html |url-status=live |access-date=November 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072911/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/31/sports/baseball/31duncan.html |archive-date=May 27, 2021 }}</ref>

==Managerial career==
===Early career===
Having started coursework following his A's signing in 1962, La Russa graduated from the [[University of South Florida]] in 1969 with a degree in Industrial Management. He earned a [[Juris Doctor]] (J.D.) degree from [[Florida State University College of Law]] in 1978.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Palazzolo |first=Joe |date=October 17, 2011 |title=TLR: A Manager's Manager, And A Lawyer Too |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2011/10/17/tlr-a-managers-manager-and-a-lawyer-too/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809155907/https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2011/10/17/tlr-a-managers-manager-and-a-lawyer-too/ |archive-date=August 9, 2020 |access-date=November 3, 2011 |website=The Wall Street Journal Law Blog}}</ref><ref name="sabr.org" /> and was admitted to the Florida Bar on July 30, 1980. He is associated with a Sarasota law firm although he is not eligible to practice at this time.<ref name="FloridaBar">{{Cite web |title=Member Search |url=http://www.floridabar.org/names.nsf/0/2685883092A5A6C485256A83006411D8?OpenDocument |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403014018/http://www.floridabar.org/names.nsf/0/2685883092A5A6C485256A83006411D8?OpenDocument |archive-date=April 3, 2012 |access-date=November 7, 2011 |publisher=The Florida Bar}}</ref> La Russa has been quoted as saying, "I decided I'd rather ride the buses in the minor leagues than practice law for a living." Shortly before graduating from FSU College of Law, La Russa spoke with one of his professors about his post-graduation plans, indicating to his professor that he had an opportunity to coach in the minor leagues and asking his professor what he should do. La Russa's professor responded, "Grow up, you're an adult now, you're going to be a lawyer."<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bodley |first1=Hal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hX0kAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT84 |title=How Baseball Explains America |last2=Will |first2=George |date=May 1, 2014 |publisher=Triumph Books |isbn=9781623688073}}</ref>

He is one of a select number of major league managers in baseball history who have graduated from law school or passed a state bar exam; others include [[James Henry O'Rourke]] (Buffalo Bisons, 1881–84, Washington Senators, 1893), [[John Montgomery Ward]] (New York Giants, Brooklyn and Providence, late 1800s), [[Hughie Jennings]] (Detroit, 1907–20, New York Giants, 1924), [[Miller Huggins]] (St. Louis Cardinals and New York Yankees, 1913–29), [[Muddy Ruel]] (St. Louis Browns, 1947), [[Jack Hendricks]] (St. Louis Cardinals, 1918, Cincinnati, 1924–29), and [[Branch Rickey]] (St. Louis Browns, 1913–15, St. Louis Cardinals, 1919–25).<ref>Ed Edmonds and Frank J. Houdek, ''Baseball Meets the Law'' (2017) p. 2012</ref>

=== Chicago White Sox (1979–1986)===
La Russa credits [[Loren Babe]] and [[Paul Richards (baseball)|Paul Richards]] of the White Sox organization for helping him to become a manager.<ref name="cgw199304">{{Cite magazine |date=April 1993 |title=The Man in the Dugout |page=10 |magazine=Computer Gaming World |url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=105 |url-status=live |access-date=July 6, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702235842/http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=105 |archive-date=July 2, 2014}}</ref> The White Sox gave La Russa his first managerial opportunity in 1978 by naming him skipper of their Double-A affiliate, the [[Knoxville Smokies|Knoxville Sox]] of the [[Southern League (1964–2020)|Southern League]]. La Russa spent a half-season at Knoxville before being promoted to the White Sox [[coach (baseball)|coaching staff]] when owner [[Bill Veeck]] changed managers from [[Bob Lemon]] to [[Larry Doby]]. Doby was fired at the end of the season; [[Don Kessinger]], former star [[shortstop]] of the crosstown Cubs, was named the White Sox' player-manager for 1979, and La Russa was named manager of the Triple-A [[Iowa Cubs|Iowa Oaks]] of the [[American Association (20th century)|American Association]], choosing to manage in the minors after the White Sox had offered him his same major league coaching role.<ref name="sabr.org" />

The White Sox fired Kessinger with a 46–60 record two-thirds of the way through the 1979 season and replaced him with La Russa. The White Sox played .500 baseball (27–27) for the rest of the 1979 campaign. LaRussa, at 34, was the youngest manager in the major leagues.<ref name="sabr.org" /> La Russa was named American League Manager of the Year in 1983, when his club won the AL West but fell to the [[Baltimore Orioles]] in the [[American League Championship Series]].

The White Sox fired La Russa after the club got off to a 26–38 start in 1986. In 1986, general manager [[Roland Hemond]], who had hired La Russa as White Sox manager, was replaced by the White Sox' broadcaster [[Ken Harrelson]] as general manager. Harrelson then fired both La Russa and coach [[Dave Duncan (baseball)|Dave Duncan]] during the season. Ironically, Harrelson and La Russa were teammates at Binghamton in 1962.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1962 Binghamton Triplets Statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200403204323/https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi |archive-date=April 3, 2020 |access-date=November 29, 2018 |website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> In later years, White Sox Owner [[Jerry Reinsdorf]] expressed regret for allowing La Russa to be fired.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 1, 2011 |title=Reinsdorf interested in bringing La Russa back to White Sox |url=http://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/205137-reinsdorf-interested-in-bringing-la-russa-back-to-white-sox |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072912/https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/205137-reinsdorf-interested-in-bringing-la-russa-back-to-white-sox |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |access-date=November 28, 2018 |website=Sporting News}}</ref><ref name="sabr.org" /> La Russa finished his first White Sox career with a 522–510 regular season record and a 1–3 postseason record, but added another 156–134 record in 2021–2022.<ref name="managerial record">{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/larusto01.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927205233/https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/larusto01.shtml |archive-date=September 27, 2021 |access-date=July 3, 2023 |website=Baseball Reference |publisher=Sports Reference}}</ref> Decades later, Hemond said of La Russa: "Tony La Russa is one of the most brilliant managers that I ever encountered in my baseball career. He saw things other people didn't see. There were some managers who thought he was out of line with what he was trying to do, but later on they had to respect him because it was working. There's no question he changed the way the game is played."<ref name="sabr.org" /> La Russa is also commonly credited for the advent of the modern specialized bullpen.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Verducci |first=Tom |author-link=Tom Verducci |date=October 25, 2011 |title=How to mismanage: La Russa gives a clinic in Cards' Game 5 disaster |url=https://www.si.com/more-sports/2011/10/26/larussa-blunders |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072907/https://www.si.com/more-sports/2011/10/26/larussa-blunders |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |access-date=February 17, 2021 |magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]]}}</ref>

===Oakland Athletics (1986–1995)===

[[File:Tony La Russa 1989.jpg|thumb|220px|La Russa with the Oakland A's in 1989]]

La Russa had a break of less than three weeks before his old club, the Athletics, called him to take over as manager. La Russa and Duncan both joined the A's, inheriting a team that was 31–52 and in 7th place. They went 45–34 the rest of the season to finish in 3rd place in 1986.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1986 Oakland Athletics Statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1986.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210924152552/https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1986.shtml |archive-date=September 24, 2021 |access-date=November 29, 2018 |website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref name="sabr.org" />

