Report: Blue Jays in talks with Don Mattingly to join coaching staff

According to a report from Joel Sherman at the New York Post, the Toronto Blue Jays are set to sign an off the field free agent as early as this morning.

Don Mattingly and the Blue Jays are reportedly close to an agreement that will see the former Marlins manager and 14-year veteran of the big leagues join the club in a bench coach capacity. Mattingly was at the helm of the Marlins for seven seasons before the two sides agreed to part ways at the end of the 2022 season, finishing with a 443-587 record. Prior to that, Mattingly also managed the Dodgers from 2011 to 2015, posting a 446-363 record during that timeframe.

In hiring Mattingly, manager John Schneider gains a valuable assest off the field who boasts a wealth of knowledge that should only help this team moving forward. Having managed over 1800+ games as well as played in the big leagues for numerous years, Mattingly is a solid addition for a club that could benefit with some experience given the current coaching staff.

Blue Jays and Don Mattingly close to agreement for bench coach role

As a player, the Indiana product spent all 14 seasons with the New York Yankees, collecting 2153 hits, 222 home runs, and a career .830 OPS on his way to nine Gold Glove Awards, Six All-Star appearances, three Silver Slugger Awards, and the 1985 AL MVP Award.

After the firing of manager Charlie Montoyo last year, the Jays promoted Schneider from the bench coach role to manager and he received an extension earlier this year. Buffalo Bisons manager Casey Candaele finished the year as the Blue Jays bench coach following the Montoyo firing. Whether he will return back to Buffalo appears to still be up in the air when looking at both the Blue Jays and Bisons team pages but more will likely be known once the Mattingly news is made official by the organization.