Don Mattingly returns this weekend to the Bronx, where his best years as a player always ended when the regular season did.
Now Mattingly is enjoying perhaps his best year as a manager, leading the Miami Marlins as they try to extend their improbable season into next week.
His young team is staggering toward the finish line, with four consecutive losses heading into Thursday night’s game in Atlanta. But “Nobody picked this club to be able to do anything this season, but we believed in ourselves,” Mattingly said. “It’s easy to be proud of these guys, the way they have dealt with everything.