THE MULLET

October 26, 2023

Good evening. This is Dead Legends. The daily newsletter that loves baseball as much as Larry David hates wobbly tables and soft scones.

Let’s dive in.

Today’s story is about a hall of famer who got benched over his hair.

Donnie Baseball aka Don Mattingly, has a laundry list of baseball accolades.

Here’s a few notches he’s got in his belt:

  • MVP Award Winner

  • Nine-time Gold Glover

  • Six-time All Star

  • Three-time Silver Slugger

  • Manager of the Year

From ‘84-’89, Donnie absolutely dominated baseball, but by ‘91 he was starting to slow down due to back injuries.

His team was also an absolute dumpster fire that season - they lost 91 games.

Mattingly's mullet was the one thing that was actually working that year.

Look at this beautiful head of lettuce - flawlessly executed.

His manager, Stump Merrill, wasn’t feeling Donnie’s look, though.

On August 15th, Merrill gave Mattingly and three other players an ultimatum: cut your hair, or ride the bench.

Ultimately, they all did, but Mattingly was so pissed off by the request that he chose to sit that game in protest.

The next day he chopped his locks, auctioned them off, and raised $3,000 for charity; then he went on a seven-game hit streak.

Touché.

FROZEN IN TIME

People say a picture is worth a thousand words, but these?

They're like a whole novel.

Quick Links:

And there’s a lot more where that came from…

Our friends at Steiner Sports have thousands of autographed photos and other memorabilia to help you relive the greatest moments in sports.

BASEBALL TRIVIA

STRANGE NAMES

If you're just joining us, we play this game every day where we try to find the weirdest names throughout baseball history.

Why? Don't ask us, it's just something we like to do.

If you've been rocking with us for awhile now, you know what time it is.

Today's winner is:

William Denton Gray aka “Dolly” was a great pitcher when he played in the Pacific Coast League, but when he joined the Washington Senators in 1909, he completely shit the bed.

For three years straight, Dolly struggled and ultimately he ended his big league career with a record of 15-51.

His winning percentage of .227 is the worst for any American League pitcher with 50 or more decisions.

During that performance, he walked seven consecutive batters (eight total) in the second inning before going on throw a one-hitter.

THE DEAD LEGENDS ARCHIVE

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