Biographical

Portrait of Don Mattingly

Don Mattingly 1BYankees

Yankees Player Cards | Yankees Team Audit | Yankees Depth Chart

Career Summary
Years PA AVG OBP SLG DRC+ WARP
17 7721 .307 .358 .471 123 36.3
Birth Date4-20-1961
Height6' 0"
Weight175 lbs
Age63 years, 0 months, 3 days
BatsL
ThrowsL
WARP Summary

MLB Statistics

YEAR TEAM AGE G PA H 2B 3B HR BB SO HBP SB CS AVG OBP SLG DRC+ DRAA BRR FRAA BWARP
1982 NYA 21 7 13 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .167 .154 .167 74 -0.4 -0.8 1.1 0.0
1983 NYA 22 91 305 79 15 4 4 21 31 1 0 0 .283 .333 .409 100 0.2 -0.8 -5.5 -0.2
1984 NYA 23 153 662 207 44 2 23 41 33 1 1 1 .343 .381 .537 139 31.5 -4.7 13.3 5.0
1985 NYA 24 159 727 211 48 3 35 56 41 2 2 2 .324 .371 .567 146 41.2 -3.3 -0.5 4.7
1986 NYA 25 162 742 238 53 2 31 53 35 1 0 0 .352 .394 .573 157 50.8 0.1 0.1 6.1
1987 NYA 26 141 629 186 38 2 30 51 38 1 1 4 .327 .378 .559 143 33.6 -1.1 10.7 4.9
1988 NYA 27 144 651 186 37 0 18 41 29 3 1 0 .311 .353 .462 130 21.9 -1.8 11.6 4.1
1989 NYA 28 158 693 191 37 2 23 51 30 1 3 0 .303 .351 .477 124 19.4 -4.8 9.3 3.3
1990 NYA 29 102 428 101 16 0 5 28 20 3 1 0 .256 .308 .335 90 -4.4 -3.0 10.2 0.7
1991 NYA 30 152 646 169 35 0 9 46 42 4 2 0 .288 .339 .394 102 2.6 -0.6 -2.2 0.7
1992 NYA 31 157 686 184 40 0 14 39 43 1 3 0 .288 .327 .416 105 5.9 -2.6 12.1 2.4
1993 NYA 32 134 596 154 27 2 17 61 42 2 0 0 .291 .364 .445 120 16.5 -2.2 -3.5 1.7
1994 NYA 33 97 436 113 20 1 6 60 24 0 0 0 .304 .397 .411 114 9.4 -0.3 5.5 1.9
1995 NYA 34 128 507 132 32 2 7 40 35 1 0 2 .288 .341 .413 95 -1.8 1.1 3.5 0.8
Career1785772121534422022258844421149.307.358.471123226.2-24.765.736.3

