Cleveland Guardians Remember Owner Lawrence Dolan

The U.S. flag is displayed during the national anthem before Game 1 of the American League Championship Series between the Cleveland Guardians and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Oct, 14, 2024. Mike Stobe/Getty Images

Longtime Cleveland Guardians owner Lawrence Dolan died Sunday at 94, the team announced.

“Cleveland sadly lost one of its own today,” the Guardians said in a video tribute on Monday. “Born in Cleveland Heights in 1931, Lawrence J. Dolan invested his entire life in greater Cleveland and impacted our community on so many levels.”

Guardians senior vice president Bob DiBiasio likewise reflected on Dolan’s legacy.

“Mr. Dolan invested his entire life in Greater Cleveland and impacted our community on so many levels,” Guardians senior vice president Bob DiBiasio said in a statement on Monday. “From his service to our country as a first lieutenant in the United States Marines, his many philanthropic acts of kindness, [and his] career in law, business, education, and sports, many benefited from his engagement, influence, and passion. Especially in the world of sports.”

A Cleveland native and lifelong baseball fan, Dolan purchased the then-Cleveland Indians in 2000 from developer Dick Jacobs. During Dolan’s tenure, the team reached one World Series, made the playoffs nine times, and won the NL Central Division seven times. Cleveland had Cy Young Award winners in CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee during that span.

“We are forever grateful for his passion supporting our Northeast Ohio community and the Cleveland Guardians organization,” the Guardians said in the video. “Through his initial leadership, the Dolan family continues to be the longest-tenured owners in franchise history.”

Dolan attended St. Ignatius High School, where he played football and baseball.

“He was blessed to realize two dreams [of] almost every Cleveland athlete of his generation: to play on the field at Cleveland Stadium, where his boyhood idol, Lou Boudreau, starred, and to own one of our city’s professional sports teams,” the Guardians said in the tribute.

Owner Lawrence J. Dolan of the Cleveland Indians looks on the field during the game against the Texas Rangers at Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 14, 2000. Harry How/Getty Images

Dolan attended Notre Dame, where he met his wife, Eva, then served in the Marine Corps. He went on to work in law for many years, particularly with the firm Thrasher, Dinsmore, and Dolan in Chardon, Ohio, where he served as president and manager.

The Dolan family will remain owners of the team since Larry Dolan’s son, Paul Dolan, took over as the point person in the early 2010s.

“We are saddened by the loss of our Dad, but lucky to have him as part of our lives as long as we did,” Guardians Owner/Chairman/CEO Paul Dolan said in a statement on Monday. “He was a loving husband, father, and grandfather who was passionate about his family, work, our community and his love of our local sports teams, including owning the Cleveland Guardians.”

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred offered the family his condolences on Monday.

“I am saddened by the passing of Cleveland native Larry Dolan, whose family’s quarter-century ownership has made their hometown team a consistent winner and a staple of their community,” Manfred said in a statement. “Larry ... strongly believed in mentoring young people and using the Guardians as a way to impact Greater Cleveland. Larry also served the industry by bringing his professional expertise to the Major League Executive Council and the Ownership Committee, and he served on two labor negotiating committees.”

First-year Guardians Manager Stephen Vogt hadn’t met Dolan but expressed the significance of the late owner’s legacy.

“I didn’t have an opportunity to meet Larry, but the Dolan family has just been so great to the city of Cleveland,” Vogt said in a statement. “And to this organization, it means a ton. I know it’s going to be a very sad time for the Dolan family and our condolences are with them, and we’re thinking about them.”

Dolan is survived by his wife, six children, and 21 grandchildren.