1986 Profile: Don Mattingly

1986 AMERICAN LEAGUE ALL-STAR
"Mattingly felt he was given a raw deal when owner George Steinbrenner exercised his right to renew his contract after a long negotiating battle prior to last season. It didn't stop him enjoying a tremendous [1985] campaign. He led the majors in RBI (145) and doubles (48), finished third in the AL batting race (.324), fourth in homers (35), second in slugging percentage (.567), second in hits (211), first in game winning RBI (21) and first in fielding percentage among first basemen (.995).
His RBI total was the most by a Yankee since Joe DiMaggio drove in 155 in 1948 and he was the first Yankee to lead the league in RBI since Roger Maris in 1961. Mattingly had the most hits by a Yankee since Red Rolfe had 213 in 1939 and became the first Yankee to collect 200 hits in consecutive seasons since DiMaggio in 1936-37. He became the first AL player to lead the majors in doubles for two straight seasons since Tris Speaker did it in 1920-23.
Blessed with natural hitting ability, he also is one of the hardest workers around. Mattingly was not chosen until the 19th round of the June 1979 draft because most organizations had assumed he would attend college. Born in Evansville, Indiana, his brother Randy was a pro football player.
Mattingly was named AL MVP last season, outdistancing the Royals' George Brett. He edged teammate Dave Winfield for the AL batting title in 1984 by collecting four hits in the season finale."

-Tom Verducci, The Complete Handbook of Football, 1986 Edition

"In less than three full major league seasons, Don Mattingly has gone from sweet-swinging rookie to American League batting champion to Most Valuable Player. He's received as many awards as a player can receive in his short career, but the strangest part of it all is that the guy is still hungry, still yearning to become a better ballplayer. His attitude, let alone talent, is very unique.
'When you play for the Yankees, you always want to do better,' the 25-year-old first baseman says. Is Mattingly on his way to bettering his MVP season? 'I was asked the same thing after winning the batting title in 1984,' he answers, 'but I hit under .300 against left-handers last year. I think there's room for plenty of improvement.'
Did he say improvement? Improvement over a .323 batting average, 35 home runs, 145 RBIs and a Gold Glove? Impossible? Yes, for just about anybody in the game today- except Don Mattingly. If he just come close to his 1985 numbers again this year, the Yankees could easily find themselves playing in their 34th World Series.
Or, as Mattingly puts it, 'You know what you can do, so you go out and do it.'"

-The New York Yankees Official 1986 Yearbook

1985 MVP
"The numbers were simply overwhelming. Looking back on the 1985 season, there was certainly a case to be made for Kansas City's productive third baseman George Brett, who in the opinion of many singlehandedly carried the Royals to the American League pennant. Which is why the accomplishment of Don Mattingly in 1985 must rank among the most impressive of all time. For, despite the proven handicap of playing for a team that didn't win the pennant, Mattingly overwhelmingly defeated Brett, 367-274, in the American League Most Valuable Player voting.
How Mattingly did it was simple: by the numbers. His league leading 145 RBIs were the most in the A.L. since Cleveland's Al Rosen [drove in] 145 in 1953, and the most by a Yankees player since Joe DiMaggio's 155 in 1948. His 48 doubles were the second highest total in Yankee annals behind Lou Gehrig's 52 in 1927. His 211 hits were the most by a Yankees player since Red Rolfe's 213 in 1939. And combined with the 207 he accumulated in winning the A.L. batting title in 1984, it made him the first man in pinstripes since DiMaggio in 1936-37 to compile back-to-back 200-hit seasons.
Ironically, the 1985 season began for Mattingly amid somewhat of a cloud of uncertainty. Just prior to coming to spring training, he suffered a minor tear of the cartilage in his right knee. The injury required surgery and prevented him from participating in spring training for the first eighteen exhibition games. But in his first spring at-bat, Mattingly relieved most of the doubt regarding his recovery by slamming a home run. A storybook MVP season had been inaugurated.
Nevertheless, Mattingly began the '85 season slowly. He was batting only .267 on April 18 and did not hit his first home run until May 5. But from June 22-July 12 he embarked on a 20-game hitting streak (32-for-81, .395, 11 runs, nine doubles, three homers and 21 RBIs). Later, in August, he would hit safely in another 19 straight games (35-for-79, .443, 25 runs, 10 homers and 21 RBIs). In addition, Mattingly demonstrated his all-around skills by completing a streak of 153 errorless games (1,371 chances at first base) dating back to June 22, 1984 and finished with a league leading .995 percentage.
Although the Yankees' bid for their first pennant since 1981 fell short by two games, Mattingly proved himself to be clearly the outstanding player in the American League and their most indispensable player. A true gamer, he played in a team high 159 games- a Yankees record for first basemen- and became the first player to lead the majors in RBIs and strike out as few as 41 times since 1954. The baseball writers agreed that, while Brett was the dominating force on the team that won it all, Mattingly was still the dominant force in the American League."

