MLB legend Don Mattingly's ex-wife Kim details her dark past with alcoholism brought about by the pressure of her husband's stardom
Yankees legend Don Mattingly's ex-wife Kim Sexton and their son Preston opened up about their elusive lives. The truths they revealed had fans tearing up and cheering for Kim and how far she has come.
Don Mattingly and Kim Sexton married in 1979 and divorced in 2007. The former couple were high school sweethearts. The two have three sons together -- Preston, Taylor, and Jordon.
Preston followed in his famous father's footsteps. He was drafted by the Dodgers in the 2006 MLB Draft. However, he didn't rise to the same heights of success as his father. He ended his baseball career in 2012.
In a recent interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Preston made some facets of his private life public.
The interview was doubly special because it was for the upcoming Mother's Day edition. Preston talked about what it was like having a mother who was addicted to alcohol. He divulged that he used to get angry at his mother for her alcoholism because he believed that she was the way she was by choice. Later, however, he accepted that what she suffered from was a serious illness.
Kim also appeared in the same interview and talked about what it was like suffering from alcoholism. She revealed that she thought her sons were ashamed of her.
"For so long, I couldn't forgive myself," she said, "because I felt like my sons were ashamed of me, for what I did. For what they had seen. I think any mother would have felt that way."
Preston, the Phillies' farm director, was always a problem-solver, but couldn't figure out how to solve his mother's addiction. He didn't take mental health seriously enough.
Now, he does. He's replaced his frustration with patience, anger with kindness: inquirer.com/phillies/phila… https://t.co/u4y6zL2vIf
However, it seems the strain between Kim and Preston has healed. Preston tried to understand his mother, rather than be resentful toward her.
Don Mattingly's son Preston praised his mother for her recovery from alcoholism
Preston Mattingly made it clear in the same interview that he is as proud of his mother as he is of his father. According to Preston, his mother suffered quite a bit from being married to Don Mattingly.
Kim was insulted and raged on when Don Mattingly played badly, but when he played well, she was never mentioned. Preston revealed, in the interview, how much better she was doing now and how proud he was of her recovery.
"I have a lot of admiration for who she has become. It's almost like her second life. She's so happy every day. That's probably what I am most proud of. How great a life she has. She has to overcome more than most people I have see."
Preston is usually asked about his famous father, and that won't change. But while Kim doesn't have a retired number at Yankee Stadium, he's every bit as proud of her as he is of Don.
“I love my dad. But this is the story I think people should know": inquirer.com/phillies/phila… https://t.co/etTsF5df9y
Don Mattingly married a woman named Lori in 2010. They have a son together named Louis.