La Russa managed the Oakland A's to three consecutive [[American League]] Pennants and [[World Series]] appearances from 1988 to 1990. The A's lost the [[1988 World Series]] to manager [[Tommy Lasorda]] and the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]]. The following year, the A's swept the [[Loma Prieta earthquake|earthquake]]-delayed Bay Area [[1989 World Series]] against the [[San Francisco Giants]]. In their third consecutive appearance, the favored A's faced manager [[Lou Piniella]], LaRussa's childhood teammate and friend, and his [[Cincinnati Reds]] in the [[1990 World Series]]. The A's were swept in the series. In both 1988 and 1990 the A's had swept the [[Boston Red Sox]] 4–0 in the ALCS, after winning 100 and 99 games respectively. The 1988 World Series was made famous by the [[Kirk Gibson]] game-winning home run off of A's closer [[Dennis Eckersley]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=1988 World Series – Los Angeles Dodgers over Oakland Athletics (4–1) |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1988_WS.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071130235359/http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1988_WS.shtml |archive-date=November 30, 2007 |access-date=December 4, 2018 |website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=1988 Oakland Athletics Statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1988.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210801012416/https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1988.shtml |archive-date=August 1, 2021 |access-date=December 4, 2018 |website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=1990 Oakland Athletics Statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1990.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210831160024/https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1990.shtml |archive-date=August 31, 2021 |access-date=December 4, 2018 |website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> La Russa earned two American League Manager of the Year awards with the A's, in 1988 and 1992, giving him three AL awards, the latter after again winning the Western Division.

After the 1995 season, in which the A's finished 67–77, the Haas family, with whom La Russa had a close personal relationship, sold the team after the death of patriarch [[Walter A. Haas, Jr.]] In the off-season, La Russa left Oakland to take over for the fired [[Joe Torre]] as manager of the [[St. Louis Cardinals]]. La Russa had a 798–673 regular season record and a 19–13 postseason record with Oakland.<ref name="managerial record" />

===St. Louis Cardinals (1996–2011)===
{{Further|History of the St. Louis Cardinals (1990–present)}}

In his first campaign with the Cardinals [[1996 St. Louis Cardinals season|in 1996]], the team clinched the [[National League Central]] division title (and also finished [[1996 National League Championship Series|National League runner-up]]), a feat his clubs repeated in [[2000 St. Louis Cardinals season|2000]], [[2001 St. Louis Cardinals season|2001]], [[2002 St. Louis Cardinals season|2002]], [[2004 St. Louis Cardinals season|2004]], [[2005 St. Louis Cardinals season|2005]], [[2006 St. Louis Cardinals season|2006]], and [[2009 St. Louis Cardinals season|2009]]. The Cardinals also tied for the National League Central crown with the [[2001 Houston Astros season|Houston Astros]] in 2001. In 2002, La Russa became the first manager to win the Manager of the Year award four times. His fourth award was arguably the most emotional; La Russa led the Cardinals to the [[2002 National League Championship Series|National League Championship Series]] (where they ultimately lost in five games to the [[2002 San Francisco Giants season|San Francisco Giants]]) in a year in which the Cardinals were traumatized by the deaths of beloved [[Baseball Hall of Fame|Hall of Fame]] broadcaster [[Jack Buck]] and 33-year-old [[pitcher]] [[Darryl Kile]] just four days later. On September 10, 2003, he won his 2,000th career game as a manager against the [[Colorado Rockies]], becoming the seventh to reach the mark in [[Major League Baseball]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tony LaRussa - Cooperstown Expert |url=https://www.cooperstownexpert.com/player/tony-larussa/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112115111/https://www.cooperstownexpert.com/player/tony-larussa/ |archive-date=November 12, 2021 |access-date=November 12, 2021}}</ref>

The 2004 team played one of the finest seasons in Cardinals' history, as they won 105 games. After a regular season in which the Cardinals led the NL in runs scored (855) while allowing the fewest (659), La Russa's Cardinals defeated the [[2004 Los Angeles Dodgers season|Los Angeles Dodgers]] in the [[2004 National League Division Series|National League Division Series]], 3 games to 1.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2004 St. Louis Cardinals batting, pitching & fielding statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/STL/2004.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080623065310/http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/STL/2004.shtml |archive-date=June 23, 2008 |access-date=November 4, 2013 |publisher=[[Baseball-Reference.com]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=2004 League Division Series – St. Louis Cardinals over Los Angeles Dodgers |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/2004_NLDS1.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015034233/http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/2004_NLDS1.shtml |archive-date=October 15, 2013 |access-date=November 4, 2013 |publisher=[[Baseball-Reference.com]]}}</ref> St. Louis then took on the [[2004 Houston Astros season|Houston Astros]] in the [[2004 National League Championship Series|National League Championship Series]]. In a tense series with opposing [[pitcher]] [[Roger Clemens]] at the top of his game, Cardinals [[third baseman]] [[Scott Rolen]] hit a game-winning two-run [[home run]] off Clemens in Game 7 following [[Jim Edmonds]]' rally saving catch.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Leach |first=Matthew |date=October 21, 2004 |title=Cards earn trip to World Series |publisher=www.stlouis.cardinals.[[MLB.com|mlb.com]] |url=http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20041021&content_id=902331&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl |url-status=dead |access-date=November 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101209144855/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20041021&content_id=902331&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl |archive-date=December 9, 2010 }}</ref> This home run sent the Cardinals to the [[World Series]] for the first time since 1987. However, they were swept in four games by a historic [[2004 Boston Red Sox season|Boston Red Sox]] team that had just surmounted a [[2004 American League Championship Series|3–0 deficit]] against the [[2004 New York Yankees season|New York Yankees]] and captured their first championship since 1918.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dodd |first=Mike |date=October 27, 2004 |title=Finally! Red sox win World Series |work=[[USA Today]] |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/playoffs/2004-10-27-ws-game4_x.htm |url-status=live |access-date=November 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210726225201/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/playoffs/2004-10-27-ws-game4_x.htm |archive-date=July 26, 2021}}</ref>

[[File:Tony LaRussa 2002.jpg|thumb|190px|left|Tony La Russa on the outfield warning track at [[Busch Memorial Stadium|Busch Stadium]] on June 29, 2002.]]
In {{mlby|2006}}, the Cardinals returned to the [[2006 World Series|World Series]], this time with a 4–1 victory over the [[Detroit Tigers]]. The team's 83–78 regular season record is the worst ever by an eventual World Series champion, usurping the [[1987 Minnesota Twins season|1987 Minnesota Twins]]' 85–77 campaign. La Russa became the second [[Manager (baseball)|manager]] to win a [[World Series]] in both the [[American League]] and [[National League (baseball)|National League]] – a distinction shared with his mentor [[Sparky Anderson]].

When he came to St. Louis, La Russa wore number 10 to symbolize the team's drive to their 10th championship and pay tribute to Anderson, who wore number 10 while manager of the [[Cincinnati Reds]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sheinin |first=Dave |date=October 29, 2006 |title=La Russa Gets Number He Wants |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/28/AR2006102800905_pf.html |url-status=live |access-date=September 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628232836/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/28/AR2006102800905_pf.html |archive-date=June 28, 2011}}</ref> After winning the championship, he chose to continue wearing number 10 to pay tribute to Anderson.<ref name="Anderson">{{Cite web |last=Leach |first=Matthew |date=October 28, 2006 |title=Cards secure 10th World Series title |url=http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061027&content_id=1725895&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209141555/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061027&content_id=1725895&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl |archive-date=February 9, 2011 |access-date=February 21, 2011 |website=St. Louis Cardinals |publisher=MLB}}</ref>