Statistics for All Levels

'opp' stats - Quality of opponents faced - have been moved and are available only as OPP_QUAL in the Statistics reports now.
Minor league stats are currently shown —Click to hide.
YEAR Team Lg LG G PA oppAVG oppOBP oppSLG BABIP BPF BRAA repLVL POS_ADJ DRC+ DRC+ SD FRAA BRR DRAA BWARP
1979 ONE A- NYP 53 198 .000 .000 .000 .350 0.0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1980 GRB A SAL 133 569 .000 .000 .000 .372 0.0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1981 NAS AA SOU 141 623 .000 .000 .000 .342 0.0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1982 NYA MLB AL 7 13 .291 .326 .410 .167 94 -2.1 0.4 -0.1 74 11 1.1 -0.8 -0.4 0.0
1982 COH AAA INT 130 539 .000 .000 .000 .313 0.0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1983 NYA MLB AL 91 305 .266 .329 .403 .305 96 5.1 8.3 -3.8 100 13 -5.5 -0.8 0.2 -0.2
1983 COH AAA INT 43 193 .000 .000 .000 .329 0.0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1984 NYA MLB AL 153 662 .263 .323 .397 .331 95 46.2 17.7 -10.6 139 12 13.3 -4.7 31.5 5.0
1985 NYA MLB AL 159 727 .263 .327 .413 .298 97 54.8 19.8 -12.7 146 11 -0.5 -3.3 41.2 4.7
1986 NYA MLB AL 162 742 .264 .330 .409 .333 101 56.2 20.5 -13 157 10 0.1 0.1 50.8 6.1
1987 NYA MLB AL 141 629 .265 .331 .427 .306 99 39 18.5 -11.9 143 8 10.7 -1.1 33.6 4.9
1988 NYA MLB AL 144 651 .258 .321 .387 .300 100 25.2 17.0 -10.9 130 10 11.6 -1.8 21.9 4.1
1989 NYA MLB AL 158 693 .260 .323 .382 .286 104 26.1 18.1 -11.6 124 7 9.3 -4.8 19.4 3.3
1990 NYA MLB AL 102 428 .259 .323 .385 .258 100 -10.4 11.5 -7.4 90 10 10.2 -3.0 -4.4 0.7
1991 NYA MLB AL 152 646 .259 .324 .391 .294 102 -1.3 17.5 -11.1 102 9 -2.2 -0.6 2.6 0.7
1992 NYA MLB AL 157 686 .259 .325 .386 .289 101 8.7 17.8 -11.4 105 8 12.1 -2.6 5.9 2.4
1993 NYA MLB AL 134 596 .269 .338 .411 .289 99 12.5 17.1 -10.9 120 10 -3.5 -2.2 16.5 1.7
1994 NYA MLB AL 97 436 .275 .346 .441 .309 102 11.7 13.2 -8.5 114 9 5.5 -0.3 9.4 1.9
1995 NYA MLB AL 128 507 .270 .340 .425 .295 102 -1.6 15.2 -9.6 95 10 3.5 1.1 -1.8 0.8

Statistics For All Levels

Minor league stats are currently shown —Click to hide.
Year Team lvl LG PA AB R H 2B 3B HR TB RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG ISO SF SH
1979 ONE A- NYP 198 166 20 58 10 2 3 81 31 30 6 2 2 .349 .449 .488 .139 0 0
1980 GRB A SAL 569 494 92 177 32 5 9 246 105 59 33 8 9 .358 .431 .498 .140 0 0
1981 NAS AA SOU 623 547 74 173 35 4 7 237 98 64 55 4 2 .316 .389 .433 .117 1 1
1982 NYA MLB AL 13 12 0 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 0 0 .167 .154 .167 .000 1 0
1982 COH AAA INT 539 476 67 150 24 2 10 208 75 50 24 1 2 .315 .379 .437 .122 5 5
1983 NYA MLB AL 305 279 34 79 15 4 4 114 32 21 31 0 0 .283 .333 .409 .125 2 2
1983 COH AAA INT 193 159 35 54 11 3 8 95 37 29 14 2 1 .340 .435 .597 .258 3 3
1984 NYA MLB AL 662 603 91 207 44 2 23 324 110 41 33 1 1 .343 .381 .537 .194 9 8
1985 NYA MLB AL 727 652 107 211 48 3 35 370 145 56 41 2 2 .324 .371 .567 .244 15 2
1986 NYA MLB AL 742 677 117 238 53 2 31 388 113 53 35 0 0 .352 .394 .573 .222 10 1
1987 NYA MLB AL 629 569 93 186 38 2 30 318 115 51 38 1 4 .327 .378 .559 .232 8 0
1988 NYA MLB AL 651 599 94 186 37 0 18 277 88 41 29 1 0 .311 .353 .462 .152 8 0
1989 NYA MLB AL 693 631 79 191 37 2 23 301 113 51 30 3 0 .303 .351 .477 .174 10 0
1990 NYA MLB AL 428 394 40 101 16 0 5 132 42 28 20 1 0 .256 .308 .335 .079 3 0
1991 NYA MLB AL 646 587 64 169 35 0 9 231 68 46 42 2 0 .288 .339 .394 .106 9 0
1992 NYA MLB AL 686 640 89 184 40 0 14 266 86 39 43 3 0 .288 .327 .416 .128 6 0
1993 NYA MLB AL 596 530 78 154 27 2 17 236 86 61 42 0 0 .291 .364 .445 .155 3 0
1994 NYA MLB AL 436 372 62 113 20 1 6 153 51 60 24 0 0 .304 .397 .411 .108 4 0
1995 NYA MLB AL 507 458 59 132 32 2 7 189 49 40 35 0 2 .288 .341 .413 .124 8 0

