Mariano Duncan Nalasco (born March 13, 1963) is a Dominican former second baseman and shortstop who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees, and Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball during his 12-year career. He was the infield coach and first base coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers under managers Grady Little and Joe Torre. Duncan was an MLB All-Star in 1994 and won two World Series championships as a player.

Mariano Duncan
Duncan with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2007
Second baseman / Shortstop
Born: (1963-03-13) March 13, 1963 (age 61)
San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic
Batted: Right[a]
Threw: Right
Professional debut
MLB: April 9, 1985, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
NPB: April 3, 1998, for the Yomiuri Giants
Last appearance
MLB: September 17, 1997, for the Toronto Blue Jays
NPB: September 17, 1998, for the Yomiuri Giants
MLB statistics
Batting average.267
Home runs87
Runs batted in491
NPB statistics
Batting average.232
Home runs10
Runs batted in34
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams
As player

As coach

Career highlights and awards

Playing career

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Los Angeles Dodgers

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Duncan was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an undrafted free agent on January 7, 1982. He played in the Dodgers minor league system for three seasons with the Lethbridge Dodgers in 1982, Vero Beach Dodgers in 1983 and San Antonio Dodgers in 1984. He stole 56 bases for Vero Beach and 41 bases for San Antonio, and at San Antonio he tied Stu Pederson for the league lead in triples.[1] He made his major league debut, starting at second base, for the Dodgers on April 9, 1985 against the Houston Astros, and was 0 for 4 in his debut. He got his first major league hit on April 10 against Astros pitcher Joe Niekro.

In his rookie season, July 6, 1985, vs. St. Louis Cardinals, Duncan accomplished the rare feat of bunting for a double where the ball was untouched and did not roll beyond the base paths. The Dodgers won the game 8-3.[2][3]

He stole 38 bases in his rookie season and finished third in the rookie of the year voting.

 
Duncan playing for Cincinnati in 1990

Cincinnati Reds

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Duncan was traded by the Dodgers to the Cincinnati Reds with Tim Leary on July 18, 1989 for Lenny Harris and Kal Daniels.[4]

Philadelphia Phillies

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Duncan signed with the Philadelphia Phillies on April 14, 1992. He played three seasons for the Phils before being claimed off waivers by the Reds on August 8, 1995.

New York Yankees

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On December 11, 1995, Duncan signed with the New York Yankees, and he spent a season and a half in New York. In his only full season in 1996, he hit .340 with 56 runs batted in.[5]

Duncan coined the phrase, "we play today, we win today... das it!" which became the mantra for the 1996 World Series champion New York Yankees. Many of the players wore T-shirts with the slogan under their uniforms daily.[6]

In 1997, he played in 50 games, hitting just .244 with 13 runs batted in. On July 6, 1997, Duncan and Kenny Rogers were traded to the San Diego Padres for Greg Vaughn and two minor league players. The deal was voided days later due to Vaughn failing his physical.[7]

Toronto Blue Jays

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Duncan was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays on July 29, 1997 for minor leaguer Angel Ramirez. He spent a half of the season with the Blue Jays.[8]

Yomiuri Giants

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Duncan played one season for the Yomiuri Giants in 1998.

Career statistics

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In 1279 games over 12 seasons, Duncan compiled a .267 batting average (1247-for-4677) with 619 runs, 233 doubles, 37 triples, 87 home runs, 491 RBI, 174 stolen bases, 201 walks, 913 strikeouts, .300 on-base percentage and .388 slugging percentage. Defensively, he recorded a .963 fielding percentage, primarily at second base and shortstop. In 43 postseason games (3 World Series, 7 playoff series) he batted .243 (37-for-152) with 14 runs, 1 home run, 12 RBI and 7 stolen bases.

Highlights

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Coaching career

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Duncan batted as a switch hitter between 1985 and 1987.

References

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  1. ^ King, David (2004). San Antonio at Bat: Professional Baseball in the Alamo City. Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 9781585443765.
  2. ^ "Mariano Duncan Bunt Double! "Los Angeles Dodgers" "St. Louis Cardinals"". YouTube.
  3. ^ "Los Angeles Dodgers at St. Louis Cardinals Box Score, July 6, 1985".
  4. ^ "Mariano Duncan".
  5. ^ "Mariano Duncan Stats".
  6. ^ "We Play Today, We Win Today, Das It: The Out of Nowhere Greatness of Mariano Duncan". riveraveblues.com. River Avenue Blues (reposted from the New York Daily News). February 3, 2016. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  7. ^ "Yankees-Padres 5-player trade not going to happen". July 6, 1997.
  8. ^ "Mariano Duncan Stats".
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Preceded by Los Angeles Dodgers First Base Coach
2006–2010
Succeeded by