La Russa led the [[2011 St. Louis Cardinals season|Cardinals]] to the [[2011 World Series]], after defeating the [[2011 Philadelphia Phillies season|Philadelphia Phillies]] in the [[2011 National League Division Series|NLDS]] (3–2), and then the [[2011 Milwaukee Brewers season|Milwaukee Brewers]] in the [[2011 National League Championship Series|NLCS]] (4–2). The Cardinals defeated the [[2011 Texas Rangers season|Texas Rangers]] in Game 7 of the [[2011 World Series|World Series]] to win the franchise's 11th World Championship, and the third of La Russa's managerial career. He passed [[Bobby Cox]] for 2nd place on the all-time postseason wins list with his 68th win in Game 3.<ref>[http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20111023&content_id=25756412&vkey=news_stl&c_id=stl La Russa climbs postseason wins list: Veteran skipper moves past Cox into second behind Torre] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140620000015/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20111023&content_id=25756412&vkey=news_stl&c_id=stl |date=June 20, 2014 }}, MLB.com (October 23, 2011)</ref> Three days following the World Series win, La Russa announced his retirement, ranking second all-time in postseason wins with 70, third all-time with 2,728 regular season wins, second with 5,097 games managed, and second with 33 years (tied) managing with [[John McGraw]]. He finished his Cardinals career with a 1408–1182 regular season record and 50–42 postseason record.<ref name="managerial record" />

La Russa also became the first manager in Major League Baseball history to retire in the same season after winning a World Series title.<ref>[http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20111031&content_id=25849368&vkey=news_stl&c_id=stl Tony La Russa announces his retirement as skipper: Steps down after three titles in 33 seasons, 16 with Cardinals] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140621052650/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20111031&content_id=25849368&vkey=news_stl&c_id=stl |date=June 21, 2014 }}, MLB.com (October 31, 2011)</ref> Even though he had retired, La Russa managed the National League All Stars in the [[2012 MLB All-Star Game]] for the final time as a member of the Cardinals.<ref name="Tony La Russa, All-Star Manager For NL, Misses Baseball Relationships But Not Dugout">{{Cite web |date=July 9, 2012 |title=Tony La Russa, All-Star manager for NL, misses baseball relationships but not dugout |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/09/nl-all-star-manager-tony-la-russa_n_1659199.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310212052/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/09/nl-all-star-manager-tony-la-russa_n_1659199.html |archive-date=March 10, 2016 |access-date=July 10, 2012 |publisher=huffingtonpost.com}}</ref> The [[National League (baseball)|National League]] won 8–0.

===Return to Chicago White Sox (2021–2022)===
After serving in various executive roles for MLB and for several teams, La Russa was announced as the manager of the White Sox on October 29, 2020, replacing [[Rick Renteria]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 29, 2020 |title=White Sox announce Tony La Russa as team's new manager |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2020/10/29/tony-la-russa-chicago-white-sox-manager/6067391002/ |url-status=live |access-date=October 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129175435/https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2020/10/29/tony-la-russa-chicago-white-sox-manager/6067391002/ |archive-date=November 29, 2020}}</ref> At 76, La Russa became the oldest manager in MLB.<ref>{{Cite web |title=White Sox hire Tony La Russa as new manager |url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/white-sox-hire-tony-la-russa-as-new-manager/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607014155/https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/white-sox-hire-tony-la-russa-as-new-manager/ |archive-date=June 7, 2021 |access-date=October 29, 2020 |website=CBS Sports}}</ref> He also became the first manager in baseball history to return to managing after being elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as a manager.<ref>{{Cite web |title=La Russa's New Job With White Sox Will Make History |url=https://baseballhall.org/discover/larussa-will-make-history-with-white-sox |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228075300/https://baseballhall.org/discover/larussa-will-make-history-with-white-sox |archive-date=February 28, 2021 |access-date=October 29, 2020 |website=National Baseball Hall of Fame}}</ref> ([[Connie Mack]] was elected in 1937, before his retirement). [[A. J. Hinch]] was known to be another finalist, but was hired by the [[Detroit Tigers]] instead when the White Sox decided on La Russa.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Why Tony La Russa is a sincerely curious choice for Chicago White Sox manager |date=October 30, 2020 |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30220736/why-tony-la-russa-sincerely-curious-choice-white-sox-manager |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101010715/https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30220736/why-tony-la-russa-sincerely-curious-choice-white-sox-manager |archive-date=November 1, 2020 |access-date=October 30, 2020}}</ref>

On June 6, 2021, La Russa passed [[John McGraw]] for second place in all-time managerial wins. La Russa led the White Sox to their first AL Central division title since 2008; it was La Russa's 13th division title as a manager. They lost to the [[Houston Astros]] in the [[2021 American League Division Series|2021 ALDS]] in four games.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/white-sox/mlb-playoffs-2021-white-sox-eliminated-astros-alds |title=White Sox eliminated by Astros, lose ALDS in four games |date=October 13, 2021 |website=NBC Sports |first=Maddie |last=Lee |access-date=September 30, 2022}}</ref>

In 2022, at 77 years of age, La Russa was the oldest manager in major league baseball, four years older than [[Dusty Baker]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/2022-managers.shtml|title=2022 Major League Baseball Managers|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> The 2022 season proved to be a tough one for both the White Sox and La Russa. On June 9, La Russa faced criticism for a late-game decision that backfired on him. The White Sox were trailing 7–5 to the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] and the Dodgers had a runner on second base in the top of the 6th inning. With a count of 1–2 on [[Trea Turner]], La Russa issued an intentional walk on Turner to send him to first base. The decision immediately backfired as the next batter, [[Max Muncy]], hit a home run just a few pitches later that made the score 10–5 in an eventual win for the Dodgers. La Russa defended his decision saying "that wasn't a tough call" and that he would do it again.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10038264-tony-la-russa-defends-walking-trea-turner-on-1-2-count-that-wasnt-a-tough-call|title=Tony La Russa Defends Walking Trea Turner on 1-2 Count: 'That Wasn't a Tough Call'|website=[[Bleacher Report]] |access-date=June 9, 2022}}</ref> A month later, La Russa did in fact do it again on August 19 against the [[Cleveland Guardians]], when he issued an intentional walk on [[Oscar González (baseball)|Oscar González]] with a 1–2 count, this time down by three runs in the bottom of the 7th, although it did not result in a subsequent home run.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ftw/2022/08/19/tony-la-russa-intentional-walk-white-sox-guardians/50619075/|title=Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa calls for intentional walk on 1-2 count again|website=[[USA Today]] |access-date=August 19, 2022}}</ref> On August 30, La Russa, under the advice of a cardiologist he had seen about his heart, elected to not manage the impending game versus Kansas City. The next day, he went further testing and received an advisement to see a heart specialist. On that same day, the White Sox announced that La Russa was out indefinitely, with bench coach [[Miguel Cairo]] taking over as interim manager. At that point, the White Sox were 63–65.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2022/08/31/tony-la-russa-white-sox-manager-out-health-heart-tests/7952912001/|title=White Sox manager Tony La Russa will see heart specialists, out indefinitely|website=[[USA Today]] |access-date=August 31, 2022}}</ref> On October 3, La Russa announced that he was retiring effective immediately.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/34720057/tony-la-russa-stepping-chicago-white-sox-manager-due-health-concerns | title=Tony La Russa stepping down as Chicago White Sox manager because of health concerns | date=October 3, 2022 }}</ref>

===Managerial record===

As of games played on August 26, 2022.

