There sometimes comes a player who might not be the best on the team, but his contributions are admirable, The perennial bench guy… and not some super-sub like Kike, but a guy who has the ability to keep the team lose, and make some positive impact on the team. Mickey Hatcher was one of those guys.
Michael Vaughn Hatcher was born on March 15th, 1955 in Cleveland Ohio. He played in the big leagues from 1979 to 1990. Mickey went to high school in Mesa, Arizona. He then went to Mesa Community College where he was twice named an All-American in football and baseball. His #81 football jersey was later retired. After community college, he went to the University of Oklahoma where he again played football and baseball. He was a wide receiver on the 1976 Fiesta Bowl team.
He was drafted twice, 1974 by the Astros in the 12th round and again in 1976 by the Mets in the second round. He signed with the Dodgers in 1977 after being drafted in the 5th round of the June draft. He was sent to Clinton of the Class A Northwest league as an outfielder.
The following season, Hatch spent time between AA, San Antonio, and AAA Albuquerque. He also started playing both 1st and 3rd base at both stops. When he finally made it to the majors he not only played all 3 outfield positions but 3rd and 1st as well. After hitting .371 with 10 HR’s and 93 RBI’s and 88 runs for the Dukes, Hatch was promoted to the Dodgers.
He made his major league debut on August 3rd, 1979, subbing for Ron Cey. He was credited with an RBI drawing a bases-loaded walk in the 7th inning. He went on to hit .269 in 33 games. He had 1 HR and 5 RBI’s. In 1978 he was back at Albuquerque knocking the ball around at a .359 clip and was recalled to the big club. He did not fare as well, hitting .226 in 57 games with again 1 and 5.
Plunkett: Hatcher is very misunderstood. Everyone knows his reputation as a joker when he was playing and think all he does as hitting coach is put fake poop on the clubhouse carpet. Uh, no – Mickey’s still a fun-loving guy but he works very hard as hitting coach. Always available to work with hitters in cage, early BP, etc. That’s the No. 1 thing players want. Players will turn on a hitting coach (any coach) in a heartbeat if they don’t feel he’s working hard. Now – I don’t think Mickey is big on video analysis. That seems to be something hitters do on their own (if they’re inclined that way). Mickey is more of a supportive coach, willing to work with whatever the hitter wants to achieve/adjust.
In March of 1981, Mickey, along with Mathew Reeves and Kelly Snider, was traded to the Minnesota Twins for outfielder, Ken Landreaux. The move greatly impacted the 1981 Championship Dodger team and allowed Hatcher to get more playing time with the Twins.
Mickey hit .255 with the Twins in 99 games. In 377 at-bats he only struck out 29 times. He hit 3 HR’s and drove in 37. In 82 his BA dropped to .249. He had 100 fewer at-bats and played in only 84 games, mainly as a sub. Throughout his career, his versatility was his value to the teams he played for.
In 1983, Mickey had his best season in the majors to that point. He hit .317 in 106 games, had 9 HR’s and 47 RBI’s, and only struck out 19 times in 375 at-bats. I wish Chris Taylor could put up those kinds of stats. In 1984, he played more games than he would at any time in his career. 152. He had a career-high in hits with 174, 35 doubles, 5 triples, and 5 HRs. He drove in 69 and only struck out 34 times in 576 at-bats. He hit .302.
1985. Hatch hit .282 in 116 games. He had 28 doubles, 3 HR’s and drove in 49. He did not supply the kind of power one would expect out of an atypical 3rd baseman or 1st baseman of the day. But he was a solid player all the same. In 1986 his numbers went down a little as he hit .278 in 115 games. His homer total stayed the same, but his RBI’s dropped to 32. He still did not strike out much, only 26 times in 317 at-bats.
In March of 1987, Mickey was released by the Twins, and on April 10th he signed with the Dodgers as a free agent. Returning to the team that drafted him, Hatch played in 101 games, hitting .282 with 7 HRs and 42 RBIs. He again showed consistent contact at the plate striking out 19 times in 287 at-bats. He also kept the clubhouse in a light mood with his energy and sense of humor. Mickey would sprint to first base when he drew a walk.
