Don Mattingly’s Final Chance at The Hall Falls Short

Dodger’s manager Don Mattingly fell short in his final quest to get elected into the Baseball hall of fame. Mattingly received 9.1% of the vote in his fifteenth and final year on the ballot.

Mattingly picked up 50 of the 549 total votes cast in this year’s hall of fame balloting. Candidates must receive 75% of the vote from the Baseball Writer’s Association of America to gain entrance into the hall of fame.

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Four players were elected on Tuesday into the hall, but unfortunately only one of the players was a Dodger. The four players elected were former Dodger hurler Pedro Martinez, pitchers John Smoltz, Randy Johnson, and second baseman Craig Biggio. All four of those players received the mandatory 75% or more of the vote required for induction.

Mattingly played his entire 14-year career as a first baseman from 1982-1995 for the Yankees. He was a six time all-star, winning the 1985 AL MVP award.

Mattingly ended his playing career with 2,153 hits, 222 home runs, and 1099 runs batted in. Donnie Baseball finished with a career .307 batting average, and a .358 OBP in 7,722 plate appearances. During his MVP year of 1985, Mattingly .324 with 35 home runs, 145 runs batted in, and 211 hits. Mattingly won the batting crown in 1984 after he batted .348, leading the league in doubles, (48) and RBI during his MVP season.

Mattingly led the league in hits twice, doubles three times, and won eight gold gloves at first base. He also led the American League once in slugging percentage and OPS. His career OPS was .830, and he played in 1,785 games.

It’s a shame that Mattingly will not be elected into the hall of fame. I think he deserved to be recognized. During his stellar playing career, Mattingly was somewhat of an icon in New York. He was “donned” the nicknames of Donnie Baseball, and “The hit man”.

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Unfortunately Mattingly only made the playoffs during his playing career once with the Yankees. In his final season in 1995, the Yankees won the AL wild card, but lost to the Mariners in the ALDS in five games. During that five game playoff series, Mattingly batted .417 (10 for 24) with four doubles, one home run and six runs driven in.

Mattingly was one of the slickest fielding first baseman of all time. During his career, Mattingly had a .996 fielding percentage, and posted a +33 total zone fielding runs above average. Mattingly even played three games at third base, despite throwing left handed. That is something that is unheard of these days.

Mattingly has one last chance to qualify for the hall of fame via the veteran’s committee ballot. Mattingly’s best results came during his first year of eligibility in 2001, when he received 28% of the vote.