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"|Team !! rowspan="2"|Year !! colspan="5"|Regular season !! colspan="4"|Postseason
|-
!Games!!Won!!Lost!!Win %!!Finish!! Won !! Lost !! Win % !! Result
|-
![[1979 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1979 Major League Baseball season|1979]]
||54||27||27||{{Winning percentage|27|27}}|| 5th in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1980 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1980 Major League Baseball season|1980]]
||160||70||90||{{Winning percentage|70|90}}|| 5th in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1981 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1981 Major League Baseball season|1981]]
||106||54||52||{{Winning percentage|54|52}}|| 3rd in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1982 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1982 Major League Baseball season|1982]]
||162||87||75||{{Winning percentage|87|75}}|| 3rd in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[1983 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1983 Major League Baseball season|1983]]
||162||99||63||{{Winning percentage|99|63}}|| '''1st in AL West''' || 1 || 3 || {{Winning percentage|1|3}} || Lost [[1983 American League Championship Series|ALCS]] ([[1983 Baltimore Orioles season|BAL]])
|-
![[1984 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1984 Major League Baseball season|1984]]
||162||74||88||{{Winning percentage|74|88}}|| 5th in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1985 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1985 Major League Baseball season|1985]]
||162||85||77||{{Winning percentage|85|77}}|| 3rd in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1986 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[1986 Major League Baseball season|1986]]
||64||26||38||{{Winning percentage|26|38}}|| Fired || – || – || – || –
|-
!colspan="11"|
|-
![[1986 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1986 Major League Baseball season|1986]]
||79||45||34||{{Winning percentage|45|34}}|| 3rd in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1987 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1987 Major League Baseball season|1987]]
||162||81||81||{{Winning percentage|81|81}}|| 3rd in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[1988 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1988 Major League Baseball season|1988]]
||162||104||58||{{Winning percentage|104|58}}|| '''1st in AL West''' || 5 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|5|4}} || Lost [[1988 World Series|World Series]] ([[1988 Los Angeles Dodgers season|LAD]])
|-! style="background:#FDE910;"
![[1989 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1989 Major League Baseball season|1989]]
||162||99||63||{{Winning percentage|99|63}}|| '''1st in AL West''' || 8 || 1 || {{Winning percentage|8|1}} || '''Won [[1989 World Series|World Series]] ([[1989 San Francisco Giants season|SF]])''' 
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[1990 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1990 Major League Baseball season|1990]]
||162||103||59||{{Winning percentage|103|59}}|| '''1st in AL West''' || 4 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|4|4}} || Lost [[1990 World Series|World Series]] ([[1990 Cincinnati Reds season|CIN]])
|-
![[1991 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1991 Major League Baseball season|1991]]
||162||84||78||{{Winning percentage|84|78}}|| 4th in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[1992 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1992 Major League Baseball season|1992]]
||162||96||66||{{Winning percentage|96|66}}|| '''1st in AL West''' || 2 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|2|4}} || Lost [[1992 American League Championship Series|ALCS]] ([[1992 Toronto Blue Jays season|TOR]])
|-
![[1993 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1993 Major League Baseball season|1993]]
||162||68||94||{{Winning percentage|68|94}}|| 7th in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1994 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1994 Major League Baseball season|1994]]
||114||51||63||{{Winning percentage|51|63}}|| 2nd in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1995 Oakland Athletics season|OAK]]||[[1995 Major League Baseball season|1995]]
||144||67||77||{{Winning percentage|67|77}}|| 4th in AL West || – || – || – || –
|-
! colspan="2"|OAK total || 1,471 || 798 || 673 || {{winpct|798|673}} || || 19 || 13 || {{Winning percentage|19|13}} ||
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[1996 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[1996 Major League Baseball season|1996]]
||162||88||74||{{Winning percentage|88|74}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 6 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|6|4}} || Lost [[1996 National League Championship Series|NLCS]] ([[1996 Atlanta Braves season|ATL]])
|-
![[1997 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[1997 Major League Baseball season|1997]]
||162||73||89||{{Winning percentage|73|89}}|| 4th in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1998 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[1998 Major League Baseball season|1998]]
||162||83||79||{{Winning percentage|83|79}}|| 3rd in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1999 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[1999 Major League Baseball season|1999]]
||161||75||86||{{Winning percentage|75|86}}|| 4th in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2000 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2000 Major League Baseball season|2000]]
||162||95||67||{{Winning percentage|95|67}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 4 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|4|4}} || Lost [[2000 National League Championship Series|NLCS]] ([[2000 New York Mets season|NYM]])
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2001 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2001 Major League Baseball season|2001]]
||162||93||69||{{Winning percentage|93|69}}|| 2nd in NL Central || 2 || 3 || {{Winning percentage|2|3}} || Lost [[2001 National League Division Series|NLDS]] ([[2001 Arizona Diamondbacks season|ARI]])
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2002 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2002 Major League Baseball season|2002]]
||162||97||65||{{Winning percentage|97|65}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 4 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|4|4}} || Lost [[2002 National League Championship Series|NLCS]] ([[2002 San Francisco Giants season|SF]])
|-
![[2003 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2003 Major League Baseball season|2003]]
||162||85||77||{{Winning percentage|85|77}}|| 3rd in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2004 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2004 Major League Baseball season|2004]]
||162||105||57||{{Winning percentage|105|57}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 7 || 8 || {{Winning percentage|7|8}} || Lost [[2004 World Series|World Series]] ([[2004 Boston Red Sox season|BOS]])
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2005 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2005 Major League Baseball season|2005]]
||162||100||62||{{Winning percentage|100|62}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 5 || 4 || {{Winning percentage|5|4}} || Lost [[2005 National League Championship Series|NLCS]] ([[2005 Houston Astros season|HOU]])
|-! style="background:#FDE910;"
![[2006 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2006 Major League Baseball season|2006]]
||161||83||78||{{Winning percentage|83|78}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 11 || 5 || {{Winning percentage|11|5}} || '''Won [[2006 World Series|World Series]] ([[2006 Detroit Tigers season|DET]])'''
|-
![[2007 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2007 Major League Baseball season|2007]]
||162||78||84||{{Winning percentage|78|84}}|| 3rd in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-
![[2008 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2008 Major League Baseball season|2008]]
||162||86||76||{{Winning percentage|86|76}}|| 4th in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2009 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2009 Major League Baseball season|2009]]
||162||91||71||{{Winning percentage|91|71}}|| '''1st in NL Central''' || 0 || 3 || {{Winning percentage|0|3}} || Lost [[2009 National League Division Series|NLDS]] ([[2009 Los Angeles Dodgers season|LAD]])
|-
![[2010 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2010 Major League Baseball season|2010]]
||162||86||76||{{Winning percentage|86|76}}|| 2nd in NL Central || – || – || – || –
|-! style="background:#FDE910;"
![[2011 St. Louis Cardinals season|STL]]||[[2011 Major League Baseball season|2011]]
||162||90||72||{{Winning percentage|90|72}}|| 2nd in NL Central || 11 || 7 || {{Winning percentage|11|7}} || '''Won [[2011 World Series|World Series]] ([[2011 Texas Rangers season|TEX]])'''
|-
! colspan="2"|STL total || 2,591 || 1,408 || 1,182 || {{winpct|1,408|1,182}} || || 50 || 42 || {{Winning percentage|50|42}} ||
|-! style="background:#fdd;"
![[2021 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[2021 Major League Baseball season|2021]]
||162||93||69||{{Winning percentage|93|69}}|| '''1st in AL Central''' || 1 || 3 || {{Winning percentage|1|3}} || Lost [[2021 American League Division Series|ALDS]] ([[2021 Houston Astros season|HOU]])
|-
![[2022 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]]||[[2022 Major League Baseball season|2022]]
||128||63||65||{{Winning percentage|63|65}}|| 3rd in AL Central || – || – || – || –
|-
! colspan="2" |CWS total || 1,322 || 678 || 644 || {{winpct|678|644}}|| || 2 || 6 || {{Winning percentage|2|6}}||
|-
! colspan="2" |Total<ref name="managerial record" /> || 5,387 || 2,884 || 2,499 || {{winpct|2884|2499}} || || 71 || 61 || {{Winning percentage|71|61}} ||
|}

==Executive career==
Shortly after his retirement from the playing field, La Russa took a position with MLB assisting former managerial rival Joe Torre in matters of on-field discipline. He held this position for more than two seasons.