-The New York Yankees Official 1986 Yearbook

"A phenomenal 1985 season, displaying prowess with bat and glove. Mattingly led the majors with 145 RBIs, 48 doubles and 15 sacrifice flies and led the American League with 370 total bases, 21 game winning RBIs and 86 extra-base hits. He was second in the AL with 211 hits, a .567 slugging percentage and 66 multiple hit games, third with a .324 batting average, fourth with 35 home runs and tied for sixth with 107 runs. Don led AL first basemen with a .995 fielding percentage.
His 145 RBIs were the most by a Yankee since Joe DiMaggio had 155 in 1948 and he was the first Yankee to lead the AL in RBIs since Roger Maris in 1961. His 211 hits were the most by a Yankee since Red Rolfe's 213 in 1939, and the sixth highest total in Yankee history, and Mattingly was the first Yankee to collect 200+ hits in consecutive seasons since DiMaggio in 1936-37. He was the first AL player to lead the majors in doubles in consecutive seasons since Tris Speaker in 1920-23. His 48 doubles were the second highest single season total in Yankee history- Lou Gehrig holds the club record with 52 in 1927.
His 652 at-bats is the seventh highest total in Yankee history and he was the first Yankee to have 600+ at-bats in consecutive seasons since Chris Chambliss in 1977-78. Don's 159 games led the team and were the most ever by a Yankee in a single season at first base.
Don suffered a minor tear of the medial meniscus cartilage in his right knee in February while working out with weights at his Evansville, Indiana home. He underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair the damage on February 22 and his rehabilitation caused him to miss the first 18 spring training games. Don made a spectacular spring debut, homering in his first at-bat on March 26.
From April 18 to May 3 he went 19-for-51 for a .373 batting average with five doubles and 13 RBIs, raising his [season] batting average from .267 to .325. He didn't hit his first home run until May 5, off KC's Bud Black. Mattingly's batting average tailed off to .285 on June 8 following an 0-for-19 streak (his longest 0-for of '85), yet he had a 20-game hitting streak, June 22-July 12, the longest of '85 by a Yankee and longest of his career- he went 32-for-81 for a .395 BA with 11 runs, nine doubles, three homers and 21 RBIs. He committed his first error on July 7 against Minnesota, breaking a streak of 153 games (1,371 total chances), dating back to June 22, 1984, of not committing an error at first base.
Don had a 19-game hitting streak from August 1-21, going 35-for-79, .443 BA with 25 runs, seven doubles, 10 homers and 21 RBIs. He drove in Rickey Henderson with 56 of his 145 RBIs. Batting second in 58 games, Don was 86-for-242, .355, 20 homers and 50 RBIs (Yankees' record 39-19), and batting third in 98 games he was 124-for-399, .311 BA, 15 homers and 91 RBIs (Yankees' record 55-44).
[In 1985 Mattingly was] American League Most Valuable Player, Rawlings Gold Glove first baseman, American League All-Star, American League Player of the Month (August & September), American League Player of the Week (August 5-11), New York Daily News Player of the Month (July, August & September), Yankees Magazine Most Popular Yankee, Yankees Magazine Player of the Month (July, August & September), SportsChannel Most Valuable Player, The Sporting News AL Player of the Year and New York Chapter BBWAA Player of the Year. [In 1985 Mattingly was named to] The Sporting News AL All-Star team, Seagram's 7-Crown of Sports All-Star Team, Associated Press All-Star Team, United Press International All-Star Team and the Sporting News Silver Slugger All-Star Team.
In 1984, Mattingly became the first Yankee to win the AL batting championship since Mickey Mantle in 1956, battling teammate Dave Winfield to the last day of the season and winning .343 to .340. He was named to his first AL All-Star team in his first full major league season. Don led the AL with 207 hits, 44 doubles and 59 multiple-hit games, was second with a .537 slugging percentage and was the Yankees' first left-handed batter to hit .340 since Lou Gehrig hit .351 in 1937. At .364, he was the top road hitter in the AL. He led AL first basemen with a .996 fielding percentage, making only five errors in 1,236 total chances.
Don had a terrific rookie season in 1983. He won the James P. Dawson Award as the top Yankee rookie in spring training camp and was in the Yankees starting lineup for the home opener. Optioned to Columbus on April 14, he hit eight home runs with 39 RBI and a .340 average there and was recalled on June 20 when Bobby Murcer retired. Don hit his first major league homer off John Tudor on June 24 at Fenway Park. He hit in 24 of 25 games, July 13- August 11, going hitless (0-for-2) in both ends of the Pine Tar Game (July 24 and August 18). He played one-third of an inning at second base in the August 18 conclusion of the Pine Tar Game.
He was named South Atlantic League MVP in 1980. In 1981, Mattingly was Yankee Minor League Player of the Year, led the Southern League in doubles and was named to the Southern League and Topps Class AA All-Star teams as an outfielder. He was named an International League All-Star as an outfielder in 1982 and his outstanding season earned him a promotion to the Yankees in September.
Don was drafted late as teams expected him to accept a college scholarship. Signed by Yankee scouts Jax Robertson and Gust Poulos, he had a .332 (611-for-1842) career minor league batting average.
He attended Evansville (IN) Memorial High where he played baseball, basketball and football. Don played Little League, Babe Ruth and American Legion ball in Evansville. His brother Randy played pro football.
Don enjoys racquetball."

-1986 New York Yankees Information Guide