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Beloved Los Angeles Dodgers Icon Manny Mota Suffers Stroke, Remains Responsive

Manny Mota played for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1969 to 1982, then served as a coach within the organization from 1980 through 2013 and became a Spanish-language broadcaster in 2014.
Sam Connon|
Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia (back) and Los Angeles Dodgers coach Manny Mota (11) during batting practice before the spring training game at Dodger Stadium.
Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia (back) and Los Angeles Dodgers coach Manny Mota (11) during batting practice before the spring training game at Dodger Stadium. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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Former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Manny Mota suffered a stroke Monday night, the club announced Tuesday morning.

Mota, 87, is in recovery. He is responsive to commands and is resting comfortably, per the team.

Mota bounced around between the San Francisco Giants, Houston Colt .45s, Pittsburgh Pirates and Montreal Expos over the first few years of his playing career. He was sent to the Dodgers midway through the 1969 campaign, though, and he remained in the organization from that point forward.

The Dominican outfielder earned some scattered NL MVP votes in 1972, then made his lone All-Star appearance in 1973. He helped Los Angeles win pennants in 1974, 1977 and 1978 before becoming a player-coach in 1980, reaching another World Series and finally earning a championship ring in 1981.

By the time he retired in 1982, Mota was MLB's all-time leader in pinch hits. He was a .304 hitter with 1,149 hits, 31 home runs, 125 doubles, 52 triples, 438 RBIs, 496 runs, 50 stolen bases, 289 walks, 320 strikeouts, a .744 OPS and a 17.4 WAR.

Mota served as a coach with the Dodgers from 1980 through 2013, making and winning an additional World Series in 1988.

While his No. 11 has not been retired by the Dodgers, Mota was the only player or coach who wore it between 1969 and 2013. It now belongs to Japanese rookie Roki Sasaki.

Mota has been a Spanish-language broadcaster for the Dodgers for over a decade.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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