Blue Jays closer embarrassingly left off of MLB Network’s relief pitcher rankings
As an everyday first baseman with the New York Yankees for a portion of 14 seasons, Don Mattingly won an incredible nine Gold Glove medals, was named the 1985 AL MVP, and retired his uniform from the sport’s most illustrious team.
Although his stat sheet accurately portrays his abilities as a high-contact hitter and deft fielder, he doesn’t deserve enough recognition from Cooperstown to be inducted. In terms of his career, Mattingly fits the description of a player who was productive during his 20s but began to decline as he approached his 30s.
He was named NL Manager of the Year in 2020 while coaching the Miami Marlins, and he is presently the bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays. His tenure as a head coach lasted more than ten years. It has not gone ignored that Mattingly is a part of the youthful Blue Jays’ clubhouse, and his Hall of Fame case merits further investigation.
A glance at Donnie Baseball’s stat page shows a clear star who led all of baseball in prominent hitting stats year after year. He finished top-10 in AL MVP voting every year from 1984 to 1987, slashing .337/.381/.941 and averaging 30 homers while driving in 121 over this stretch
Wishful thinking at best, since Mattingly could have been able to get a spot in the Hall through the Veterans Committee, a body of voters who prioritize players or coaches who were unfairly disregarded during earlier HOF deliberations.
He was included on their ballots three times, in 2018, 2020, and 2022, but he never garnered enough support to be admitted. There are many details behind Mattingly’s Hall of Fame case, but there are unsettling parallels with Joe Mauer, one of the most recent inductees.
After garnering slightly more than 76% of the BBWAA votes in his first year of voting, Joe Mauer was voted into the Hall of Fame in January of 2024. Mauer was, by all measures, a lock to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