In 1988, his playing time dwindled with guys like Marshall, Shelby, and Gibson patrolling the outfield, and Stubbs, Griffin, Hamilton, and Sax on the infield. But Mickey and his fellow subs were dubbed the Stunt Men by Hatcher. They consisted of Stubbs, Danny Heep, Rick Dempsey, Jeff Hamilton, and Dave Anderson. Hamilton actually got the most starts at 3rd and Stubbs was the primary 1st baseman. With guys like Mike Sharperson, Pedro Guererro, before he was traded to the Cardinals for Tudor, and Tracy Woodson getting some action too. Mike Davis, the free-agent signing who had an awful year, and Mike Devereaux, Chris Gwynn, and Jose Gonzalez, all getting some time in the outfield.
But when the 1988 World Series rolled around, the stuntmen would take a major role in helping the team win the series. None more than Mickey Hatcher. Hatch played only 88 games that year, hitting .293 with 1 HR and 25 RBI’s. But with Kirk Gibson hurt, and most likely out for the series, Hatch, who hit only .238 in the NLCS against the Mets was thrust into a starting role.
He filled in brilliantly. He hit .368 in the series, and hit 2 HR’s and drove in 5. He had exactly the same number of homers as the Bash Brothers, Canseco and McGwire, and one less run batted in. And although he did not get the honor, I thought he was the Dodgers MVP of the series. His HR in the bottom of the 1st inning was classic and he sprinted around the bases. He said he never developed a HR trot, he never had much practice at it. 39 career HR’s prove his point. He did though make contact a lot, his career K %, 6.8.
He hit .295 in 1989 in 94 games, but slipped to .212 in 1990 in 84 games and then retired after the season. Hatcher would keep the clubhouse loose and would perform various presentations to the tune of ” The Mickey Mouse Club” song. His Fleer 1986, and Upper Deck cards featured photos with his Giant glove.
Mickey was a hitting coach with the Rangers in 93 and 94. He then took over as manager of the Dodgers Great Falls teams in 96 and 97. In 1998, he started out as the manager of the San Bernardino Stampede before coming to the Dodgers in mid-season as the hitting coach. In 2000, he joined former teammate, Mike Scioscia as the Angels batting coach. He got another series ring in 2002 when the Angels beat the Giants in the series. He was fired in 2012 after the Angels got off to a 16-21 start. He was hired that June to a position with the Dodgers, special assistant to the GM. That position was not renewed in 2013.
Mickey and his wife Patty have 2 children. I loved watching the guy play. He was that much fun to watch. They still show the clip of him collapsing at home plate exhausted after botching a slide to the plate on the Dodger Stadium screen sometimes. The leader of the “Stunt Men” Is a real Dodger legend.
Gonsolin was very good last night. If only the Giants would start to lose .
Page with Nr. 31 for GL.
If not for Orels epic performance in the WS Mickey would and should have been MVP. What a character.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mickey Hatcher was one of my favorites on the ’88 champion team, that way of running after hitting a homerun.
And today Wednesday and tomorrow Thursday, SD is going to win.
Time to get closer to a one game!
I always liked Hatcher, and to me that 6.8% K rate is so outstanding. He was just fun to watch.
I enjoyed your write up about Mickey H., Bear! One thing though: didn’t he have a kind of funny way of running? I seem to remember watching him play and thinking to myself, this is one of the least athletic looking guys I’ve ever seen playing baseball. And now I learn from you that he was also a college football star. Who knew? And I agree with you, he was the true MVP of the 1988 WS! Without him, we never would have won it.
Thanks. Hatch ran kind of weird, not as weird as Cey, but weird.
“San Diego fagots” Really George V.??
It’s not a high point in terms of discourse on this site, but to each their own I guess.
Let’s try to be better.
Jorge,
I hope you Don’t put any money on that hope you have. Just sayin…
TM
I remember Hatch. A very average Major League player with a great smile and 1 magical World Series.
The Padres. What an embarrassment.
The giants. Sure hope their flat tire happens soon.
The Wild Card. Kinda ridiculous when you think about it. 100 wins and good luck with that one game.
Uh, no, Price does not fill me with confidence. And Bruihl? Also, No.
Sure would like to see Gonsolin go 6. Is that asking too much of a starter. He threw 67 pitches. Maybe next time.
