WHY NOT DONNY BASEBALL?????

Lothar52

I dont get it...he was the premier player when i was first starting to collect as a 10 year old kid....I just dont get it....i think he had a great career for the YANKEES who are a popular team and even though he dont have the STATS I would think being the spotlight in yankee stadium and thriving for the number of years he did he would get more consideration......WHY NOT DONNY BASEBALL???

easttexascardsandgames

I agree aside from maybe Jack Morris and Ron Santo he is the biggest HOF snub out there right now.

Ultimate HOF snub though is still IMHO Art Monk, how can this guy not be in the football HOF?

ctsoxfan

You mean for the HOF? Mattingly had basically 4 great seasons, and during most of the rest of his career he was bothered by injuries that slowed his production. He is an icon in NY, but even Yankee fans would agree he isn't HOF material.

metsfan

The Hall of fame is for great players,not very good players. A better question would be why should Don Mattingly be in the hall?

koby

He had so many injuries and I thought he stuck around way too long....at least five seasons. Still, I am surprised that so few of the sportswriters gave him consideration.

RepublicaninMass

<< <i>The Hall of fame is for great players,not very good players. A better question would be why should Don Mattingly be in the hall? >>


ause he had a porn star mustache?

DirtyDog48

[qause he had a porn star mustache? >>



Not only did Rollie Fingers have a porn-star moustache....he has a porn star's name!

Axtell

As much as I admire Mattingly's game, he just didn't play long enough to warrant consideration.

1977topps

Huge Yankees fan, huge Donnie Baseball fan, but sorry not a HOFer.

Lothar52

easttexascardsandgames

The Hall of fame is for great players,not very good players

Since when?? If it was for great players why are players like Bill Mazeroeski in there. Yeah he is known for one great thing but what else did he do??

Kirby Puckett could be heavily argued as not being quiet there like Mattingly, many writers gave him the vote because had injuries not ended his career he would have defintlly had a HOF career. The case for Mattingly can be argued the same way. I am not a Yankees fan and was a Puckett fan.

Axtell

I get so tired of people arguing for players who honestly shouldn't be in the hall of fame basing it on OTHER players who are there already who shouldn't be.

If you can't get in on your own merits, then arguing based on other 'bubble' type players is a flawed arguement, at best.

Donnie Baseball was a wonderful player, but he reminds me a lot of Thurman Munson-a big presence but not great enough long enough (not his fault, injuries.)

Had he put together a long career of stats like he did in his prime, then yes, but on his numbers now, no.

bobbybakeriv

I love Don Mattingly and the Yankees. However, injuries took a big toll on Donnie Baseball. He shouldn't be in the HOF IMO.

aro13

~"Since when?? If it was for great players why are players like Bill Mazeroeski in there. Yeah he is known for one great thing but what else did he do??"~

Mazeroski is the greatest defensive secondbaseman in history and perhaps the best defensive player at any position.

Wasy

Mazeroski does not belong in the Hall!!!!! Defense alone should not get you into the HoF otherwise guys like Frank White, Mark Belanger and Omar Vizquel would get in. I never saw Maz play but in my book Brooks Robinson is the greatest fielder of all time.

jayhawke

I'm sure if Mattingly had a few rings like Luis Sojo or Paul" cry baby" O'Neill or one of the many bench players from the Yankees run from 96-2000, then he would have been a first ballot HOF. You know world series ring= HOF. Of course I am being sarcastic.

Tabe

Mattingly played 14 years in the majors, 12 full-time. He was a legit star for 6 of those 12 years, 1984-89. He had 5 great years among those 6. However, the OTHER 6 years of his career were nothing. Sure, "he got injured", but he hung around and was average or below average for several years before finally retiring.

Honestly, how can you say a left-handed 1B that played at Yankee Stadium (which heavily favors lefties) that only hit 222 HRs should be in the HOF?

Tabe

Tabe

<< <i>Ultimate HOF snub though is still IMHO Art Monk, how can this guy not be in the football HOF? >>


Because he was just a possession receiver that's the football equivalent of Jim Kaat?

