1976 Topps #548 - Manny Mota

• Manny Mota played in the majors from1962-1980 and again in 1982, mostly for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Late in his career Mota became one of the greatest pinch hitters of all time.
• Mota was signed by the New York Giants in 1957. Manny played in the Giants' system from 1957-1962 but he was stuck behind several other good outfield prospects. 
• Manny came up to the Giants in 1962. He was used as a utility player and pinch hitter and batted .176 in 74 at bats. At the end of July Mota was sent down to the minors for the rest of the season. After the 1962 season Mota and Dick LeMay were traded to the Houston Colt .45s for Joey Amalfitano.
• Manny didn't stay in Houston for very long. On April  5, 1963 he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Howie Goss and cash. Mota started the 1963 season in AAA and was brought up by the Pirates in mid-July. Manny batted .270 in 126 at bats for the Pirates in 1963.
• During his tenure with the Pirates (1963-1968) Mota was used as a fourth outfielder. Manny was mostly a singles/doubles type of hitter. In 1964 Manny batted .277 in 271 AB and in 1965 he batted .279 in 294 AB.
• Mota's best season for the Pirates was probably the 1966 season. He played in 116 games and batted .332 in 322 AB. In 1967 Manny had a similar season, batting .321 in 349 AB. Manny's last season with the Pirates was 1968. He batted .281 in 331 at bats. After the 1968 season Mota was selected by the Montreal Expos in the expansion draft.
• Manny batted .315 in 31 games for the Expos in 1969. On June 11 he was traded (with Maury Wills) to the Dodgers for Ron Fairly and Paul Popovich. Mota started in left field for much of the rest of the season and batted .323 in 85 games. Manny Mota Was More Than A 'Throw-In' - November 1969 Baseball Digest
• Mota was the starting LF for the Dodgers for much of the 1970 season and batted .305 in 124 games. In May of 1970 a foul ball hit by Mota killed a 14-year-old fan in Los Angeles. In 1971 Manny played in LF and in RF and batted .312 in 91 games. Mota had another nice offensive season in 1972, batting .323 in 118 games. 
• Manny made his only NL All Star team in 1973 (he went 0 for 1 as a PH/LF). He batted .314 in 89 games during the season.
• In 1974 Mota became a pinch hitter. He played in the field only 16 times from 1974 to the end of his career. His hitting stats are as follows:
• 1974: .281 in 57 AB (1 for 3 in NLCS, not used in World Series)
• 1975: .265 in 49 AB
• 1976: .288 in 52 AB
• 1977: .395 in 38 AB (1 for 1 in NLCS, 0 for 3 in World Series)
• 1978: .303 in 33 AB (1 for 1 in NLCS, walked in his only World Series appearance)
• 1979: .357 in 42 AB
• In 1979 Mota set the all-time record for most pinch hits (since broken by Mark Sweeney and Lenny Harris). Manny Mota: Baseball's Premier Pinch Hitter - September 1979 Baseball Digest.
• Manny retired after the 1979 season and became a coach for the Dodgers. He was activated late in the 1980 season and went 3 for 7 as a pinch hitter. Mota was activated again at the end of the 1982 season and went 0 for 1. Manny retired with a .304 lifetime batting average.
• Mota has been a Dodger coach for 31 seasons. He was their hitting coach for much of the 1980s. Manny is the longest-tenured coach in Dodger history and is second only to Nick Altrock (42 years) all-time in coaching tenure with one team.
• Manny Mota: The Game I'll Never Forget - April 1991 Baseball Digest.
• Manny Mota: The Game I'll Never Forget - May 2006 Baseball Digest.
• Liked to face: Milt Pappas (.500 in 16 AB); Ron Reed (.481 in 27 AB); Jim Merritt (.448 in 29 AB)
• Hated to face: Ray Washburn (.083 in 12 AB); Bob Moose (.091 in 11 AB)

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