Bruihl has actually been pretty good. That was the first homer he has allowed. Price had not pitched in more than a week. He was a little rusty, but he got out of it and only allowed 1 run. Doesn’t mean I would trust him against a better lineup.
Don’t trust Price one bit….
Bruihl….one bad pitch…no biggie. It happens
I love Mickey Hatcher. I was lucky enough to meet him a couple of times. He’s every bit the same character in person as he was on the ball field. He certainly had a gift for coming up with some clutch hits.
Another great game last night. Too bad Lux and Belli couldn’t keep their hitting streaks going.
Gonso pitched one of his best games with five strong innings on just 67 pitches. A great step forward. He sealed the win and the clinch for a post-season spot. Congratulations Dodgers!
The second wild card spot is less of a race and more of a stumbling contest with the Reds, Phillies and Padres all on losing streaks. The Cardinals are now in the top spot after a 4 game win streak.
Oh how the mighty have fallen. The Padres are now just 4 games over 500. Let that sink in for a while.
It’s certainly coming down to the wire now. The Padres aren’t looking like they’re up for the task to help us out against the Giants and the Giants and Dodgers are keeping pressure on each other to see who blinks first. This is a crazy run to the finish line. All it takes is a little flat spell up North.
The D-Backs remaining schedule looks like it would be tough for a good team. They’ll eclipse the 100 loss mark before any team crosses the 100 win plateau. Don’t blow that pick!
Does AJ Preller get to keep his job if the Padres finish below 500?
I think Preller and Tingler are both on the hot seat unless ownership cuts them some slack for the injuries. They are playing like crap. Can’t score, can’t pitch, sounds like the Dodgers during that 5-15 streak. If they had played 500 ball then, they would be in first place. Kenley’s ERA minus the 3 blown saves is under 2. Giants are not slowing down, so the Dodgers should not either. If they do not win the division, the wild card game will be in LA. Orel went off on one of his weird tangents last night when he and Joe started singing. Neither should be doing that. They have no ear for music.
It was very timely though. They were horribly singing & then at least on my MLB stream there was a “The General” commercial with Shaq singing in the shower where he is singing like an angel and Kenny Smith & Ernie are listening freaked out about how singing in the shower makes it all better. Then Shaq comes out of the shower and sounds HORRIBLE. Was actually pretty funny.
cheers
pb+
Scherzer v Wainwright?….
Should be both exciting and nail biting….
Hopefully, if its STL, they need to use Wainwright on Saturday or Sunday to even get into the game….
STL plays the Brewers 7 more times. I kinda think its going to be Cincinnati for the 2nd slot…
Got my ticket for my train trip out to LA in December. Going to spend Christmas with the family. Not that far away now.
If you make it down to Huntington Beach, I’ll buy you a drink. Hell, I’ll even meet you in Long Beach if you aren’t scared to ride the train. 😉
I will have my sis’s van to use. So that could happen.
Hopefully it runs mostly on time. My wife & kids had a horrible trip a few years back going from Cali to New Mex and back. They ended up home over a day late. More than one thing went wrong. Including a fight on the train while it was going through a rez in AZ & the train had to stop & wait for tribal police to come & pull people off the train. It was a total crap show. Good LUCK!
Not worried. I took the train up to Portland and back earlier this year. Other than seeing 1000’s of homeless people, the trip was not bad. This one takes 23 hours.
If the Dodgers are 3 games out with 3 to play, do you run Buehler, Scherzer and Urias or concede the division and set up the rotation for the 1 game playoff?
No. Dodgers close the season against the Brewers. Giants close against the Padres at home. Padres will either be fighting for their playoff lives or out of the running. If they are out of it, they are not going to give the Giants much competition. If they are in it, the Giants will be setting up their rotation for the playoffs. Padres will run the best they have out there. But, if their offense remains in the funk it is in, they have little chance of beating the Giants. All we can do is hope by the time there are only 3 games left, the Dodgers are ahead.
Right now, the rotation is setup perfectly where Urias, Bueller, Scherzer go against the Padres and Kershaw, Gonzo, Urias pitch the last three against the Brewers. That lines up Big Game Bueller and Mad Max Scherzer pitch in the Division Tie Breaker and or the Wild Card game.
They can reset their rotation after that depending on off days.
