Welcome to the land of the anti-Greg Maddux. It's a world inhabited by the likes of Chris Haney, Frank Castillo and Heathcliff Slocumb. It's world filled with scary ERAs, gopher balls and strikeout-to-walk ratios that only a mother could love. It's an ugly place to visit. You have been warned, so proceed with caution. But others have suffered worse. The "record-holder" for this Anti-Maddux Award is Steve Blass, an All-Star pitcher and World Series hero who suddenly lost his control with the Pirates in 1973, plummeting to a 9.81 ERA in 89 innings.
July 16, 1998
Greg Maddux had to sweat out his major league-leading 13th win as the Atlanta Braves committed four errors and nearly blew a two-run lead in the ninth inning before hanging on for a 4-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Maddux (13-3), who joined David Cone of the New York Yankees as the only 13-game winners, allowed two runs -- one earned -- and four hits in 6 2/3 innings, but watched three relievers fail to close the game before Rudy Seanez retired former Brave Marquis Grissom and Jeff Cirillo to earn his first save since May 5th, 1995, when he was with the Dodgers. Eddie Perez, Maddux's personal catcher, had an RBI single in the sixth inning that snapped a 2-2 tie and added what proved to be an important run in the eighth with a run-scoring single that scored ex-Brewer Gerald Williams. Cal Eldred (4-8) allowed three runs and five hits over six innings for Milwaukee, which has lost five straight road games. Brewers manager Phil Garner and hitting coach Lamar Johnson were ejected in the bottom of the first inning by plate umpire Jerry Layne for arguing balls and strikes. Second baseman Fernando Vina had three of Milwaukee's five hits.
July 11, 1998
Greg Maddux may be the Smartest Pitcher Who Ever Lived, but he's getting some competition from Andy Ashby as the king of low-pitch games. Ashby needed only 88 pitches, 64 of which were strikes, as he pitched eight innings in San Diego's 4-1 win over Los Angeles Saturday night. Ashby struck out only four, but also allowed only four hits as he improved to 12-5 and tied Maddux and Tom Glavine for the NL victory lead.
Road warrior loses
Speaking of Maddux, he saw his 10-game win streak snapped by the unlikeliest of teams: the Florida Marlins, who rallied for two runs in the bottom of the eighth for a 4-3 victory. Maddux hadn't lost since April 26, a stretch of 13 starts. For just the fourth time this season, he gave up more than two runs in a game. It was also his first road loss since losing at Houston on April 2 -- of 1997. "I honestly did not know about the road streak I had," Maddux said. "I knew about the consecutive win streak. I just pitch." The road winning streak had reached 16, plus six no-decision. That isn't the major-league record, however. That's 18. Held by ... Greg Maddux, from July 2, 1994, to the end of the 1995 season. "I don't want our guys to have a glass of wine tonight," Marlins manager Jim Leyland said. "It's a great win, but we shouldn't blow it out of proportion." Maddux, who has won eight straight Gold Gloves, hurt himself with two errors early on, leading to unearned runs in the first and fourth innings. But Derrek Lee started the eighth-inning rally with a one-out single. Todd Dunwoody followed with his third hit, and Edgar Renteria tied it with an RBI single. After Mark Kotsay walked to load the bases, Todd Zeile drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly. "It's not like we gave them the game," Maddux said. "We didn't throw it away. They earned the runs they got. They won it, we didn't lose it."