On May 17, 2014, La Russa accepted a position as Chief Baseball Officer for the [[Arizona Diamondbacks]] to oversee the entire baseball operations department.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gilbert |first=Steve |date=May 17, 2014 |title=D-backs name La Russa chief baseball officer: Overseeing baseball operations, newly created position will report to team president |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/arizona-diamondbacks-name-tony-la-russa-chief-baseball-officer-c75790834 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527123304/https://www.mlb.com/news/arizona-diamondbacks-name-tony-la-russa-chief-baseball-officer-c75790834 |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |access-date=February 17, 2021 |website=[[MLB.com]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=May 17, 2014 |title=Arizona hires La Russa to run baseball operations |work=[[ESPN]].com |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=https://www.espn.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=10946200 |url-status=live |access-date=May 17, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140619184747/http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=10946200 |archive-date=June 19, 2014}}</ref><ref name="cbo">{{Cite magazine |last=Jaffe |first=Jay |date=May 18, 2014 |title=Diamondbacks hire Tony La Russa as new chief baseball officer |url=http://mlb.si.com/2014/05/17/diamondbacks-hire-tony-la-russa-as-new-chief-baseball-officer/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140618041639/http://mlb.si.com/2014/05/17/diamondbacks-hire-tony-la-russa-as-new-chief-baseball-officer/ |archive-date=June 18, 2014 |access-date=May 21, 2014 |magazine=Sports Illustrated}}</ref>

After joining the Diamondbacks in 2014, La Russa was reunited with former assistants Duncan and McKay, and the general manager who hired him to manage the White Sox in 1979, [[Roland Hemond]].<ref name=cbo/> On December 4, 2015, the Diamondbacks agreed to a six-year contract with [[free agent]] pitcher [[Zack Greinke]] worth a total of $206.5 million. At that time, it held the highest annual average value in MLB, exceeding $34.4 million per year, and was also the largest contract by total value in team history.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hernández |first=Dylan |date=December 4, 2015 |title=Zack Greinke signs six-year, $206.5-million deal with Arizona Diamondbacks |url=http://www.latimes.com/sports/dodgers/la-sp-greinke-signs-arizona-diamondbacks-20151203-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151205073920/http://www.latimes.com/sports/dodgers/la-sp-greinke-signs-arizona-diamondbacks-20151203-story.html |archive-date=December 5, 2015 |access-date=December 5, 2015 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> La Russa was demoted to Chief Baseball Analyst/Advisor with the Diamondbacks following a disappointing 93-loss season in 2016, which also resulted in the firing of general manager [[Dave Stewart (baseball)|Dave Stewart]] and manager [[Chip Hale]]. Following the 2017 season, La Russa resigned.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Greg |date=October 18, 2017 |title=Tony La Russa says it was his decision to leave front-office role in Arizona |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/mlb/diamondbacks/2017/10/18/tony-larussa-arizona-diamondbacks-chief-baseball-operations/776968001/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220728061621/https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/mlb/diamondbacks/2017/10/18/tony-larussa-arizona-diamondbacks-chief-baseball-operations/776968001/ |archive-date=July 28, 2022 |access-date=August 7, 2018 |website=[[azcentral.com]]}}</ref>

In November 2017, the [[Boston Red Sox]] announced that La Russa had joined the team as vice president and special assistant to [[Dave Dombrowski]], the president of baseball operations.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lauber |first=Scott |date=November 2, 2017 |title=Tony La Russa joins Red Sox front office, will help Dave Dombrowski |work=ESPN.com |location=Bristol, CT |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/21262200/tony-la-russa-joins-boston-red-sox-front-office-role |url-status=live |access-date=August 3, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072912/https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/21262200/tony-la-russa-joins-boston-red-sox-front-office-role |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |ref={{sfnRef|"Tony La Russa joins Red Sox front office, will help Dave Dombrowski"}}}}</ref> In making the announcement, the Red Sox indicated that La Russa would assist with player development, serve as an advisor to the team's coaches at the major and minor league levels, and serve as a consultant for [[Alex Cora]], the team's major league manager.{{sfn|"Tony La Russa joins Red Sox front office, will help Dave Dombrowski"}} La Russa worked with the Red Sox for two seasons, and after Dombrowski was released by the Red Sox during the 2019 season, the [[Los Angeles Angels]] hired La Russa as senior adviser for baseball operations in November 2019.<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 12, 2019 |title=Tony La Russa joins Angels as senior adviser for baseball ops |work=[[ESPN]] |agency=[[Associated Press|AP]] |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28067533/tony-la-russa-joins-angels-senior-adviser-baseball-ops |url-status=live |access-date=November 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072911/https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28067533/tony-la-russa-joins-angels-senior-adviser-baseball-ops |archive-date=May 27, 2021}}</ref> In 2023, he returned to the White Sox as an advisor.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sullivan |first1=Paul |title=Column: Tony La Russa 3.0 is a fitting way to end the Chicago White Sox trilogy |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2023/08/25/column-tony-la-russa-30-is-a-fitting-way-to-end-the-chicago-white-sox-trilogy/ |access-date=19 September 2024 |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=25 August 2023}}</ref>

==Legacy==

[[File:Tony La Russa May 2008.jpg|right|thumb|La Russa in 2008]]
La Russa [[Major League Baseball all-time managerial wins|is second]] in major league history in victories as a manager (2,884), trailing only [[Connie Mack]] (3,731) and surpassing [[John McGraw]] (2,763) on June 6, 2021. He managed 5,097 games, joining Mack as the second manager or coach in American sports history to reach 5,000 games.<ref>[http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2011_06_10_slnmlb_milmlb_1&mode=recap_away&c_id=stl Cards blanked as La Russa manages 5,000th] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304085712/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2011_06_10_slnmlb_milmlb_1&mode=recap_away&c_id=stl |date=March 4, 2016 }}, MLB.com (June 10, 2011)</ref><ref>[http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110609&content_id=20260988&notebook_id=20261300&vkey=notebook_stl&c_id=stl La Russa on threshold of historic milestone] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140621052645/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110609&content_id=20260988&notebook_id=20261300&vkey=notebook_stl&c_id=stl |date=June 21, 2014 }}, MLB.com (June 10, 2011)</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=September 30, 2009 |title=Cards' La Russa set to pass McGraw: Skipper to move to No. 2 all-time in games managed |url=http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090930&content_id=7250552&vkey=news_stl&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140621052640/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090930&content_id=7250552&vkey=news_stl&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl |archive-date=June 21, 2014 |access-date=October 1, 2009 |website=MLB.com}}</ref> In 2004, he became the sixth manager in history to win pennants with both [[American League|American]] and [[National League (baseball)|National League]] teams; in 2006 he became the first manager ever to win multiple pennants in both leagues and the second manager to win the [[World Series]] in both leagues. La Russa has also joined Mack as the second manager to win World Series titles in three decades and to win pennants in four. He is one of only four managers to be named [[Manager of the Year Award|Manager of the Year]] in both of baseball's major leagues.

