Don Mattingly might be the manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers but when he was a player he had few peers, at least for a few years with the Yankees when he was healthy. Mattingly was part of an era when the Yankees weren’t a dominating team. That didn’t stop him from winning the A.L. MVP Award in 1985. In 1985, Mattingly played in 159 games for the Yankees in which he was 211 of 652 (.324 avg, .939 OPS) with 107 runs scored, 35 homers and a major league leading 145 RBIs. Mattingly was a wizard with the bat that year as he only struck out 41 times while walking 56 times, showing just what kind of eye he had at the plate. Mattingly followed up his 1985 season with another great year in 1986. In 1986, Mattingly had 238 hits and 53 doubles which are still all-time high marks in New York Yankees’ history. Mattingly played in 1,785 games in his 14 years with the Yankees and he is 2,153 of 7,003 (.307 avg, .830 OPS) with 1,007 runs scored, 222 homers, 1,099 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. He only whiffed 444 times with the Yankees while walking 588 times showing his plate discipline. Mattingly is #9 in Yankees’ history in games played (1,785), #7 in hits (2,153), #10 in batting average (.307), #10 in runs scored (1,007), #10 in RBIs (1,099) and he’s #4 in doubles (442). Mattingly was an All-Star six times for the Yankees and he won 9 Gold Gloves showing that he was much more than just a hitter. Those numbers likely aren’t good enough to get Mattingly in the Hall of Fame, but if he never hurt his back he would have with little doubt made it to Cooperstown.

I remember seeing the headline on August 2nd, 1979 but it just didn’t sink in for a long time as I was only 10 years old when Thurman Munson died in a plane crash in Canton, Ohio. Munson was quite a loss both on and off the field for the Yankees as he was the team captain for a while. I remember when the Yankees acquired Reggie Jackson from the A’s as Munson and he never seemed to get along. Munson burst onto the scene for the Yankees in 1970 when he won the Rookie of the Year Award. He played in 132 games in 1970 for the Yankees and he was 137 of 453 (.302 avg, .801 OPS) with 59 runs scored, 6 homers, 53 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Munson then won the MVP Award in the American League in 1976 when he played in 152 games for the Yankees in which he was 186 of 616 (.302 avg, .769 OPS) with 79 runs scored, 17 homers, 105 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Munson was a 7-time All-Star with the Yankees and he won 3 Gold Gloves. Munson played in 1,423 games in his 11 years with the Yanks and he was 1,558 of 5,903 (.292 avg, .756 OPS) with 696 runs scored, 113 homers, 701 RBIs and 48 stolen bases. Munson might be gone but he will never be forgotten in New York as he was one of the best catchers in team history.

Lefty starting pitcher Ron “Louisiana Lightning” Guidry was one of the best left-handed pitchers in Yankees’ history. He pitched in 368 games (323 starts) in his career with the Yankees and he was 170-91 with a 3.29 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. But, it was 1978 when he won his only Cy Young Award that he was devastating. He pitched in 35 games (all starts) in 1978 for the Yanks and he was 25-3 with a 1.74 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP. He threw 273 2/3 innings that year allowing only 187 hits while whiffing 248 batters showing how nasty he was. He also threw 16 complete games that year in which he shut out the opposition 9 times! You’ll never see numbers like that again. So Guidry is #10 all-time in games pitched (368) in Yankees’ history. He also is #5 in starts (323), #5 in wins (170), #2 in strikeouts (1,778) and he is tied for sixth in shut outs with Spud Chandler with 26.

Reggie Jackson was a perfect fit for the New York Yankees as he played in the All-Star game every year he played for them (1977-1981). He called himself the “straw that stirs the drink” for the Yankees. He played in 653 games during the regular season for the Yankees and he was 661 for 2,349 (.281 avg, .897 OPS) with 380 runs scored, 144 homers, 461 RBIs and 41 stolen bases. Jackson was so arrogant that both home and opposing fans used to throw coins at him while he was playing in RF. He often picked them up and put them in his pocket thanking the fans for a raise. But where Mr. Jackson really made his make was in the post season. He played in 34 games in the post season for the Yankees and he was 39 for 119 (.328 avg) with 26 runs scored, 12 homers, 29 RBIs and 2 stolen bases earning him the moniker of Mr. October. In 1977, Jackson played in 6 games in the World Series against the rival Los Angeles Dodgers and he was 9 for 20 (.450 avg, 1.792 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 5 homers and 8 RBIs helping the Yanks with the series 4 games to 2. The Yankees played in the World Series three times with Reggie Jackson on the team winning two of them. Jackson was only with the Yankees five years but he has his own niche in team history.