Tabe

jaxxr

Roger Maris, holds the longest time lasting, for the greatest record in ALL sports, is not in the Hall.

Two time MVP, championship player with the Cards as well as the Yanks, fine defensive player, very nice guy, more popular than many recent HOFers. Phil Rizzuto, Bobby Doerr, Bil Maz., ......or Roger Maris.. who is really a baseball Legend and deserves HOF status ????

Ironmanfan

If Donnie Baseball had played with the Milwaukee Brewers or the Montreal Expos no one would have even remembered him.

yankeeno7

I think one of the biggest of all misjustice of not being in the HOF is Gil Hodges!
And as for defensive players in the Hall, one name quickly comes to mind.....Ozzie Smith.
And what do we consider very good vs great? Was Bruce Sutter great? Eckersley? There has been alot of plublicity on relievers being in the Hall. (And we cant forget that for quite some time Eck was a starter).
Just my two cents

DeutscherGeist

The one major reason that Donny could be considered for the HOF is because he was a dominant defensive player, probably the top 3 at 1B all-time to be conservative, but some people think he may have been the best ever in defensive terms. We are talk ALL-TIME, not just his generation. Couple that defensive prowess with being the best player in baseball for a significant stretch (4 years) and being an above average hitter for a few more seasons after that. His career could not be measured for longevity, he really did have a short career. Sandy Koufax had less than 200 wins and no one crys over that because he had a short career, but a dominant one (best pitcher in baseball for 4 seasons). For a short career, Mattingly has impressive numbers.

Defense at 1b has been underrated. Mattingly prevented so many runs by capturing those chicken wing throws from fernandez at short stop or those terrible throws by others as well. Errors become outs with Mattingly on the field.

All-time great in defense, MVP type seasons, excellent postseason numbers, MLB baseball records, good leadership....

Mattingly's last 6 seasons were not terrible, his defense never wavered. His team would have made the playoff in 1994 had the strike not happened.

ctsoxfan

I think that's a pretty good assessment, DG. I always admired Mattingly's defensive play at first, and if his back didn't give him so much trouble over the last years of his career, he would have posted even better career numbers. Unfortunately, The Hall seems to reward "compilers" of stats, rather than players who have only a shorter period of dominant seasons to their credit.

CON40

DG;
Fair assessment of Mattingly overall, but you can't compare him to Koufax.

Mattingly hauled in one major award in his career, 1985 AL MVP and limped through the last 5 seasons of his career as a shadow of his former self. Koufax won an MVP award, 3 CY awards, 3 pitching triple crowns, 4 WS appearances, 5 consecutive ERA titles, and retired with the record for most no-hitters and single season strikeout total. The guy was a god for 6 years and walked out on top.

I think a better comparison for Mattingly would be Tony Oliva. Both started out with spectacular careers, were popular All Stars, but flamed out early due to significant injury. Unfortunately for both, they did not rocket high enough in their best years to carry them through to the Hall once the injuries took their toll.

Ironmanfan

If defense at first base mattered, Keith Hernandez would have been in a long time ago (obviously it doesn't). Defensive play did contribute to the election of players at the 'skill' positions (third, short & 2nd).

DeutscherGeist

Koufax had 4 of the most dominant seasons of any pitcher in a given career. It is hard to compare a pitcher to a hitter, but I did so because Mattingly and Koufax both had short careers and a stretch of dominance--they were the best for a significant stint. However, hitters have more players to compete with than pitchers do, so that is why the star of Koufax shone much brighter than Mattingly's 4 year run. Koufax won more accolades than Mattingly? Let's test this....

Mattingly did have the MVP in 1985, but he was second in 1986 (losing not to a hitter, but a pitcher). In 1984, he won the batting title and almost won the MVP too. In 1987, he made a serious run at MVP too, but instead broke some MLB records that still stand today (most grand slams in a season among one of them). Let us not forget that he also got an RBI title as well as a string of doubles titles in that same span. He led his team to the cusp of getting a playoff berth in 1980's, but it is unfair to blame him for not getting it as one player in baseball is not the same as one player in basketball. A good pitcher will always seem more dominating than a good hitter.