July 11, 1998
MIAMI (AP) -- Greg Maddux gave the Florida Marlins full credit. Florida scored twice in the eighth inning Saturday night to beat Atlanta 4-3, snapping Maddux's 10-game winning streak and handing the Braves ace his first road loss in over a year. "It's not like we gave them the game," Maddux said. "We didn't throw it away. They earned the runs they got. They won it, we didn't lose it." Derrek Lee started the eighth-inning rally with a one-out single off Maddux (12-3). Todd Dunwoody followed with his third hit, and Edgar Renteria tied it with an RBI single. After Mark Kotsay walked to load the bases, Todd Zeile drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly. "I left two pitches up in the eighth inning, but other than that they just put the bat on the ball, found the holes and ran the bases aggressively," Maddux said. "You can see the confidence in everybody," Mantei said. "The fans were screaming for both teams and they saw a great game. It's great to beat those guys, especially Maddux. I have more respect for him than you can imagine. Beating the Braves period gets you on a high." "I don't want our guys to have a glass of wine tonight," Marlins manager Jim Leyland said. "It's a great win, but we shouldn't blow it out of proportion." Maddux, coming off two consecutive shutouts and two shutout innings during Tuesday night's All-Star game, allowed four runs -- two unearned after errors on the Gold Glove pitcher -- and seven hits in eight innings. He struck out five and walked two. The right-hander last lost to Colorado on April 26. His last road loss was at Houston on April 2, 1997 -- a streak spanning 16 victories and six no-decisions. "I honestly did not know about the road streak I had," Maddux said. "I knew about the consecutive win streak. I just pitch." Maddux holds the major-league record with 18 straight road victories -- from July 2, 1994, to the end of the 1995 season. Renteria had two hits to improve to 7-for-17 lifetime against Maddux. "I'm just lucky against Maddux," he said. "I was looking for a pitch to hit. It feels good to beat the best." The game drew 36,795 fans, the Marlins' largest home crowd of the season since 41,126 were on hand for Opening Day. The Marlins scored a run in the first inning. With none out, Renteria on first and Dunwoody on second, Maddux fielded a sacrifice off the bat of Kotsay. But Maddux, winner of eight straight Gold Gloves, threw the ball over Andres Galarraga's outstretched glove at first base. Renteria took a wide turn at second and was tagged out in a rundown. Zeile's RBI groundout scored Dunwoody. Maddux committed his second error of the game in the fourth. With one out and Kotsay on second, Floyd hit a slow grounder to Maddux's right. Maddux, who entered the game with one error, cut the ball off, spun toward first, but his throw pulled Galarraga off the bag. The Marlins took advantage of the error and another miscue in the inning. With runners now at first and second and Ryan Jackson at the plate, the Marlins attempted a double steal. But catcher Perez's throw sailed into the outfield, scoring Kotsay.
July 9, 1998
By Rob Neyer-ESPN SportsZone
What can we expect from All-Star starters Greg Maddux and David Wells in the second half of the season? To find out, I simply noted the All-Star starters for each Game since 1967, the first season for which I could find daily win/loss logs for pitchers. That gives us a field of 31 All-Star Games and 62 All-Star starters. As you'd expect, these guys pitched awfully well before the All-Star Game. Overall, they won 716 games and lost just 264 prior to the break, for a sterling .731 winning percentage.
Then came the second half, when they crashed -- relatively -- to a 407-300 (.576) mark.
Interestingly, the first/second-half difference has been less pronounced in recent seasons. From 1987 through 1997, All-Star starters finished the first half 254-74 (.774) collectively, then went 150-98 (.605) in the second half.
What can explain the difference? Three things: Luck, Injuries, and True Ability.
Where does luck come into play? Well, it takes a little luck, often in the form of run support, to post the record managers look for in an All-Star starter. And quite often, that luck turns around in the second half. In 1984, for example, Expos righthander Charlie Lea entered the break with a brilliant 13-4 record. But he would win just twice and lose six times after the break, despite a 2.86 ERA. Why? His unfriendly teammates stopped scoring runs, totaling just seven runs in those six losses.
Injuries, of course, are a danger for any pitcher. But it's possible that All-Star starters are even more susceptible, as pitching well typically leads to heavy workloads.
And True Ability is just what it sounds like. Rick Reuschel was a good pitcher, but his 12-3 record and 2.12 ERA at the break in 1989 certainly weren't a good measure of his skills. Not surprisingly, he was just 5-5 in the second half of that season.
Of course, all All-Star starters aren't created equal. You don't have to be a sabermetrician to know that Maddux is more likely to pitch exceptionally well in the second half than Wells.
With a very few exceptions, the pitchers who have started All-Star Games have been solid pitchers, career-wise, but few are in the class of Maddux.
If we construct a sub-grouping of All-Star starters who either are or will be in the Hall of Fame, we've got 13 pitchers: Maddux, Roger Clemens, Dennis Eckersley, Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan, Jim Palmer, Don Sutton, Gaylord Perry, Catfish Hunter, Bob Gibson, Tom Seaver, Don Drysdale and Juan Marichal.
Collectively, that baker's dozen of premier hurlers
The champions here are Maddux and Jim Palmer. Prior to this season, Maddux was 22-8 before his two All-Star starts, and 13-2 after them (one of those was in 1994, when the season ended a month after the Midsummer Classic). Palmer was pretty amazing as well. He started four All-Star Games, and was 46-24 (.657) before them, 36-18 (.667) after.
Maddux and Palmer are/were two of the most consistent pitchers ever, from season to season, and they are/were also amazingly consistent within seasons.
So what happens in the second half to Maddux and Wells? Yep, you guessed it. Maddux will continue to perform like The Smartest Pitcher Who Ever Lived, and Wells will go 8-5 with a 4.37 ERA.
