Don Mattingly New York Yankees Baseballs
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Don Mattingly was a first baseman who played for the New York Yankees from 1982-1995.
He also served as the Yankees hitting coach from 2004 to 2006 and Joe Torre's bench coach in 2007.
He is currently the Los Angeles Dodgers hitting coach.
"Donnie Baseball" is one of the most popular Yankees in the team's history.
Despite not being a member of a World Series winning team, his popularity is comparable to that of Yankee greats
like Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra and Joe DiMaggio.
Since returning for the annual Old Timers' Game, Mattingly has consistently received the loudest ovations.
The New York Yankees drafted Mattingly in the 19th round of the 1979 amateur draft and soon signed him up.
Mattingly had a spectacular 1985, winning the MVP award in the American League.
He batted .324 (3rd in the league) with 35 home runs (4th), 48 doubles (1st), and 145 RBI (1st),
then the most RBIs in a season by a left-handed major league batter since Ted Williams drove in 159 in 1949.
Mattingly finished his career with 2,153 hits, 222 home runs, 1,099 RBI, and a .307 lifetime average.
He is commonly cited as the best Yankee player to have never played in a World Series.
As to Mattingly's induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame,
detractors point to his relatively short career and that most of his offensive credentials were compacted
into six quality seasons from 1984 to 1989.