One could say that Mattingly's 4 year run was not as outstanding as that of Koufax, but that conclusion is really not easy to convince. Its hard to compare pitchers and hitters. But I will say this: both were considered the best at what they did during their prime.

If it weren't for Mattingly's defensive dominance, I would have to say he does not deserve to be in the HOF. Those Gold gloves tip the scale for me.

I am also a big John Olerud fan, and while he is virtually a statistical clone to Mattingly, he is not a HOF yet. He was never dominant in a single factor for the majority of his career and did not nearly compile as much accolades as Mattingly. Olerud might have been the best in 1993, but that is just one year and still no MVP. Sure there were more teams in Olerud's era, and more players to compete with, but there is no case yet.

Axtell

Why do people insist on bringing up other HoF'ers stats to make the case for those they want in? If you can't make a case on their numbers alone, then your player doesn't deserve to be in. I'm sorry, I know it hurts, but it's the truth.

Quit bringing up other marginal HoF'ers, and use Donnie's own numbers...when you do that, you'll clearly see that Mattingly does not belong.

jayhawke

"Quit bringing up other marginal HoF'ers, and use Donnie's own numbers...when you do that, you'll clearly see that Mattingly does not belong."


It's called trying to get in through the back door.

CON40

Mattingly did have the MVP in 1985, but he was second in 1986 (losing not to a hitter, but a pitcher). In 1984, he won the batting title and almost won the MVP too. In 1987, he made a serious run at MVP too, but instead broke some MLB records that still stand today (most grand slams in a season among one of them). Let us not forget that he also got an RBI title as well as a string of doubles titles in that same span. He led his team to the cusp of getting a playoff berth in 1980's, but it is unfair to blame him for not getting it as one player in baseball is not the same as one player in basketball. A good pitcher will always seem more dominating than a good hitter.

Woulda, shoulda, coulda... when you have to start digging into second place MVP finishes and the "cusp of the playoffs" to make your case, you know you have no case.

To argue your point that hitters with short careers are slighted by the Hall, I can debunk that statement with two words: Joe DiMaggio.

Tabe

<< <i>Couple that defensive prowess with being the best player in baseball for a significant stretch (4 years) >>


What 4 year stretch was that?

1984-87? When Dale Murphy was putting up 36/110/.290 every year while winning a Gold Glove at a far more difficult position (CF)? And stealing 20 bases a year too?



<< <i>and being an above average hitter for a few more seasons after that. >>


Donnie was still a good hitter until 1989. After that, his BEST season was 17/86/.291 - not even average for a 1B.



<< <i> For a short career, Mattingly has impressive numbers. >>


He played, essentially, 13 full seasons in the majors. Ended up with 222 HR and 1099 RBI. That's 17 HR and 80 RBI per year. Hardly impressive.



<< <i>Defense at 1b has been underrated. Mattingly prevented so many runs by capturing those chicken wing throws from fernandez at short stop or those terrible throws by others as well. Errors become outs with Mattingly on the field. >>


That's true. But it's also been proven over and over that a good defensive 1B isn't key to a winning team.



<< <i>Mattingly's last 6 seasons were not terrible, his defense never wavered. His team would have made the playoff in 1994 had the strike not happened. >>


As I said above, his BEST year was 17 HR and 86 RBI in those 6 years. Sorry, but for a 1B, that's just not good!

Tabe

metsfan

I agree with axtell. Why do you people compare players at different positions?
I read an article in the NY Daily News,where the writer says if Wade Boggs belongs in the Hall,then so does Don Mattingly. Huh! Mattingly was a first baseman,and Boggs was a third baseman.
Also, How is Don Mattingly one of the top 3 defensive 1b of all time? I would like to see some proof of that.