July 8, 1998
According to the new Sports Illustrated, Bobby Cox describes Greg Maddux as "the smartest player he's ever known." Now, nothing against Cox, but he might find himself embroiled in a nasty lawsuit filed by one Robert J. Neyer Jr. if he's not careful. For the record, it was me who first described Maddux as "The Smartest Pitcher Who Ever Lived," way back in 1995. I suspect that within 10 or 15 years I'll be forgotten by America's baseball fans, left instead to tap out accounts of high-school football games for some tiny newspaper in eastern Washington. But if I can't live on through my "work," I'd like to at least live on through the one nickname I ever came up with. So next time, SI and Bobby Cox, how about a little something for, you know, the effort?
July 7, 1998
DENVER (AP) -- Greg Maddux, Roger Clemens and the rest of baseball's best pitchers had no chance Tuesday night. Coors Field conquered them all. The park lived up to its billing as a hitter's haven with MVP Roberto Alomar and Alex Rodriguez homering and helping the American League beat the Nationals 13-8 in the highest-scoring All-Star Game ever. The tone was set from the start when Maddux, leading the majors with a 1.54 ERA, gave up singles to Kenny Lofton and Alomar to start the game. The AL put runners on first and third to begin the game, but Greg Maddux expertly escaped. He got Griffey on a foul pop to McGwire -- those two guys are bound to be linked all season -- in getting out of trouble.
Notes
Maddux and Glavine are tied for the NL lead with 12 wins. The last time an All-Star starter was relieved by a pitcher from the same team was 1973 when Oakland's Catfish Hunter started and Ken Holtzman followed. The last time it happened in the NL was 1969 when St. Louis' Steve Carlton started and Bob Gibson relieved.
July 7, 1998
Greg Maddux became the 13th pitcher to start consecutive All-Star Games. If Maddux is fortunate enough to get the starting nod next season, he would join Lefty Gomez as the only pitcher to start three in a row. The following pitchers have started back-to-back games: Gomez, Maddux, Red Ruffing, Mort Cooper, Robin Roberts, Billy Pierce, Don Drysdale, Whitey Ford, Jim Bunning, Jim Palmer, Dave Stieb and Tom Glavine.
Maddux named Pitcher of the Month
Greg Maddux, who went 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA during June, was named National League Pitcher of the Month. Maddux won four games in six starts during the month. In 49 innings pitched, he struck out 45, while yielding just 36 hits, one home run and three walks. He also recorded four complete games and two shutouts. The 32-year-old Maddux might already be on his way to the July award. On Thursday, he became the first 12-game winner in the majors with a complete game shutout of Tampa Bay. He is the likely starter for the NL in Tuesday's All-Star game.
July 6, 1998
Associated Press
DENVER -- The Professor vs. The Paunch.
That's the matchup of starting pitchers for the 69th All-Star game at Coors Field on Tuesday night, when studious-looking Greg Maddux faces David Wells, who might count pitches but not calories.
They are the game's odd couple: Maddux plays Felix Unger to Wells' Oscar Madison. Maddux, a slight, unassuming man, wears glasses off the mound and works quickly on it, painting the corners, a master of location and deception.
The only pitcher in major league history to win four consecutive Cy Young Awards (1992-95), Maddux, 32, is appearing in his seventh All-Star game. At the break, the Atlanta ace is one of only three pitchers in the majors with 12 wins at 12-2 with a 1.54 ERA with four shutouts.
Any game at Coors Field figures to be high-scoring, but at least one of the participants isn't so sure. "With these two starting pitchers, I don't know if it's going to be a high-scoring game," Ken Griffey Jr. said. "Maybe a quick game."
Maddux, who has made no secret of his dislike for Coors Field, to the point of telling several Rockies pitchers he would never sign with Colorado because of the ballpark, took a less harsh line on Monday.
Asked if he was looking forward to pitching there, he said, "Yes, I am. These games are great to play in. It's almost like spring training. There is no pressure to win or anything like that. You just go out and play the game and have fun.
"Obviously, your slider doesn't slide as much and your curve doesn't curve as much, but you can still pitch here. The biggest difference is the outfielders have to play a little deeper, and you're concerned about the extra-base hit. You just have to pitch smart."
Wells pitched for the Yankees in an exhibition game at Coors Field in 1995. "It's very hard," he said. "As Greg said earlier, your curve doesn't curve and your slider doesn't slide. You just have to create something. I've been around long enough, I'll try to come up with something. This park makes you think.