Plate Discipline

YEAR Pits Zone% Swing% Contact% Z-Swing% O-Swing% Z-Contact% O-Contact% SwStr% CSAA

Injury History  —  No longer being updated

Last Update: 12/31/2014 23:59 ET

Date On Date Off Transaction Days Games Side Body Part Injury Severity Surgery Date Reaggravation

Compensation

Year Team Salary

 

Service TimeAgentContract Status

Details

2019 Preseason Forecast

Last Update: 1/27/2017 12:35 ET

PCT PA R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG DRC+ VORP FRAA WARP
Weighted Mean???????00??.000.000.00000.0?0.0

BP Annual Player Comments

No BP Book Comments have been found for this player.

BP Articles

Click here to see articles tagged with Don Mattingly

BP Chats

DateQuestionAnswer
2014-12-11 18:00:00 (link to chat)Multiple choice question. Which of following is the best option for the Dodgers: A. Dump Andre Ethier and pay all of his salary; B. Dump Carl Crawford and pay two-thirds of his salary; C. Trade Matt Kemp, pay none of his salary and get a second-tier prospect in return; or D. Keep all three and hire a dispute resolution mediator to help Don Mattingly.
(Fighting Sagehen47 from Greenville, SC)		How about E, trade Kemp and some salary, and get your new starting catcher? (Mark Anderson)
2014-03-12 14:00:00 (link to chat)Are there any examples in Major League history of a left-handed thrower playing even an inning at 2nd, 3rd, or SS?
(doog7642 from Blaine, MN)		Yes. Don Mattingly, for one, played second and third. (Ben Lindbergh)
2013-10-28 18:00:00 (link to chat)If you needed to manage one game for your life and Joe Maddon couldn't be reached, who would your next three calls be to? The internet bashes every manager into oblivion, but other than Maddon, it seems they seldom get any credit. Then again, Don Mattingly makes me want to bang my head against the wall.
(Connie Mack Daddy from Oz)		Can I go back in time? I don't bash managers, but it is hard to differentiate between them because so many of them employ the same tactics and have the same kind of group think. John Farrell would be on my list as long as he doesn't have to play with National League rules; him batting Brandon Workman in the ninth inning of Game 3 was maddening. Terry Francona still strikes me as a really strong manager who I'd put at the top of my short list. I'm having a hard time coming up with a third manager that I love. Joe Girardi is probably underrated because of the Yankees huge payroll, but he did a lot this year despite limited resources for the first time in his tenure. (Mike Gianella)
2013-02-27 20:00:00 (link to chat)How long before Jansen starts taking away save opps from League?
(Sean T from Bethesda)		Tough to say, but even in a best case scenario for Brandon League owners it's not hard to see Kenley Jansen saving 5-10. The simple answer is if League struggles I don't think Don Mattingly will have orders from up above to use League because he has the big contract. (Mike Gianella)
2011-09-06 14:00:00 (link to chat)Should Don Mattingly be fired? I say yes.
(Tbirds from Seattle)		Donnie Baseball's team has had a rough year, but I don't think you can heap all of that on him. Yes, he might just have both the MVP and Cy Young award winner in his midst, but the rest of the cast for a pennant run just wasn't there and wasn't coming what with all the bankruptcy stuff going on. I quibble with this batting orders sometimes, but you know that's small beer. Also small bear. (Steven Goldman)
2011-05-05 13:00:00 (link to chat)It's a shame, Eric Chavez was my favorite player in the early 2000s, despite having absolutely no allegiance to the A's, I just loved watching him play. But you can't predict injuries derailing a career. My favorite player before him was Don Mattingly. This does not bode well for my newest favorite, Ryan Zimmerman.
