MIAMI (AP) 鈥 Don Mattingly wants what鈥檚 best for the Miami Marlins, what鈥檚 best for him and what鈥檚 best for his family.
And he decided that means it鈥檚 time to move on.
Mattingly will not be back as manager of the Marlins next season, announcing Sunday that he and team officials have decided a new voice is needed to lead the club going forward.
Mattingly鈥檚 contract expires when the season ends. He said he met with Marlins principal owner Bruce Sherman and general manager Kim Ng to talk about the future, and 鈥渁ll parties agreed鈥 it鈥檚 time for a change.
鈥淚 think always, you try to follow your heart,鈥 Mattingly said Sunday. 鈥淎nd that鈥檚 what I do. Honestly, you know what鈥檚 inside of you and you try to be deliberate and let things work through, and you just follow your heart and you know when it鈥檚 the right thing.鈥
His short-term plan, after the season ends: Spending time with family at his home in Evansville, Indiana. After that, whatever happens happens.
鈥淚 am proud and honored to have served as manager of the Marlins for the past seven years and have enjoyed my experiences and relationships I鈥檝e developed within the organization,鈥 Mattingly said.
Mattingly, the club鈥檚 all-time leader in managerial wins by a wide margin, is finishing his seventh season with the Marlins. He鈥檚 437-584 in Miami, with one winning season in those seven years 鈥 a 31-29 mark in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season when the team made its first playoff appearance since 2003.
鈥淚n general, the clubs I鈥檝e had have always played hard,鈥 Mattingly said. 鈥淚鈥檝e always felt proud of that.鈥
His decision means a season that started with a big shakeup for Miami now ends with another. In February, Hall of Famer Derek Jeter 鈥 who had been Miami鈥檚 CEO, the first Black person in baseball history to hold that role with a franchise 鈥 announced a surprise departure after 4 1/2 mostly unsuccessful years that didn鈥檛 come remotely close to matching his success as a player for the New York Yankees.
Now comes the Mattingly move, which means someone else will be in charge when the team gathers for spring training.
鈥淒onnie is one of my favorites,鈥 Washington manager Dave Martinez said Sunday. 鈥淲e go way back, played against him. He鈥檚 just a really good baseball man. I love him to death. I learned a lot from him, watching and competing against him for many years.鈥
The 61-year-old Mattingly has managed for 12 seasons, the first five with the Los Angeles Dodgers. All five of those Dodgers clubs had winning records, three of them making the playoffs.
The Marlins were hoping for similar success, but it didn鈥檛 happen as planned. Mattingly was the NL Manager of the Year in 2020 after getting Miami to the playoffs, but other than that, the franchise has been in a mode of constant rebuilding.
鈥淲e are fortunate to have had Don Mattingly leading our team on the field over the last seven years,鈥 Sherman said. 鈥淗e has represented the Marlins, our players, our fans, and the South Florida community with unmatched dignity and pride.鈥
Sunday鈥檚 news came on the sixth anniversary of the darkest day in team history, when Marlins ace Jose Fernandez and two other people died when their 32-foot boat slammed into a jetty off Miami Beach on Sept. 25, 2016.
The charismatic, exuberant Fernandez, who was beloved in Miami鈥檚 Latin community and touted as the future of the franchise, went 38-17 in his four seasons with the club, winning the NL Rookie of the Year award in 2013 and being named a two-time All-Star.
Fernandez鈥檚 death, which came at the end of Mattingly鈥檚 first season, set the Marlins back. But Mattingly guided them through, ending what was a 17-year playoff drought in 2020.
鈥淒onnie鈥檚 just the consummate professional and a tremendous person,鈥 Ng said during Sunday鈥檚 game. 鈥淗e鈥檚 led the organization through some pretty tough times, particularly early in his tenure, then in the last couple of years with the pandemic and the lockout.鈥
Ng said the decision came after a series of conversations between Mattingly and the front office, with the soon-to-be-former skipper deciding not to pursue a new contract and the team deciding it wouldn鈥檛 be offering one.
鈥淭his year was very disappointing,鈥 Ng said. 鈥淲e had a lot of bad luck in terms of injuries. The record is not indicative of the talent that we have. We have to do a lot of introspection in terms of our processes and operations on how we fix that. I鈥檓 still optimistic about what we鈥檝e got here.鈥
The Marlins haven鈥檛 spent a day in first place since Aug. 16, 2020. Outside of a few random April days, they haven鈥檛 seen first place in a regular 162-game season since June 2014. And this season will mark the 12th time in the last 13 years that they鈥檒l finish with a losing record.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know what his plans are moving forward but he will be missed,鈥 Martinez said. 鈥淚 wish him all the best.鈥
This much is clear: Mattingly鈥檚 revelation on Sunday wasn鈥檛 a retirement announcement.
鈥淚 feel great,鈥 Mattingly said. 鈥淢y mind still works. Some of you guys might argue differently at times, but I feel like my mind works good. My body feels great, still feel good. So, I don鈥檛 want to go sit on the couch, that鈥檚 for sure.鈥
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