La Russa is the winningest manager in [[St. Louis Cardinals]] history, with 1,408 wins and 1,182 losses (.544) and one tie, managing the Cardinals from 1996 to 2011. He was 522–510–3 (.506) with the [[Chicago White Sox]] 1979–1986, leading the club to its first postseason appearance in 24 years in 1983, and 798–673 (.542) with the [[Oakland Athletics]] 1986–1995, winning three consecutive AL pennants from 1988 to 1990; he also holds the record for victories by an Athletics manager since the franchise relocated to Oakland in 1968. <!-- 1,232 wins and 1,031 losses (.544) as Cardinals' mgr. since 1996 thru 10/1/09 -->

La Russa became the leader in wins by Cardinals' managers on August 31, 2007, when the Cardinals defeated the [[Cincinnati Reds]] 8–5, passing [[Red Schoendienst]] (1,041–955) to take the title. He managed his 2,500th win against the [[Kansas City Royals|Royals]] at [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]] on June 21, 2009, becoming only the third manager to attain that win level after Mack and McGraw.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 21, 2009 |title=La Russa just third to notch 2,500 wins: St. Louis skipper joins Mack, McGraw with milestone victory |url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090621&content_id=5455974&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105041856/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090621&content_id=5455974&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb&fext=.jsp |archive-date=November 5, 2013 |access-date=June 22, 2009 |website=MLB.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=June 21, 2009 |title=Pujols powers sweep of Royals: Sluggers two homers, six RBIs net La Russa's 2,500th win |url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090621&content_id=5448994&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105051454/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090621&content_id=5448994&vkey=recap&c_id=mlb&fext=.jsp |archive-date=November 5, 2013 |access-date=June 22, 2009 |website=MLB.com}}</ref>

{{MLBBioRet
|Image  = Tony La Russa's number 10.png
|Align = left
|Image_alt=A depiction of Tony La Russa's number ten, with the number colored red against a dark green background
|Name   = Tony La Russa
|Number = 10
|Team   = St. Louis Cardinals
|Year   = 2012
}}

After the retirement of [[Atlanta Braves]] manager [[Bobby Cox]] in 2010, La Russa was the longest tenured manager in Major League Baseball, and with the resignation of longtime [[National Basketball Association|NBA]] [[head coach]] [[Jerry Sloan]] from the [[Utah Jazz]] on February 10, 2011, La Russa had been the longest tenured bench boss among all the [[Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada|Big Four sports leagues]], until his retirement following his 2011 World Series victory with the Cardinals.

La Russa became eligible as a candidate for the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013 through voting by the Expansion Era Committee for induction in 2014. On November 4, 2013, La Russa's inclusion on the Expansion Era ballot was announced with fellow former Cardinals [[Ted Simmons]], [[Joe Torre]] and [[Dan Quisenberry]]. The [[Baseball Writers' Association of America]]'s Historical Overview Committee listed the candidates on the ballot and voted the following December 8.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hummel |first=Rick |date=November 4, 2013 |title=La Russa, Torre, Simmons on Hall of Fame ballot |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |url=http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/la-russa-torre-simmons-on-hall-of-fame-ballot/article_ff3e5397-f566-5431-84da-ac1d7f674c6a.html |url-status=live |access-date=November 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072913/https://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/la-russa-torre-simmons-on-hall-of-fame-ballot/article_ff3e5397-f566-5431-84da-ac1d7f674c6a.html |archive-date=May 27, 2021}}</ref> La Russa was inducted into the 2014 Hall of Fame class as a manager.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa |url=http://baseballhall.org/hof/larussa-tony |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171230192838/https://baseballhall.org/hof/larussa-tony |archive-date=December 30, 2017 |access-date=October 28, 2016}}</ref>

In January 2014, the Cardinals announced La Russa among 22 former players and personnel to be inducted into the [[St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum]] for the inaugural class of [[2014 St. Louis Cardinals season|2014]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 18, 2014 |title=Cardinals establish Hall of Fame & detail induction process |work=St. Louis Cardinals |publisher=MLB] |url=http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20140118&content_id=66822534&vkey=pr_stl&c_id=stl |url-status=dead |access-date=January 29, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140126165854/http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20140118&content_id=66822534&vkey=pr_stl&c_id=stl |archive-date=January 26, 2014}}</ref>

In 2012, he became the second manager to manage the All-Star Game ([[2012 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|2012]]) after retiring since [[John McGraw]] in [[1933 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1933]]. With his All-Star Game 8–0 win in [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]], he became the first manager to win an All-Star Game in both leagues.<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 11, 2012 |title=La Russa's last game is a first |url=http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/la-russa-s-last-game-is-a-first/article_e551ddfc-cb03-11e1-9456-001a4bcf6878.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072911/https://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/la-russa-s-last-game-is-a-first/article_e551ddfc-cb03-11e1-9456-001a4bcf6878.html |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |access-date=July 12, 2012 |website=[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ '''Championships earned or shared'''
|-
!Title
!{{Tooltip|Times|Number of times achieved}}
!Dates
!{{Tooltip|Ref|References}}
|-
| American League [[List of American League pennant winners|champion]] 
| style="text-align:center;"| 3 
| [[1988 American League Championship Series|1988]], [[1989 American League Championship Series|1989]], [[1990 American League Championship Series|1990]]
|
|-
| National League [[List of National League pennant winners|champion]] 
| style="text-align:center;"| 3 
| [[2004 National League Championship Series|2004]], [[2006 National League Championship Series|2006]], [[2011 National League Championship Series|2011]]
|
|-
| [[World Series]] [[List of World Series champions|champion]] 
| style="text-align:center;"| 3
| [[1989 World Series|1989]], [[2006 World Series|2006]], [[2011 World Series|2011]]
|
|}

==Personal life==
[[File:Tony La Russa by Gage Skidmore 3.jpg|left|thumb|La Russa at a fundraiser for the Animal Rescue Foundation in Phoenix, Arizona, in March 2017]]
La Russa and his second wife, Elaine, are the founders of Tony La Russa's [[Animal Rescue Foundation]], headquartered in [[Walnut Creek, California]], which saves abandoned and injured animals as well as running programs to bring dogs and cats to abused children, hospital patients, seniors and shut-ins. La Russa is a vegetarian.<ref name="WashPostApr32005">{{Cite news |last=Greenya |first=John |date=April 3, 2005 |title=A triple play of new books to usher in opening day. |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/03/31/AR2005033118501.html |url-status=live |access-date=June 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803120424/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/03/31/AR2005033118501.html |archive-date=August 3, 2017}}</ref> The La Russas have two daughters, Bianca and Devon, and reside in [[Alamo, California]].

La Russa has two older daughters, Andrea and Averie, from his first marriage to Luzette Sarcone. La Russa and Sarcone divorced in 1973 and Sarcone received full custody of their daughters. La Russa married Elaine Coker shortly after his divorce to Sarcone became official.<ref name="SFGateMar301995">{{Cite news |agency=The Associated Press |date=March 30, 1995 |title=Estranged Daughters Sue La Russa. |work=The San Francisco Gate |url=https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Estranged-Daughters-Sue-La-Russa-3039688.php |url-status=live |access-date=October 26, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012185401/http://articles.sfgate.com/1995-03-30/sports/17799970_1_court-papers-sun-bonds-giants-outfielder-barry-bonds |archive-date=October 12, 2011}}</ref>

La Russa is also personal friends with celebrities outside the sports world, such as pianist and songwriter [[Bruce Hornsby]], [[Bruce Springsteen]], jazz bassist [[Christian McBride]], and heavy metal musician [[Robb Flynn]] from the band [[Machine Head (band)|Machine Head]].{{citation needed|date=October 2011}} In 2007, at a concert in San Francisco on La Russa's birthday, Hornsby played a comedic song he named "Hooray For Tony". The original song, titled "Hooray For Tom", is La Russa's favorite Hornsby song. In the "Hooray For Tony" version, Hornsby mentions the "[[Bash Brothers]]" [[Mark McGwire]] and [[José Canseco]] (from La Russa's days as the manager of the Oakland A's), [[Albert Pujols]], [[Jim Edmonds]], ARF, and La Russa's World Series Championships.{{citation needed|date=October 2011}}