(Charlie from Bethesda, MD)		Indeed, Chavez is out of the game, and the Yankees will have to slum it with A-Rod entering in his place. I loved Mattingly as well, and his quick fall was an object lesson in the fragile nature of athletic success. It was a valuable thing, because it taught me that sports will make you choose between loving a player and loving a winning team. Quite often, the former is incompatible with the latter. Derek Jeter's many fans are confronting that dilemma now. (Steven Goldman)
2011-04-05 13:00:00 (link to chat)Which big-name closer should watch his back the most? Papelbon? Broxton? Other?
(dianagramr from NYC)		I wish I could say Broxton, not because it's personal or anything, but because it would tell us so much about what kind of manager Don Mattingly is. Mattingly was my favorite player, really the player who brought me into baseball in a big way, and the 14-year-old in me very much wants him to succeed. (Steven Goldman)
2011-01-12 13:00:00 (link to chat)When I was a kid a had a "Nobody Beats the Wiz" poster with Willie Randolph, Dave Winfield, Rickey Henderson and Don Mattingly on it. I loved that poster. No question, just wanted to share.
(Charlie from Bethesda, MD)		Their commercials weren't quite as annoying at Crazy Eddie's were. (Steven Goldman)
2010-08-04 13:00:00 (link to chat)I cannot get anyone to answer this...On September 25, 1989 Andre Dawson hit one of the most bizarre inside the park home runs ever against Montreal. Despite Davy Martinez catching a deep fly ball, he came up injured on the play and was unable to enact a "voluntary and intentional" release of the ball, which is needed to record an out as stated in the MLB rulebook's definition of a catch. On Sunday, a similar play occurred when Dexter Fowler caught a deep fly ball off the bat of Alfonso Soriano. If you watch the replay, he never releases the ball as he is writhing in pain on the ground. In fact, the right fielder picks up Fowler's glove with the ball still in it and holds it while he is being tended to (see on MLB.com replay). Are you aware of this rule and should Soriano have continued around the base paths to score the game tying run?
(Goose from Chicago)		...Can I tell you how much I've come to dislike Firefox? I just don't know what to switch to. It seems like every browser has massive negatives. I like the idea of Chrome, but I've been told it swallows memory, and that's one of my big problems with Firefox... Goose, I love your question, but I'd want to look at some video before answering it. I will take the risk of an uninformed answer and say that the quality of umpiring is so poor, and we've seen so many misapplied rules (like the Don Mattingly thing recently) that I wouldn't be surprised if they just missed it. (Steven Goldman)
2010-01-06 13:00:00 (link to chat)I'd call this good news for Bert. I was worried he'd stagnate around 62%. do you have the % of the vote for Edgar, Raines and Barry? They don't have it on espn.com. Thanks.
(collins from greenville nc)		539 ballots, five blanks, Andre Dawson 420 (77.9%), Bert Blyleven 400 (74.2%), Roberto Alomar 397 (73.7%), Jack Morris 282 (52.3%), Barry Larkin 278 (51.6%), Lee Smith 255 (47.3%), Edgar Martinez 195 (36.2%), Tim Raines 164 (30.4%), Mark McGwire 128 (23.7%), Alan Trammell 121 (22.4%), Fred McGriff 116 (21.5%), Don Mattingly 87 (16.1%), Dave Parker 82 (15.2%), Dale Murphy 63 (11.7%), Harold Baines 33 (6.1%), Andres Galarraga 22 (4.1%), Robin Ventura 7 (1.3%), Ellis Burks 2 (0.4%), Eric Karros 2 (0.4%), Kevin Appier 1 (0.2%), Pat Hentgen 1 (0.2%), David Segui 1 (0.2%), Mike Jackson 0, Ray Lankford 0, Shane Reynolds 0, Todd Zeile 0.