So if three back with three to play the Dodgers concede the division.
Depending on the Padres to sweep? Not much chance of that. Yeah, they set up for the wild card.
I don’t know how that is conceding. The pitching is already lined up. Do you suggest pitching the big three on two days rest? Never gonna happen.
Concede and set it up….
SF ain’t losing their last 3….aren’t they playing SD? Or is it Arizona? Lol to both of them.
They finish with 3 against AZ and then the Pads. We finish with 3 against the Padres and then 3 with the Brewers.
Davidson hit # 24 last night. Top of the order had a good game for OKC. Raley hit one out too. Ryan Braun finally announced his retirement. At one time the Dodgers considered trading for him. That would not have been too popular with the fans. If the Giants and Dodgers meet in the NLDS, it will be the first time they have ever met in a playoff series. It should be epic. I am already of the mind that the playoff system needs to be revamped. I like the idea of 8 teams in each league with the first round 3 games. 1-8 2-7 3-6 4-5 just like the NBA. No teams fate should be decided in a one game format. Orel had an idea last night that Davis liked. If LA and SD met, the team with the better record would only have to win one game to advance, the lower team would have to sweep a day night double header to advance. Interesting and it gives the team with the better record an advantage. And it does not lessen what they did in the regular season. If the Dodgers or Giants were knocked out in a wild card game, it makes a travesty of the regular season performance.
Kelly against Urias tonight. Julio going for # 18. Still has a shot at 20 wins. Bellinger and Betts have 2 HR’s apiece off of Kelly this year, Pujols and Smith have also tagged him for HR’s. Muncy is hitting .400 off of him. Carson Kelly the only D-Back with HR’s off of Urias, Marte hits over .300 against him. The rest, not so much. Buehler, Scherzer and Kersh against the Reds this weekend.
I’m ok with a Wild Card entry, just not a Wild Card game. I would support 4 Divisions with winners playing in a seeded tournament. You want more playoff games, to make more money, the only practical way to do it without playing into November is to cut back to a 154 game season. You want to keep it with 3 Divisions and 2 Wild Card teams, 5 playoff teams, then the Wild Card teams play best of 3.
There just has to be a better way than this. You win 100 games and get bounced by a bad called Strike 3 or a fluke play and a team in a weaker Division could win 15 fewer games and play on. How do you insure the best teams after 162 games get a 7 game shot at a Championship?
It’s getting a little scary because right now the strength of this team is its rotation, with Buehler/Scherzer/Urias/Kershaw looking locked in but not really able to display its wares in a single-game elimination format.
The offense is also looking to be shaping into its final form with every starter but Pollock [& Taylor] healthy and looking to do serious damage in the postseason.
Elimination games are always nervous time and we just need to get past that single game.
After that, look out. Dodgers/Blue Jays World Series for the ages!
Going with Dodgers v. White Sox.
Bear if only you were my high school history teacher I wouldn’t have had to spend so much time in summer school! I guess we’ll have to wait till the playoffs for the Giants to collapse!
Jorge! I have a lot of friends who root for the Padres, and sometime we bet a Carne Asada to see who takes the series, and we have a really good time because we respect each other. but some times they point and show me dodgers fans like you. and I feel ashamed
Well said. Thank you.
Be more blunt: Jorge sounds like a drunk idiot teenager
So unneeded Bobby. If you ask me, you’re worse than Jorge. He calls the Padres names, you call other Dodgers fans names.
A lot of times, you can be pretty rational, let’s go with more of that.
You are SUPPOSED to hate the other team IMO. You just do not hate their fans. I agree, totally different.
cheers
pb+
LOL
I like this idea of qualifying poor behaviour.
After very little thought I decree that faggot is infinitely worse than drunken.
And when it comes to general nouns, I agree that MLBers who one doesn’t know is a fairer target than a group of non-MLBers who one doesn’t know.
Maybe not infinitely.
Then they look at their recent record and are ashamed all over again! 🙂
Bonita historia Bear, también me gustaba esa alegría que irradiaba en el dogout, hoy en día nos hace falta una personalidad así. Prefiero un tipo como Micky a las personalidades adustas, y antisociales como Greinke. Le felicito Bear por estos recuerdos, por otra parte tendría usted algunas anecdotas o historias sobre las estrategias geniales en la dirección de equipos, o los managers que se consideran los más inteligentes en función de sus decisiones en el juego, desde luego si usted tiene tiempo.
