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It Could Very Well Be Time For The Dodgers To Move Past Don Mattingly

By Keith Rivas

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Posting a .500 or better win percentage in each of your first five seasons would be enough to keep most managerial jobs — but is Don Mattingly at the helm coming into question for the Dodgers?

As it stands at the moment, the Dodgers are just a half-game ahead of the San Francisco Giants for the NL West division lead.

While there is still TONS of baseball left to be played, you can’t help but hope that this will be one of the last seasons where things are so flip-flop from the dugout to the diamond.

At the head of the mess stands Don Mattingly, a man that’s brought decency back to Dodger baseball after they fell out of the spotlight, or at least serious contention for a while.

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Mattingly has also been part of the Dodgers as they to breed, as best they can, the identity of their next big name in Yasiel Puig.

Puig emerged out of the dark not long ago, and Mattingly’s decision-making regarding whether to play, sit, or send Puig to the minors on a rehab assignment or two has played a major part in how the young Cuban’s career has played out so far.

But are the Dodgers ready for the next chapter?

If Los Angeles fails to make the playoffs this year or finds themselves in another early exit thanks to the St. Louis Cardinals — who are the usual criminals — or someone else in the National League, it could be the final punch on Mattingly’s ticket out of town.

Why? The answer is simple.

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    • The Dodgers want to win, and they want to win now.

    As always has been in Los Angeles, winning is pretty much everything.

    You could look at the Lakers’ historic number of championship banners in Staples Center, the pushes from the Clippers and Angels to finally get a title all their own, or even the two Stanley Cup banners achieved in historic fashion by none other than the Kings.

    So at the end of the day, if a championship isn’t in the picture in the immediate future, those in charge are going to be held responsible by fans of that team regardless of how the regular season turns out.

    Even Byron Scott of the Lakers is on the hot seat after just one season because of the legacy we are all used to seeing from the purple and gold.

    As fans, and moving forward, we shouldn’t look at Mattingly in a bad light.

    He’s not a bad manager, he just might not be the best fit when looking at things long term.

    And that’s okay.

    He’s increased his wins in each of his past four complete seasons as a part of the Dodgers organization, totaling 82, 86, 92, and 94 respectively.

    Bottom Line: Success in October is key to keeping the job

    But what will 2015 hold?

    I say we do what sports at the professional level does best (in most cases).

    Let’s leave it all on the field and when it’s all said and done have no regrets and wish him the best either way.

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