Don Mattingly
In his first six full seasons, Don Mattingly was one of the best hitters in baseball. He won a batting title, led the league in hits, doubles and RBI, won Gold Glove Awards, and earned a Most Valuable Player Award. The Indiana-native handled the bright lights of New York City as the biggest Yankee superstar of the 1980s, but he never got to the World Series. A series of back injuries in his late 20s hampered his effectiveness, and ended his career at the age of 34. What looked like a Hall of Fame career, ended with disappointment.
Played For
New York Yankees (1982-1995)
All-Time Rankings
Don Mattingly ranks #20 among the Top 50 all-time at 1B. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1985
Mattingly banged out 86 extra-base hits, collected more than 200 hits for the second straight season, and drove in 145 runs. He beat out George Brett for AL MVP honors.
Factoids
Don Mattingly hit .317 in his career against right-handers, and an even .300 off southpaws.
Born
Donald Arthur Mattingly was born on April 20, 1961, in Evansville, IN.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
Primary Position: 1B
Primary Team: NYA
Major League Debut
September 8, 1982
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1982
Tony Gwynn
Wade Boggs
Julio Franco
Willie McGee
Tony Phillips
Don Mattingly
Frank Viola
Doug Jones
Kevin Bass
Nicknames
Donnie Baseball
Related Players
Rickey Henderson was on base a lot for Mattingly, from 1985-1989.
| Hall of Fame Voting |
| Year |
Election |
Votes |
Pct |
| 2001 |
BBWAA |
145 |
28.2% |
2002 |
BBWAA |
96 |
20.3% |
2003 |
BBWAA |
68 |
13.7% |
2004 |
BBWAA |
65 |
12.8% |
2005 |
BBWAA |
59 |
11.4% |
2006 |
BBWAA |
64 |
12.3% |
2007 |
BBWAA |
54 |
9.9% |
|
Post-Season Appearances
1995 American League Divisional Series
Post-Season Notes
Mattingly finally got into the playoffs in his final season, 1995. He rose to the occasion, battering Seattle pitching for 10 hits in the five-game AL Division Series. He hit his only post-season homer in Game Two at Yankee Stadium. He retired following the Yankee loss to the M's, missing out on the pinstripe dynasty that was to begin the following season.
Awards and Honors
1985 AL Gold Glove
1985 AL MVP
1986 AL Gold Glove
1987 AL Gold Glove
1988 AL Gold Glove
1989 AL Gold Glove
1991 AL Gold Glove
1992 AL Gold Glove
1993 AL Gold Glove
1994 AL Gold Glove
Notes
Mattingly was a slow-starter. He hit .266 with a .381 SLG mark in April during his career, the lowest numbers of any month. With the exception of October, Mattingly hit at least .300 in every other month.
Hitting Streaks
24 games (1986)
20 games (1985)
Matchup Data
Mattingly went 6-for-7 with two homers against Don Aase... He was 18-for-44 (.409) off Bert Blyleven... He went just 9-for-45 (.200) with zero homers against lefty Frank Viola.
All-Star Selections
1984 AL
1985 AL
1986 AL
1987 AL
1988 AL
1989 AL
Replaced
Ken Griffey
Replaced By
Tino Martinez
Best Strength as a Player
Driving in runners.
Largest Weakness as a Player
Speed. However, it's ironic that for five straight seasons, Mattingly was perfect as a base stealer. In 1988, he was 1-for-1, in 1989 he was 3-for-3, in '90 he was 1-for-1, in 1991 he was 2-for-2, and in 1992 he was 3-for-3.
Learn More about Don Mattingly
Search Amazon.com for Books about Don Mattingly ⇒
Search for Don Mattingly at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
