Doug Mientkiewicz

[William Malone]

Douglas Andrew Mientkiewicz was born on June 19, 1974 in Toldeo, Ohio.

The Minnesota Twins selected him in round five of the 1995 MLB Draft out of Florida State University. He blossomed into one of their best prospects. Mientkiewicz won the Sherry Robertson Award in 1998, which is given annually to the Twins most outstanding position player in their farm system. He made his Major League debut as a September call-up late in the year.

Twins manager Tom Kelly penciled in Mientkiewicz as the Opening Day first baseman in 1999. He got off to a fast start, hitting five doubles and triple in his first five games. Mientkiewicz would finish April batting .280 with an .812 OPS, but things slowed down after that. He hit just .214 from May 1st though the end of 1999, ending the year with a .655 OPS across 118 games. His .997 fielding percentage led all American League first baseman.

Mientkiewicz spent almost all of 2000 in Triple-A, playing only three games at the big league level. Former third baseman Ron Coomer slid across the diamond to play first base full time. Spending the whole year in Triple-A allowed Mientkiewicz to play for Team USA in the Olympics, where he helped lead the American to a gold medal. He launched a walk-off home run in the semi-final game against South Korea.

Coomer left the Twins via free agency that off-season, paving the way for Mientkiewicz to get Major League playing time again. He slashed .306/.387/.464 in a career high 151 games. His 39 doubles were eighth in the American League, and his efforts on defense helped him win a Gold Glove at first base. Mientkiewicz was one of four Twins to receive MVP votes, as they finished with a winning record for the first time since 1992.

Minnesota built on their 2001 success, and earned their first playoff berth in over a decade by winning 94 games in 2002. Mientkiewicz continued to play well, slashing .261/.365/.392 in 143 games. He was 10-for-38 (.263) with two home runs and six RBI over ten postseason games. His .393 on-base percentage in 2003 was ninth best in the American League. The Twins were once again AL Central champions, but lost to the New York Yankees in the ALDS. Mientkiewicz was 2-for-15 (.133) with one walk in the series. Both hits were singles.

Justin Morneau had established himself as one of baseball's best prospects, and the Twins called him up in late-May to serve as their designated hitter. A slumping Mientkiewicz began to lose playing time at first base to allow a surging Morneau to get a few more at-bats, and Minnesota eventually traded Mientkiewicz to the Boston Red Sox in August. Boston went onto win the World Series that fall, with Mientkiewicz serving as a key defensive replacement off the bench. He appeared in 11 of their 14 playoff games, but never started and got only ten total plate appearances.

Controversy arose when Mientkiewicz caught the final out of that World Series, but decided to keep the ball for himself. The Red Sox filed a lawsuit for ownership of the ball. A settlement was eventually reached in 2006.

Mientkiewicz spent the final five years of his career with five different teams; the New York Mets (2005), Kansas City Royals (2006), New York Yankees (2007), Pittsburgh Pirates (2008) and Los Angeles Dodgers (2009). He slashed .270/.353/.405 during those seasons, and started at first base for the Yankees during the 2007 postseason. They lost in the ALDS.

After a brief stint in broadcasting, Mientkiewicz was hired by the Dodgers as a rookie ball hitting coach in 2012. The Twins hired him as a minor league manager the following year. He went 387-308 over five seasons between High-A and Double-A. Mientkiewicz won the Florida State League (High-A) championship in 2014, and the Southern League (Double-A) championship in 2015. The organization fired him after the 2017 season.

Mientkiewicz managed at the Triple-A level in the Detroit Tigers system for two seasons, but was fired after posting a 66-74 record in 2019. 

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