Don Mattingly

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Mattingly began his professional career in Minor League Baseball with the Oneonta Yankees of the Low-A New York–Penn League in 1979. He hoped to bat .500 for Oneonta and was disappointed with his .349 batting average, which never went lower than .340. He batted a league-leading .358 in 1980 for the Greensboro Hornets of the Single-A South Atlantic League in addition to recording a league-best 177 hits. He won the league MVP award and was named to the postseason All-Star team. With the Double-A Nashville Sounds in 1981, he hit .316 and led the Southern League with 35 doubles. He was selected to play in the Southern League All-Star Game and named to its postseason All-Star team.

Despite Mattingly's hitting ability, concerns existed about his lack of speed and power hitting. Bob Schaefer, his manager at Greensboro, said that the organization considered moving him to second base, from which he would throw right-handed. Mattingly was batting .325 for the Columbus Clippers of the Triple-A International League when he made it to the majors as a September call-up in late 1982. He was named to the league's postseason All-Star team and finished third in the voting for the International League MVP Award.

Mattingly spent his rookie season of 1983 as a part-time first baseman and outfielder. After four games in April, he was sent back to Columbus for two months before returning, and hit .283 in 279 at-bats. He hit his first home run on June 24 against John Tudor in a 5–4 road loss to the Red Sox.

Mattingly became the Yankees' full-time first baseman in 1984. With a batting average of .339, he was selected as a reserve for the 1984 All-Star Game. Heading into the final game of the season, Mattingly and teammate Dave Winfield were competing for the American League batting title, with Mattingly trailing Winfield by .002. On the final day of the season, Mattingly went 4-for-5, while Winfield batted 1-for-4. Mattingly won the batting title with a .343 average, while Winfield finished second with a .340 average. Mattingly also led the league with 207 hits. He hit a league-leading 44 doubles to go with 23 home runs. He was second in the league in slugging percentage (.537) and at bats per strikeout (18.3), fourth in total bases (324), fifth in RBI (110), sixth in sacrifice fly (9), and tenth in on-base percentage (.381).

Mattingly followed up his breakout season with a spectacular 1985, winning the AL MVP Award. He batted .324 (third in the league) with 35 home runs (fourth), 48 doubles (first), and 145 RBI (first), then the most RBI in a season by a left-handed major league batter since Ted Williams drove in 159 in 1949. His 21-RBI margin over second place in that category was the largest in the American League since Al Rosen's lead of 30 RBI in 1953. He led the league in sacrifice flies (15), total bases (370), and extra base hits (86), and was second in the AL in hits (211) and slugging percentage (.567), third in (13) and at bats per strikeout (13.9), sixth in runs (107), and ninth in at bats per home run (18.6). He batted .354 with two out and runners in scoring position.

Mattingly was also recognized in 1985 for his defense, winning his first of nine Gold Glove Awards. He was considered such an asset defensively that Yankees management assigned him to play games at second baseman and third baseman early in his career, though he was a left-handed thrower. Mattingly appeared as a left-handed throwing second baseman during the resumption of the George Brett "Pine Tar Incident" game on August 18, 1983, shifting from first base in the ninth inning for one batter, who strikeout. He also played three games at third base during a five-game road series against the Seattle Mariners in late August 1986, including one complete game, and recorded 11 assists with one error while throwing left-handed.

Mattingly had a better year in 1986, leading the league with 238 hits and 53 doubles, and breaking the single-season franchise records set by Earle Combs (231 hits) and Lou Gehrig (52 doubles); both records had been set on the legendary 1927 team. He also recorded 388 total bases and a .573 slugging percentage, and had the league's longest hitting streak of the season, making hits in 24 consecutive games, from a 3–0 win over the Seattle Mariners in the second game of a doubleheader on August 30 through a 3–2 loss to the Detroit Tigers on September 26. He batted .352 (second in the league), hit 31 home runs (sixth) and drove in 113 runs (third). He was beaten in the American League MVP voting, though, by pitcher Roger Clemens, who also won the Cy Young Award that year. Mattingly also became the last left-handed player to field a ball at third base during a major league game.

