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Congrats to Don Mattingly who was voted 2020 National League Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA), as announced Tuesday on MLB Network. The Marlins skipper received 20 of the 30 first-place votes to comfortably beat out San Diego’s Jayce Tingler and Chicago’s David Ross for the award. Kevin Cash of the Tampa Bay Rays got American League honors.
That’s my manager https://t.co/WO8bbun7wg
— Miguel Rojas (@MRojasOfficial) November 10, 2020
Mattingly received 124 points during the balloting, the highest total for any Manager of the Year in either league since Terry Francona (AL, 2016). However, Cash surpassed him a few minutes later with 126 points. Complete voting results have been posted to the BBWAA’s website.
MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro succinctly made the case for why Mattingly was so deserving of recognition (Frisaro is a BBWAA member, but didn’t vote for the award this year):
Mattingly’s even-headed demeanor was crucial in an unprecedented year where MLB and the world dealt with the coronavirus pandemic. No manager dealt with more adversity than Mattingly. In the first week of the season alone, the Marlins had 18 players test COVID-19 positive. At the time, the team spent more than a week self-quarantined in a hotel in Philadelphia. When they were cleared to play, the Marlins rolled off five straight wins. In all, the Marlins used 61 different players, including 18 players making their MLB debuts. Mattingly admitted there were times he didn’t recognize either the names or faces of some of the players added to the roster. Yet, he repeatedly made no excuses.
This was the 59-year-old’s 10th season as a major league manager—he held that position for the Dodgers (2011-2015) and has been in Miami ever since. He’s only the fifth individual to win both the AL/NL MVP and Manager of the Year awards (h/t MLB Network).
There was serious doubt in late 2019 about Mattingly remaining with the Marlins. His contract was expiring and the club was careening towards a 57-105 record (second-worst in franchise history based on both winning percentage and Pythagorean winning percentage). However, they agreed to an extension that September...on the condition that he accept a reduced salary. The deal is guaranteed through the 2021 season with an option for 2022.
Jack McKeon (2003) and Joe Girardi (2006) similarly overachieved with “rebuilding” Marlins teams en route to winning NL Manager of the Year.
Miami/Florida Marlins BBWAA Award Winners, 1993-Present
| Name | Year | Award |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Year | Award |
| Dontrelle Willis | 2003 | NL Rookie of the Year |
| Jack McKeon | 2003 | NL Manager of the Year |
| Hanley Ramírez | 2006 | NL Rookie of the Year |
| Joe Girardi | 2006 | NL Manager of the Year |
| Chris Coghlan | 2009 | NL Rookie of the Year |
| José Fernández | 2013 | NL Rookie of the Year |
| Giancarlo Stanton | 2017 | NL Most Valuable Player |
| Don Mattingly | 2020 | NL Manager of the Year |
Here are a few of my favorite Mattingly GIFs from 2020:
The Fish Stripes GIF Database contains more than 300 original Marlins-related GIFs, and it’ll continue to expand during the MLB offseason. To receive full access, send a $5 payment to fishstripes on Venmo and a blank email message to Ely.Sussman@gmail.com with “GIF Database” in the subject line.