La Russa is a graduate of the [[University of South Florida]] ([[Bachelor of Arts]] in [[industrial management]], 1969) and the Florida State University College of Law ([[Juris Doctor]], 1978).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Oates |first=Bob |date=March 5, 1991 |title=The Eclectic Athletic: Tony La Russa Isn't Your Average Baseball Man, Which May Explain Why Oakland Manager Has Won Three Pennants in a Row |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |location=Los Angeles, CA |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-03-05-sp-117-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=February 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220728061623/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-03-05-sp-117-story.html |archive-date=July 28, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=McGinn |first=Susan Killenberg |date=March 31, 2014 |title=Baseball Hall of Famer Tony La Russa to deliver WUSTL's Commencement address |work=The Source |publisher=[[Washington University in St. Louis]] |location=St. Louis, MO |url=https://source.wustl.edu/2014/03/baseball-hall-of-famer-tony-la-russa-to-deliver-wustls-commencement-address/ |url-status=live |access-date=February 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210805204908/https://source.wustl.edu/2014/03/baseball-hall-of-famer-tony-la-russa-to-deliver-wustls-commencement-address/ |archive-date=August 5, 2021}}</ref>

La Russa has Italian and Spanish ancestry, and speaks fluent Spanish.<ref name="italhall">{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa |url=http://www.niashf.org/inductees/tony-larussa/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803164028/http://www.niashf.org/inductees/tony-larussa/ |archive-date=August 3, 2018 |access-date=January 4, 2014 |publisher=[[National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Pi-Gonzalez |first=Amaury |author-link=Amaury Pi-Gonzalez |date=October 23, 2006 |title=St Louis Cardinals win their 10th World Series |url=http://www.hispanicbaseballmuseum.com/newslet_1jan06.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929120401/http://www.hispanicbaseballmuseum.com/newslet_1jan06.html |archive-date=September 29, 2007 |publisher=[[Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum]] News }}</ref><ref name="hall">{{Cite web |last=Pi-Gonzalez |first=Amaury |date=Summer 2008 |title=Tony La Russa Inducted to Our Hall of Fame, Pre-Game induction ceremony at AT&T Park |url=http://www.hispanicbaseballmuseum.com/HHBMNews/HHBMNews_Summer2008.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711171251/http://www.hispanicbaseballmuseum.com/HHBMNews/HHBMNews_Summer2008.pdf |archive-date=July 11, 2011 |access-date=December 25, 2008 |publisher=Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum News }}</ref> His father's parents were migrants from the Italian island of [[Sicily]] and his mother's family originated from Spain.<ref name="spanital">{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa – Society for American Baseball Research |url=http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/6dbc8b54#sdendnote1anc |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614203456/https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/6dbc8b54#sdendnote1anc |archive-date=June 14, 2020 |access-date=October 28, 2016 |website=sabr.org}}</ref> Having a father who could speak Spanish and Italian and a mother who could speak Spanish, La Russa claimed in a 2008 interview that "Spanish was my first language".<ref name="spanital" /> He was inducted into the [[National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame]] in 1998.<ref name="italhall" /> La Russa was also inducted into the [[Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame]] on April 11, 2008, in a pregame ceremony at [[AT&T Park]].<ref name="hall" />

La Russa and his family had an uncredited [[extra (actor)|extra]] role in the film ''[[Angels in the Outfield (1994 film)|Angels in the Outfield]]''. The La Russas also made an appearance in an episode of ''[[Housecat Housecall]]'', a reality show on [[Animal Planet]] presented by [[Nestlé Purina PetCare Company|Purina]] Cat Chow, during the show's third season, which began on June 5, 2010.{{citation needed|date=October 2011}} In 1980, La Russa appeared as a contestant on the game show ''[[To Tell The Truth]]'', and helped fool the celebrity panel.<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 20, 2011 |title=Tony La Russa on Tell the Truth |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oHrygsiNfc |access-date=November 5, 2013 |publisher=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead YouTube link|date=February 2022}}</ref>

In June 2010, La Russa was asked about a [[tea party protest]] taking place during his game against the [[Arizona Diamondbacks]] that criticized the Diamondbacks' position against the [[Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act|controversial new Arizona immigration statute]]. La Russa expressed support for the [[Tea Party movement|Tea Partiers']] right to [[Freedom of speech in the United States|free speech]] to protest at the ballpark. He also stated, "I'm actually a supporter of what Arizona is doing... you know if people don't fix their problems they have to take care of it themselves".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tony La Russa says he supports Arizona immigration law KSDK |url=http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=205268&catid=3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220728061622/https://www.ksdk.com/error/404?storyid=205268&catid=3 |archive-date=July 28, 2022 |access-date=July 1, 2010}}</ref>

La Russa and Pujols attended [[Glenn Beck]]'s "Restoring Honor" rally on August 28, 2010, in Washington, D.C., while the Cardinals were in town for a series against the [[Washington Nationals]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Early Lead – Glenn Beck rally: Albert Pujols, Tony La Russa scheduled to appear |url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/early-lead/2010/08/glenn_beck_rally_albert_pujols.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121005092523/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/early-lead/2010/08/glenn_beck_rally_albert_pujols.html |archive-date=October 5, 2012 |access-date=August 27, 2010}}</ref> La Russa decided to attend after being told by Beck that the rally was not political in nature.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Bill |last=Lambrecht |title=Pujols, at D.C. rally, is honored for his charity work |url=http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_75ec5a21-1978-5ba0-a71b-d99c6109ad8e.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110912005254/http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_75ec5a21-1978-5ba0-a71b-d99c6109ad8e.html |archive-date=September 12, 2011 |access-date=August 27, 2010}}</ref>

Throughout the [[2011 St. Louis Cardinals season|2011 season]], La Russa struggled with [[shingles]]. He originally disclosed that it was [[conjunctivitis]], however, on May 10, after a visit to the [[Mayo Clinic]] ([[Scottsdale, Arizona]]), he disclosed that he was dealing with a case of shingles, and had to take off a few days for treatment and rest.<ref>[http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_dfc5c898-c915-54b5-8cab-f2d5d71b34d6.html La Russa will be out indefinitely] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072913/http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_dfc5c898-c915-54b5-8cab-f2d5d71b34d6.html |date=May 27, 2021 }}, ''[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]'' (May 11, 2011)</ref> Because bench coach [[Joe Pettini]] was named 'acting manager' instead of 'interim manager', La Russa was credited for all wins and losses during his absence.<ref>[http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_fb2c423c-7d7c-11e0-8821-001a4bcf6878.html Goold: Cardinals enter a Hug-Free Zone] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012042235/http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_fb2c423c-7d7c-11e0-8821-001a4bcf6878.html |date=October 12, 2012 }}, by Derrick Goold (#7), ''[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]'', (May 13, 2011)</ref>