In 1987, Mattingly tied Dale Long's major league record by hitting home runs in eight consecutive games, from July 8–18 (the All-Star game occurred in the middle of the streak; Mattingly, starting at first base, was 0 for 3). This record was later tied again by Ken Griffey Jr., of the Mariners in 1993. Mattingly also set a record by recording an extra base hit in 10 consecutive games. Mattingly had a record 10 home runs during this streak (Long and Griffey had eight during their streaks), including a 12–3 road win over the Texas Rangers on July 16 in which he had two home runs including a grand slam and a career-high seven RBI. That year, Mattingly set a major league record by hitting six grand slams in a season (two during his July home run streak), a record matched by Travis Hafner during the 2006 season. Mattingly's grand slams in 1987 were ironically the only grand slams of his career.

In June 1987, Mattingly reportedly injured his back during some clubhouse horseplay with pitcher Bob Shirley, though both denied this. Nevertheless, he finished with a .327 batting average, 30 home runs, and 115 RBI, his fourth straight year with at least 110 RBIs. Between 1985 and 1987, Mattingly hit 96 home runs with just 114 strikeouts.

Mattingly hit 18 home runs and recorded 88 RBI in 1988, but still was in the top 10 in the league in batting average with a .311 mark, and scored a career-high five runs in a 15–3 win over the Texas Rangers on April 30. He rebounded in 1989 to 113 RBI, but his average dipped to .303. Mattingly's five runs in the win over Texas marked the 12th time it has been done by a Yankee.

Mattingly's back problems flared up anew in 1990; after struggling with the bat, he had to go on the disabled list in July, only returning late in the season for an ineffective finish. His statistics line—a .256 average, five home runs, and 42 RBI in almost 400 at bats—came as a shock. Mattingly underwent extensive therapy in the offseason, but his hitting ability was never quite the same. Though he averaged .290 over his final five seasons, he became more of a slap hitter, hitting just 53 home runs over that time. His defense remained stellar, but he was not always physically able to play, especially on defense, and from 1989 to 1992 was sometimes used as a designated hitter. He did see a brief resurgence in power in 1993, hitting 17 home runs and driving in 86 runs in 134 games, as the Yankees finished second in the division behind the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 22, 1993, he hit his 200th home run, a 3-run blast in the seventh inning of a 12–1 win over the California Angels. In the strike-shortened 1994 season, he posted a .304 average, the first time since 1989 that he hit over .300. On April 7, 1994, he passed 1,000 RBI, driving in two runs in an 18–6 mauling of the Rangers, and on July 23 he made his 2,000th career hit, a seventh-inning single in a 7–2 road win over the Angels.

Mattingly made his major league debut in 1982, the year after the Yankees lost the World Series. The team did not reach the postseason in any of Mattingly's first 13 years, although they had the best record in the American League in 1994 when the players' strike ended the season prematurely.

In 1995, Mattingly finally reached the playoffs when the Yankees clinched the AL wild card on the last day of the season with a 6–1 road win over Toronto, including his last regular-season home run in the fifth inning. Facing the Seattle Mariners in the AL Division Series, the only postseason series of his career, Mattingly batted .417 with six RBI and a memorable go-ahead home run in Game 2, his final game at Yankee Stadium. In the final game of the series (and of his career), Mattingly again broke a tie with a two-run double, but the New York bullpen faltered, and Seattle won in the 11th inning of the decisive Game 5.

The Yankees acquired Tino Martinez to succeed Mattingly after the 1995 season. Unsigned for the 1996 season, Mattingly decided to sit out for the year, and rebuffed an inquiry by the Baltimore Orioles, which tried to sign him at midseason. Mattingly officially announced his retirement in January 1997.