I wish I could read and write Spanish, translation please!
You just go to google translate and paste it in dude. And you come up with.
>>Nice story Bear, I also liked that joy that radiated in the dogout, nowadays we need such a personality. I prefer a guy like Micky to stern, antisocial personalities like Greinke. I congratulate you Bear on these memories, on the other hand you would have some anecdotes or stories about the great strategies in team management, or the managers who are considered the most intelligent based on their decisions in the game, of course if you have time .<<<
Not sure how dugout became dogout, but the rest looks solid
cheers
pb+
Thanks
Bill Shaikin says that Dave Roberts is the best manager in baseball history?
https://www.yahoo.com/news/commentary-dave-roberts-best-manager-141310586.html
Did you notice that this article mentioned all of complaining about Dave Roberts on LADT? I guess people do read this blog!
Yeah, people do. But I kinda doubt the folks on Dodger Talk much care what we have to say.
Well, you got me excited for a second, then I read the article I didn’t care to read, and It did not mention this website. What a letdown as was the article. Pretty lazy writing IMO breaking it down to 2 things, best record and cozy clubhouse.
I’ve yet to meet a single person who has even heard of this blog.
I could post the analytics, but everyone here … plus about 5,000 more who read daily have heard of the blog.
Hopefully, if its STL, they need to use Wainwright on Saturday or Sunday to even get into the game….
STL plays the Brewers 7 more times. I kinda think its going to be Cincinnati for the 2nd slot…
Good News!!!
Dodgers: AJ Pollock Set for Rehab At-Bats as Soon as Weekend
by Eric Eulau
Another day, another injury update on an impactful Dodgers player. Manager Dave Roberts seemed optimistic regarding outfielder AJ Pollock’s recovery from the hamstring injury he suffered on September 4th. The next step? . “He’s going to take simulated at-bats over the weekend here in Los Angeles.“. Then, on Monday, he’ll head out to CBR (Camelback Ranch) and he’ll get into some games over there. From that point on, we’ll just where it goes to next.”
Roberts wasn’t pressed for a hard return date on Pollock, but next week certainly pencils out. Perhaps a return to his ‘old stomping grounds next Friday when the Dodgers start a three-game series in Arizona?
Before his injury, Pollock had been nothing short of exceptional in the second half of the season. He was slashing .329/.379/.497 post All-Star break and produced an absurd 1.121 OPS in the month of July. Pollock was no slouch in 2020, but this year was shaping up to be his finest in Dodger blue.
I’m glad to hear that AJ is progressing well. It’ll be great to have him back in the lineup and hopefully he can take his hitting into the postseason this year.
Regardless, I think Lux is playing himself into the playoff roster. He can play some good to decent defense in the outfield. We’ve seen him show off some range and show off a strong throwing arm in the outfield. Although, we’ve also seen some miscommunication out there as well. He can be used as a pinch runner, play middle infield and LF and possibly be a tough pinch hit AB.
It will be a wonder what the postseason roster will look like. I’m hoping they just go with a 13/13 configuration and don’t go with an extra hitter or a short bench. Hopefully we don’t have to plan for bullpen games by carrying extra pitchers. We have Kershaw and Gonsolin vying for the 5th starter role. If they can both stay healthy and productive the bullpen becomes even more overcrowded than it already is.
No too long ago, our post season rosters featured players that you didn’t even want on the roster. Now, you’re going to have a handful a deserving relievers that aren’t going to make it.
2.5 behind with 16 remaining against a team that just won their ninth in a row. It’s not looking pretty folks. The wildcard game is a recipe for disaster. Of course, we have the luxury of choosing among 3 of the top ten pitchers in the league, but anybody can be anybody on any given day. Ask Bueller vs the Giant’s bullpen last week.
So to play 3 games better than the team with the best record in baseball probably doesn’t look very likely. But, it certainly isn’t impossible. I feel insulted going in as a wildcard, let the Giants keep tradition with that honor. But, if we do end up as the wildcard, I’ll reluctantly accept it and will watch them take down everyone in their way of the first repeat since the 98-99 Yankees.
