Derek Jeter gives Don Mattingly a vote of confidence
In the midst of another rebuild, Derek Jeter said Don Mattingly will be the Miami Marlins manager next year.
The Miami Marlins are no stranger to rebuilds, and a new ownership group with Derek Jeter as the face tore down the roster last offseason. Gone were Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna and Dee Gordon, so a 59-93 record entering Friday is not that surprising. Also not surprisingly, the Marlins will finish last in MLB in attendance this year and last in specifically National League attendance for the 13th time in the last 14 seasons.
Under that circumstance, manager Don Mattingly could be on shaky ground looking toward 2019. But according to Steven Wine of The Associated Press, Jeter committed to Mattingly being back in the dugout next year.
“Is he going to be back in 2019?” Jeter said. “He’s under contract. Yeah.”
Mattingly signed a four-year deal with the Marlins upon taking over for the 2016 season. So next year is the final year of his deal. He was accustomed to contending over five seasons as manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, with three division titles, but Mattingly said he’s on board with the rebuilding plan Jeter is leading.
"The one thing you can count on with Derek is that what he says, he’s going to do,” Mattingly said. “He talked about building the minor league system, building this thing the right way. I don’t think there’s one thing he talked about publicly that he hasn’t backed up with his actions. You trust what he says and what he’s going to do."
Next. Each MLB team's 2018 unsung hero. dark
An announcement of a contract extension for Mattingly at some point between now and Opening Day next year would show a real commitment to him as manager. But it looks like he’ll be a lame-duck in the Marlins’ dugout, with some options elsewhere sure to come his way once the 2019 season ends.