For his career, Mattingly never appeared in the World Series, and his tenure with the Yankees marks the team's longest drought (14 years), later tied (2010–2023) without a World Series appearance. The Yankees made the series in both (the year prior to Mattingly's debut) and their championship season (the year after his last with the club).

After the 2007 season, when Joe Torre declined a one-year contract extension, Mattingly was a finalist for the Yankees' manager position, along with Joe Girardi and Tony Peña. The Yankees offered the managerial position to Girardi, who accepted.

In the 2009–10 offseason, Mattingly was a finalist for the managerial position with the Cleveland Indians, for which Manny Acta was eventually hired.

Following the 2024 season, Mattingly's role was reverted to that of a traditional bench coach. Mattingly was on the coaching roster when the Blue Jays made an unexpected run in the postseason, defeating his former team, the Yankees, in four games in the 2025 American League Division Series, and then winning the 2025 American League Championship Series over the Mariners in seven games to reach the World Series, which was Mattingly's first World Series appearance after over 40 years of playing/managing/coaching. In the 2025 World Series, Mattingly's team lost in seven games to the Dodgers who were managed by Dave Roberts, whom the Dodgers hired after parting ways with Mattingly in 2015. The Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw was one of the few players remaining from when Mattingly managed that team.

After the World Series loss, Mattingly stepped down from his role with the Blue Jays on November 6, 2025.

Mattingly made his managerial debut on March 31, 2011, by defeating in-state rival and defending champion San Francisco Giants 2–1 at Dodger Stadium. Despite the background of a bitter divorce battle between Dodgers' owner Frank McCourt and his wife that put the fiscal health of the Dodgers into jeopardy, Mattingly managed to take the Dodgers to a winning record that season due to his mentorship of many young players such as MVP candidate Matt Kemp and Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw:

"He's so positive", Kershaw said. "All he asks of us is just go out there and play the way we're supposed to. Do things the right way on the field, and he's happy with you. When it's simple like that, it's easy to play for, and it's fun to play for."

In 2013, Mattingly and the Dodgers got off to a rough start due to various injuries, and were in last place in May, leading to much media speculation that he would soon be fired. Once players got healthy, though, the team went on a tear and managed to win the NL West and beat the Atlanta Braves in the 2013 National League Division Series (NLDS) in four games. They then lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS in six games. After the season, Mattingly called out Dodger management for its perceived lack of support of him during the season and said that he wanted a multiyear contract in place to return in 2014. Mattingly finished second in the voting for National League Manager of the Year.

Mattingly stated that one of his managerial idols was Tony La Russa. Mattingly admired La Russa from his playing days with the Yankees in the late 1980s. LaRussa had managed the dominant Oakland Athletics teams of the era. Mattingly recalled that despite the A's superiority to the Yankees, they still played intensely.

On January 7, 2014, Mattingly and the Dodgers agreed on a three-year contract extension for him to remain as manager of the Dodgers. In the subsequent two seasons, the Dodgers won the NL West but lost the NLDS both years; in four games to the Cardinals in 2014, and in five games to the New York Mets in 2015.

On October 22, 2015, the Dodgers and Mattingly mutually agreed to part ways, and he stepped down from his position with one year left on his contract. Some have suggested that the Dodgers were not willing to give Mattingly a long-term contract, while Mattingly has since said that his decision was based on family considerations. He had a 446–363 record with the Dodgers, with a winning percentage of .551, which was second-best in Los Angeles Dodgers history. He finished with a postseason record of eight wins and 11 losses and was the first manager in franchise history to guide the team to three straight postseason appearances.

Buck Showalter, Mattingly's last manager during his playing days and a former teammate in the minor leagues, attributed Mattingly's calmness to the controversies he was subjected to as manager of the Dodgers to Mattingly's experience as a player having to deal with controversies during his time with the Yankees.

The Yankees retired Mattingly's number 23 and dedicated his plaque for Monument Park at Yankee Stadium on August 31, 1997. The plaque calls him, "A humble man of grace and dignity, a captain who led by example, proud of the pinstripe tradition and dedicated to the pursuit of excellence, a Yankee forever." Additionally, his uniform number with the Double-A Nashville Sounds (18) was retired by the team in a ceremony at Herschel Greer Stadium attended by Mattingly on August 12, 1999.

