A lot of people go to Miami to retire. Don Mattingly went to Miami to rejuvenate his career.
The new Miami Marlins manager reiterated that he felt it was the right time to leave the Los Angeles Dodgers after last season.
He enters his first season in Miami unchained from the expectations of winning a title in Dodger blue for the last few seasons. He left the West Coast for the East Coast in search of his freedom.
The 54-year-old manager led Los Angeles to three consecutive NL West titles but failed to get the well-financed Dodgers into the World Series, and that took a toll on him.
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"I'm proud of what we were able to accomplish (in Los Angeles),'' Mattingly said, "but it obviously wasn't everything we wanted to accomplish. We did a good job, but we didn't get to where we ultimately wanted to go.''
The Dodgers front office wanted Mattingly to make changes that he wasn't willing to make after last season, which ended up in a NL Divisional Series loss to the New York Mets, and that led to their breakup.
"I'm not going to get into what last year was like,'' Mattingly said. "I really liked working with (President) Andrew (Friedman) and (GM) Farhan (Zaidi) and those guys. Those guys are sharp guys. I think a lot was made up of that they forced a lineup on me and told me exactly who to play. It really wasn't like that. Everything was a collaboration.
"Obviously, analytics is a big part of what they do, and quite honestly, it was a good experience. I just think too much was made out of it.''
In talking about what lured him to Florida, Mattingly said, "Jeffrey (Marlins owner Loria) and I became friends over the last few years. That is great for our relationship as far as having to talk.
"But if we had won the World Series, I probably wouldn't be here today.''
In Miami, Mattingly seemingly will have the peace of mind that eluded him when the Dodgers failed to win a championship last season.
"Certainly, life will be different in South Florida," USA Today reported. "He's going to have more control of his club. More freedom to make out the lineups. Less second-guessing."
"It's a situation,'' Mattingly said, "where I am comfortable where I am.''
Time will tell if the change or scenery helps Mattingly better showcase his skills as a manager.
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