Segui gets his vote. Baines remains on life support thanks to the persistence of a stubborn few. Karros receives more votes than he had All-Star appearances. (Jay Jaffe)
2009-11-19 13:00:00 (link to chat)Hi Joe, Thanks for the chat. Thinking about this questions today: what is the relationship between a high contact rate (90 plus) and walk rate? Is a high contact rate going to suppress walks?
(lagronem from Newark, DE)		Absolutely. A high contact rate will limit the number of deep counts. The low walk rates of Ichiro Suzuki, Nomar Garciaparra, Don Mattingly...that's partly because when they swing they square the ball up. (Joe Sheehan)
2009-08-13 13:00:00 (link to chat)If Hal Chase were to play today would he be as celebrated for his defense at first base? Has the first base position changed a lot from the times of Hal Chase? It feels strange to read so much praise for a first baseman's defensive play. I'm probaly just bitter I couldn't find a publisher for my poem about Derrek Lee. Also, have you read the article about Ernie Lombardi in The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract? One of the best articles I have ever read.
(Bonds Fan from Bay Area)		And with that mention of Hal Chase... Yes, the position has changed very dramatically in that the bunt is something that you have to worry about only rarely (in the AL) or a few times a game (in the NL). In Chase's day, the bunt was a possibility on every play, so the mobility of the first baseman was much more important. Keith Hernandez was deservedly celebrated for his defense in his day, as was Don Mattingly, and Doug Mientkiewicz has squeezed a few extra years out of his career out of being a gloveman, and I suppose Tony Muser could always get another job, so there's probably still room for a defensive star at the position... I have read the Lombardi essay, which was carried over from the original version of the book. I would love to know what Lom's line drive rates were. (Steven Goldman)
2009-05-21 14:00:00 (link to chat)Generally: to what degree can plate discipline be a teachable skill and/or contagious across an entire team? Specifically: The Brewers seem to have discovered the power of the walk en masse—does history suggest an entire team of reformed hackers can maintain this walk rate across an entire season?
(david from madison, wi)		I thought Wade Boggs had a similar effect on the Yankees, especially Don Mattingly and Paul O'Neill, when he joined them. I believe I touted a similar effect last year, when Kosuke Fukudome arrived in Chicago. Having good ABs strikes me as something that can be influenced by an atmosphere that values that kind of thing, although I'm not sure it can be quantified. (For a converse, think about the Angels' often-successful approach, centered on contact hitting.) (Joe Sheehan)
2008-10-21 14:00:00 (link to chat)Should I resign myself to the fact that the Yankees will not be able to sign talent comparable to Longoria, Upton, Price, et al, at any price in the next 2-3 seasons? I can't even console myself by making my Fallout 3 character look like Don Mattingly anymore.
(Tony from Brooklyn, NY)		Dude, they're the Yankees -- they'll be fine. That don't get to draft guys like Longoria, Upton and Price because they never draft that high, but they get to sign them when they are free agents, so it's not so bad. Plus they're in on most of the top international talent. Tough year for them certainly, but it's not like they're suddenly going to stink or something. (Kevin Goldstein)
2008-09-16 13:00:00 (link to chat)Speaking of building blocks from my era (I'm 51 but I feel like I'm 49 1/2); it was only for a few years ('84 - '87) but Don Mattingly was the greatest player I ever saw. The guy was ridiculous!
(Rich from NJ)		I've written this before, but at that time I really thought he could do anything. At his peak there was nobody like him, and his quick fade was one of the disappointments of my youth. Damn, um, spine. (Steven Goldman)
2008-05-28 13:00:00 (link to chat)I feel Yankees will improve to about an 88 win season but not a championship year. Would you agree. Also one "Off the Wall" question. Do you think Mickey Mantle would-could hit the warehouse in Camden Yards. Thanks>>>
(Rockee from Schodack, NY)		Agreed, and I wrote as much the other day. My touchstone was the 1984 season where they had a first half which was (approximating from memory)35-47 and then a second half which was the best record in baseball at 55-25. I have an idea that something like that will happen, maybe spurred by Jobba and some other change we can't anticipate. The only problem with the 1984 Hypothesis is that the Yankees were able to bring in Don Mattingly and Mike Pagliarulo that year, pushing Ken Griffey to left field over Steve Kemp and sending Toby Harrah to the bench. That kind of thing isn't going to happen this year. (Steven Goldman)
2008-05-28 13:00:00 (link to chat)Steven, Serious question: how does the team of baseball experts plan to differentiate this book from Bill James already very, very good Baseball Abstract?
(strupp from Madison)		Let's see... I have the second edition of the Historical Abstract right next to me. Bill devotes nine pages to the 1980s, plus assorted player comments on guys who happened to fall into his top 100 at each position, among them such insightful comments as the one on Don Mattingly ("100% ballplayer, 0% bull----.") and Jeff Bagwell ("Pass."). We will devote over 600 pages to the 1980s and its players, ALL the key players, not just the stars, and there ain't gonna be no "Pass."