Puckett's election has generally been attributed to the view that while Mattingly's strongest years were early in his career, Puckett's production was more consistent, and there was considerable sympathy over his career ending abruptly due to an eye injury. And yet there are other similarities other than career totals, as both players won one batting title and led the AL in RBI once and total bases twice; for each, their lowest batting average in a full season was .288, and both topped the .350 mark once. Mattingly finished in the top seven in MVP voting four times, and in the top twenty in three other years; Puckett finished in the top seven in seven years, but otherwise was never in the top twenty. Mattingly won more Gold Gloves (nine to six), and had more seasons with 30 home runs, 100 RBI, 40 doubles or 300 total bases, though Puckett was on more All-Star teams (ten to six). Another Hall of Famer with striking similarities to Mattingly is Bill Terry; both players were left-handed first basemen who spent their entire careers with New York teams on opposite sides of the Harlem River. Both played in all or part of 14 seasons (Terry played 10 full seasons, Mattingly 11), and each won one batting title:

Terry's higher averages can be primarily attributed to the remarkably elevated averages in the National League in the late 1920s and early 1930s, which highly favored hitters; when he won the batting title in 1930, the league average was .303 (Mattingly won his title when the league average was .264), and the league average over Terry's career was .283, compared to .263 during Mattingly's career. Mattingly is the most similarity score player to both Puckett and Terry. One more Hall of Famer who is something of a mirror image to Mattingly is George Kell, whose defensive skills were largely identical to Mattingly's – but the right-handed Kell was able to play as a third baseman, while the left-handed Mattingly was essentially limited to playing on the opposite side of the diamond:

Mattingly is now eligible to be inducted into the Hall of Fame via the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee. He was included on the 2018, 2020, 2023 and 2026 ballots, but did not receive enough votes for induction, coming closest with 50% of the vote in 2023. He is eligible to be considered again for the 2029 class of inductees.

Mattingly has been honored by two minor league halls of fame. He was inducted in the South Atlantic League Hall of Fame in 1994 and the New York–Penn League Hall of Fame in 2015.

In 2001, Mattingly was inducted into the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame; his plaque displays his high school and professional careers. In 1987, he was named the American Legion Graduate of the Year, for his success in the major leagues following his American Legion Baseball career.

Mattingly married his second wife, Lori, on December 10, 2010, in his hometown of Evansville, Indiana. The wedding, and his managing the Phoenix Desert Dogs of the Arizona Fall League, prevented him from attending the 2010 winter meetings. In 2014, he and Lori had a son, Louis.

Mattingly's older brother, Randy Mattingly, played quarterback at the University of Evansville and was chosen by the Cleveland Browns in the fourth round of the 1973 NFL draft before playing in the Canadian Football League.

In 2005, Mattingly launched Mattingly Sports, a baseball and softball equipment company, based primarily around the patented V-Grip baseball and softball bats.

Mattingly is the founder of Mattingly Charities, a nonprofit organization that serves underprivileged youth by supporting programs that promote baseball and softball participation in conjunction with other developmentally related activities.

Mattingly has also appeared in public-service announcements airing on the Spike TV network advocating fathers spending time with their children as part of the "True Dads" campaign to encourage men to take an active role in their children's lives.

Mattingly is referred to by name in several episodes of Seinfeld. In one episode, his uniform pants split because they were made of 100% cotton at the behest of George Costanza.

• List of Major League Baseball batting champions
• List of Major League Baseball annual runs batted in leaders
• List of Major League Baseball annual doubles leaders
• List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders
• List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders
• List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders
• List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders
• List of Major League Baseball career doubles leaders
• List of Major League Baseball doubles records
• List of Major League Baseball individual streaks
• List of Major League Baseball players who spent their entire career with one franchise