On June 4, 2009, the ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' reported that La Russa had sued the online social network platform [[Twitter]] the previous month for a fake page established under his name on the site. La Russa claimed that he had "suffered significant emotional distress (and) damage to reputation" because of the profile. The fake profile made several "distasteful references" to La Russa and his team, according to the suit.<ref>{{Cite web |title=St. Louis Cardinals' manager Tony La Russa sues Twitter |url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/EE6F33724CD83215862575CB0005FF0A?OpenDocument |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090607021044/http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/EE6F33724CD83215862575CB0005FF0A?OpenDocument |archive-date=June 7, 2009 |access-date=June 17, 2009 }}</ref> Twitter's terms of service forbids impersonation directly, stating that users "may not impersonate others through the Twitter service in a manner that does or is intended to mislead, confuse, or deceive others."<ref>{{Cite web |title=three strikes against Tony La Russa's Twitter lawsuit |url=http://www.pcworld.com/article/166151/three_strikes_against_tony_la_russas_twitter_lawsuit.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090607032156/http://www.pcworld.com/article/166151/three_strikes_against_tony_la_russas_twitter_lawsuit.html |archive-date=June 7, 2009 |access-date=June 17, 2009}}</ref> Reports that Twitter had settled ("the first celebrity lawsuit against the 32-million-user site", according to the ''[[Wall Street Journal]]'') were rebuffed on the official Twitter blog. La Russa eventually filed a request to dismiss the suit, while Twitter, whether in regard to the suit or not, continued improving its privacy protections.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bluestone |first=Jillian |title=La Russa's Loophole: Trademark Infringement Lawsuits and Social Networks |url=http://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/mslj/vol17/iss2/10/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072913/https://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/mslj/vol17/iss2/10/ |archive-date=May 27, 2021 |access-date=February 28, 2015 |journal=Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal |date=January 2010 |volume=17 |issue=2 |page=573 |publisher=Jeffery S. Moorad Sports Law Journal}}</ref>

In May 2014, La Russa served as the [[Washington University in St. Louis]] commencement speaker.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rectenwald |first=Miranda |title=Research Guides: WU Commencement History: Commencement Speakers |url=https://libguides.wustl.edu/wustl-commencement/speakers |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190725222709/https://libguides.wustl.edu/wustl-commencement/speakers |archive-date=July 25, 2019 |access-date=August 26, 2019 |website=libguides.wustl.edu |language=en}}</ref>

===Legal issues===
On March 22, 2007, La Russa was arrested in [[Jupiter, Florida]], for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. He was found asleep at the wheel of his running [[Sport utility vehicle|SUV]] with the car in park at an intersection. He was booked at the [[Palm Beach County, Florida|Palm Beach County]] Jail and blew a .093 [[blood alcohol content]], above the legal limit of .08.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cops: La Russa was asleep at intersection |url=http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6596608 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070328165713/http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6596608 |archive-date=March 28, 2007 |access-date=March 22, 2007 }}</ref> Calling his arrest on the [[Driving under the influence|DUI]] charge an "embarrassment", La Russa apologized to "anyone who is close to me, members of the Cardinals organization, our fans." He was defended by the organization and some players, such as [[Albert Pujols]]. On November 28, 2007, La Russa pleaded [[Guilt (law)|guilty]] to DUI, saying that it was in the best interest of all concerned. In a statement released by his attorney, La Russa said, "I accept full responsibility for my conduct, and assure everyone that I have learned a very valuable lesson and that this will never occur again".

In February 2020, La Russa was charged with DUI again, this time in Phoenix; the case was filed on October 28, 2020, a day before he was rehired by the White Sox.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nightengale |first=Bob |date=November 9, 2020 |title=White Sox manager Tony La Russa charged with DUI stemming from February arrest |work=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/whitesox/2020/11/09/tony-la-russa-white-sox-dui-arrest/6229887002/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 10, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527072912/https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/whitesox/2020/11/09/tony-la-russa-white-sox-dui-arrest/6229887002/ |archive-date=May 27, 2021}}</ref>

===Health===
By 2022, his last season as a manager, La Russa was diagnosed with cancer, and had lingering issues with his [[pacemaker]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Van Schouwen |first1=Daryl |title=Tony's Place: A healthier La Russa is back, wants to state where he fits with White Sox |url=https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2023/12/14/24000128/tonys-place-healthier-larussa-back-wants-state-where-he-fits-with-white-sox-reinsdorf-grifol-getz |website=chicago.suntimes.com |date=December 14, 2023 |access-date=December 16, 2023}}</ref>

==In other media==
In 1980, La Russa appeared as the subject in a round of the [[Robin Ward (television personality)|Robin Ward]]-hosted version of ''[[To Tell The Truth]]''. Panelist [[Nipsey Russell]] seemed perplexed that there was another Chicago baseball team besides the Cubs. One of the imposters before the panel, when queried as to who was his best player at the moment, swiftly responded [[Todd Cruz]]. This resulted in him receiving votes. But he did not completely stump the panel.

In 2012, La Russa released his ''New York Times'' bestselling memoir, ''One Last Strike'', which recounts his legendary last season as manager of the St. Louis Cardinals and their remarkable journey to becoming the 2011 World Series Champions from ten and a half games back.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.stlpr.org/arts/2012-09-21/take-five-tony-la-russa-the-author-talks-about-managing-last-seasons-wild-cards|title=Take Five: Tony La Russa, the author, talks about managing last season's Wild Cards|date=September 21, 2012|access-date=April 11, 2025|work=[[NPR]]|publisher=[[KWMU|STLPR]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208164238/https://www.stlpr.org/arts/2012-09-21/take-five-tony-la-russa-the-author-talks-about-managing-last-seasons-wild-cards|archive-date=December 8, 2023|url-status=live|first=Mary Delach|last=Leonard}}</ref>

In 2005, La Russa was the focus of a book by sportswriter [[H. G. Bissinger|Buzz Bissinger]]. Bissinger's ''Three Nights in August'' delves into La Russa's role as manager during a 3-game series in 2003 between his Cardinals and manager [[Dusty Baker]]'s Chicago Cubs, [[Cardinals–Cubs rivalry|their longtime rivals]]. The book received much praise from both fans and critics, though some complained that Bissinger sets out to glorify La Russa's "old school" managerial style as a direct challenge to the statistical analysis theses of Michael Lewis's 2004 book ''[[Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game|Moneyball]]''.

As [[David Leonhardt]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote of the "stats vs. hunches" debate in an [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/08/28/sports/THEORIES.php August 29, 2005 piece], ''"what makes this fight truly comparable to those that periodically roil the world of art history or foreign policy is that the differences between the sides are not as great as the sniping between them suggests. La Russa spends much of his time jotting down information on index cards and studying statistics in his office."''

[[George Will]]'s book ''[[Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball|Men at Work]]'' likewise depicted La Russa and his long-time pitching coach Dave Duncan as making more use of statistical analysis than any other team in the major leagues (this book was published in 1990, more than a decade before the ''[[Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game|Moneyball]]'' revolution).

La Russa also provided the [[artificial intelligence|AI]] for a series of successful [[video game]]s, ''[[Tony La Russa Baseball]]'' (1991–1997). The games won numerous awards and featured "new" statistics selected with La Russa (and provided by prominent [[sabermetrics]] authors [[John Thorn (baseball historian)|John Thorn]] and [[Pete Palmer]]) as tools for players as they managed their teams.

==See also==
{{Portal|Baseball}}
* [[List of Chicago White Sox award winners and league leaders]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball managers with most career ejections]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball managers with most career wins]]
* [[List of St. Louis Cardinals team records]]
* [[St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum]]

==References==
;General
*{{Cite book |last=Bissinger |first=Buzz |title=Three Nights in August: Strategy, Heartbreak, and Joy Inside the Mind of a Manager |publisher=Mariner |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-54-752671-3 |author-link=Buzz Bissinger}}
*{{Cite book |last=Will |first=George |title=Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball |title-link=Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball |publisher=Harper |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-02-628470-7 |author-link=George Will}}
;In-line citations
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Tony La Russa}}
*{{bbhof|larussa-tony}}
*{{baseball-reference manager|larusto01}}
*{{Baseballstats|mlb=117517|espn=24088|br=l/larusto01|fangraphs=1007362|brm=laruss001ant |retro=L/Plarut101}}
*[http://www.arf.net Animal Rescue Foundation home page]
*[https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=larusto01 Baseball Almanac]
*[http://stlcardinals.scout.com/a.z?s=321&p=8&c=1&nid=3056641 Tony La Russa page at stlcardinals.scout.com]

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