Said with all respect to James and his book, both of which I admire. Our book wouldn't exist without his, and you're right to guess it will have something of the flavor of it, but we're going to surpass it in our subject area. (Steven Goldman)
2008-03-31 13:00:00 (link to chat)Is is your favorite player? Who was your favorite player growing up?
(Kent from Portland, Oregon)		Answered many times: Graig Nettles when I was just a tyke, Don Mattingly when I was little more mature.

I liked girls a lot too, at both ages. If I could have found a girl who liked Don Mattingly as much as she liked me, I would have been a very happy guy. Unfortunately, at 13 it is often difficult to find a girl who likes YOU, let alone Don Mattingly.

Yes, I was an awkward teen.

I imagine that the complexion of fandom has changed some over the years, and now a young fellow in my predicament could break a lot of ice with his Derek Jeter #2 t-shirt. (Steven Goldman)
2008-01-08 14:00:00 (link to chat)my prediction: Goose in. Rice misses by an extremely small margin. Much, much bleating commences over the voters who submitted blanks to protest roids users, thus depriving the "deserving" pre-roids slugger.
(TomH from Lexington Park MD)		The Goose is Loose! He gets 85.8 percent, and he's the only one who gets in on this ballot.

Rice falls just shy at 72.2 percent, setting him up for a 15th-year push.

Raines 24.3 percent. Oh is that ugly.

Player Total Votes Percentage Rich Gossage 466 85.8% Jim Rice 392 72.2% Andre Dawson 358 65.9% Bert Blyleven 336 61.9% Lee Smith 235 43.3% Jack Morris 233 42.9% Tommy John 158 29.1% Tim Raines 132 24.3% Mark McGwire 128 23.6% Alan Trammell 99 18.2% Dave Concepcion 88 16.2% Don Mattingly 86 15.8% Dave Parker 82 15.1% Dale Murphy 75 13.8% Harold Baines 28 5.2% Rod Beck 2 0.4% Travis Fryman 2 0.4% Robb Nen 2 0.4% Shawon Dunston 1 0.2% Chuck Finley 1 0.2% David Justice 1 0.2% Chuck Knoblauch 1 0.2% Todd Stottlemyre 1 0.2%
Jose Rijo 0 0% Brady Anderson 0 0% (Jay Jaffe)


BP Roundtables

DateRoundtable NameComment
2009-10-21 17:00:00NLCS Game 5bobbailey (Canada): Steve, I see your point about batting order, but doesn't maxing out PAs for your best hitter (putting him leadoff) mean that he will be batting with many fewer men on base, even with the extra PAs? Especially in the NL. Batting Pujols leadoff just doesn't seem like a good idea.

I think that you would lose in that transaction, but there are all kinds of other ways to skin that cat. I point to Billy Martin's 1985 Yankees, which often batted Rickey Henderson and Don Mattingly 1-2. Maybe Mattingly would have seen more runners if 75-90 walk guy Willie Randolph batted second, but Randolph also had no slugging, so he wasn't going to move Henderson more than one base, whereas Mattigly hit a lot of doubles and home runs. (Steven Goldman)
2009-10-16 13:00:00NLCS Game Two/ALCS Game OneLast time I talked to Don Mattingly, I was actually talking to his son Preston, who was right next to him. He looks just like a taller, burlier version of his dad to the point that it's almost creepy. (Kevin Goldstein)
2009-10-16 13:00:00NLCS Game Two/ALCS Game OneWhen I talked with Don Mattingly, I was always mesmerized by the sheer circumference of his nostrils. (Steven Goldman)
2008-10-02 11:00:00Thursday Playoff GamesKevin, the closest thing I have to that in my emotional inventory is Don Mattingly's back injury. I was ready to head up to Cooperstown for his HOF induction and everything. (Steven Goldman)