I don’t like the wildcard, but I understand the necessity of having one when you have three divisions in each league. I really don’t like the second wildcard. It causes too much scheduling problems and often results in some really bad travel arrangement especially when they also have tie breakers at the end of the regular season to see who become which wildcard team. All of this causes unnecessary off days and often lead to the Division winner being flat after having 3 days off before they start their next series.
I don’t succumb to the idea that more teams in the playoffs is better. We have a marathon of a season and too many playoff teams cheapen the importance of regular season games. I would rather they get rid of the second wildcard and make each series a seven game series. That way we don’t have as many flukes playing for a World Championship.
With that said, if we were to add another more teams and another round to the playoffs, I wouldn’t mind going back to a 154 game season. But, as I stated earlier, I would want all post season series to be best of 7.
It gives them a really good reason to revamp the playoff structure. If either the Dodgers or the Giants end up as the wild card and get beat in a one game playoff, MLB will use that as an excuse for expanded playoffs.
The easy fix would be to not have the second wildcard and make the DS 7 games. You get one more game of playoffs potentially.
Look at all the crappy teams competing for the second wildcard. Do we really need to expand the playoffs more and have teams that are barely over 500 after 162 games in the playoffs? Are they deserving?
I guess the flip side is the American League wildcard this year. It’s really crazy that one division has the top three wildcard teams and the division winner is 8 games in front of the closest one.
This is a very strange season indeed.
There are ways to improve the WC and still make the division series 7 games. For the WC you could make it a best of three at the #1 seed’s park and have the first day be a doubleheader. Or you could go with Joe’s idea last night. The #2 WC team has to win twice the #1 has to win once. Play both games the same day. My top priority though would be making the division series 7 games.
Tonight’s Lineup:
HITTERS H-AB RBI HR SB AVG
M. BettsRF 109-399 53 21 9 .273
M. Muncy1B 113-444 85 33 2 .255
T. Turner2B 168-529 61 22 28 .318
C. SeagerSS 82-290 43 9 1 .283
J. Turner3B 132-479 81 25 2 .276
W. SmithC 100-372 71 24 3 .269
C. BellingerCF 47-295 33 9 2 .159
G. LuxLF 68-298 38 6 3 .228
J. UriasP 10-52 8 0 0 .192
Except for the pitcher, same lineup two nights in a row. How unlike Roberts.
It’s really not all that unusual for Doc to use a set lineup when the season is coming down to the wire and there is still something to fight for.
That, and the fact that he doesn’t have CT3 and Pollock available really makes his options very limited.
You play the cards you are dealt.
WILD CARD?
You just have to win it. It is that simple. You don’t… you go home.
The Dodgers knew the rules. Deal with it.
The Giants season is nothing short of magical, but I do not hear the fat lady singing.
Finally, I know some of you are from different centuries and words that may not have been objectionable then, night be now. That said, you do not always have to be perfectly politically correct, but let’s not be derogatory. End of story! Pay attention.
I am in Yankton, South Dakota as we speak…
Whew… at first I read it as you were yanking it in South Dakota
Little known fact about Yankton, nobody of note is from there.
Ok that’s not entirely true. Tom Brokaw went to high school in Yankton
Too bad Lux didn’t get 2 RBIs on his hit with the bases loaded. Having the pitcher up next is usually an out…..was hoping no DP….but my hope was deferred.
But hey, we are up 1-0 and the Giants surprisingly are losing 5-2, so it’s all good for now.
Not liking Seager and Betts swinging for the fences we need some situational hitting here we only have a one run lead this could go south real quick if we don’t take it seriously
Don’t know why my emojis show up in the text box but when I post they disappear
Way to go Belli you put the ball in play,and when you do that anything can happen
Wow praying that Lux can keep it up,he’s looking really good right now, not trying to do too much and that’s so important. The power will come just make contact first
What a game, what a game ,what a big game ,what a mighty big game
Padres up 9 to 5 and they’re not done yet in the ninth
what can you say about Julio ,what can you say about the bullpen ,what can you say about our closer ,and our offense got it done
All those in favor of Kenley say aye!
Nice win, Giants lose.. Gotta love that. No game tomorrow. If Pads win they are one behind, if Giants win, it is two.