July 5, 1998
By Tracy Ringolsby-Scripps Howard News Service
SAN DIEGO -- Everything is aligned for Atlanta Braves right-hander Greg Maddux to start for the National League in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Denver's Coors Field. He would be pitching on normal rest, having made his most recent start Tuesday. He is pitching well, coming off successive complete-game shutouts and leading the majors with a 1.54 earned-run average and 12 wins. Heck, Maddux even said he wouldn't mind pitching at Coors Field -- at least not this time. So far, however, nobody is saying who will pitch when in baseball's Midsummer Classic. "I've been told by the National League not to announce the starting pitcher or the batting order until Monday," said Florida manager Jim Leyland, who will manage the National League All-Stars. Leyland and Cleveland manager Mike Hargrove, who will manage the American League, have said they will not ask a pitcher who starts Saturday or Sunday to work more than an inning, if at all, which would eliminate them as candidates to start the All-Star Game. That list includes Texas' Aaron Sele, who will start Saturday night, and Boston's Roger Clemens, San Diego's Andy Ashby and the New York Mets' Rick Reed, who will start for their respective teams Sunday. "The health of the pitcher has to be paramount in your mind if you are going to use him and start the game," Hargrove said. "Roger Clemens is on the American League roster and scheduled to start Sunday. If I use Roger it won't be much at all. I want to use the pitcher with the most rest to lessen the risk of injury." Leyland can choose from among Maddux, San Diego's Kevin Brown, who started Wednesday, and Atlanta's Tom Glavine and Philadelphia's Curt Schilling, both of whom started Friday. Maddux -- who said he "wouldn't care" if Brown got the start Tuesday -- got advance warning he would start last year's All-Star at Cleveland and the 1994 game at Pittsburgh. "I had a pipeline," Maddux said, referring to the fact Atlanta manager Bobby Cox managed both those teams. Leyland has talked as if Maddux has an edge. In explaining his computerized approach to picking the NL pitching staff, Leyland said, "A lot of names jumped back and forth, on and off the list, and up and down the list, but Maddux was the one constant. He was always at the top." Maddux also pitches with such consistency. He has won his past 10 decisions, pitching six complete games, one behind Schilling for the NL lead. He ranks sixth in the NL with 115 strikeouts, has allowed batters a .209 average, the lowest of any pitcher in the All-Star game, and has a major-league-leading four shutouts. There is, however, the Coors Field factor. Maddux has not hidden his dislike for the ballpark. He has told several Rockies pitchers he would never consider pitching for the Rockies because of the offensive nature of the park. He has allowed 14 earned runs in 18 1/3 innings over three appearances at Coors Field. Maddux gave up three runs in seven innings of Game 1 of the 1995 wild-card playoffs at Coors Field and gave up seven runs on 11 hits in 3 1/3 innings of a June 7, 1996, start there. In his one appearance this season, May 20, he gave up five runs, four earned, on eight hits in eight innings. Maddux has allowed three runs in 6 2/3 innings in three All-Star appearances, including one run on a home run by Edgar Martinez in two innings last season, and one run in three innings of his start at Pittsburgh. He allowed one run in 1 2/3 innings in relief of Glavine at San Diego in 1992. Maddux was on the All-Star team but did not pitch in 1988, 1995 and 1996.
July 2, 1998
Greg Maddux tossed his second straight shutout to become the first 12-game winner in the majors and Keith Lockhart belted two homers as the Atlanta Braves blanked the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, 6-0, to complete a three-game sweep. Maddux defeated Rolando Arrojo in a battle of All-Star pitchers, allowing five hits with one walk and eight strikeouts to improve to 10-0 in his last 13 starts. The four-time Cy Young Award winner has fashioned a 1.15 ERA since his last loss on April 26th with only 12 walks and 84 strikeouts in that span. "All it says is I'm getting to the ninth inning with a low pitch count," said Maddux. Maddux, the likely National League starter in next week's game in Colorado, tied career highs with his fourth shutout of the season and his 10th straight win. In his last start, Maddux allowed eight hits and fanned 13 in a 2-0 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays. The Braves' ace recorded his 27th career shutout and 87th complete game. He also won his 16th straight road game and lowered his season ERA to a major-league best 1.54. "I stopped being amazed three years ago," said Braves manager Bobby Cox. "What can I say? He's just awesome. I'm amazed every time he goes out there." Maddux, who hasn't lost on the road since suffering a 4-3 defeat in his first of last season in Houston on April 2nd, threw 71 of 106 pitches for strikes. He faced one major threat, and got Tampa Bay third baseman Wade Boggs to ground out with the bases loaded in the third. "It's an advantage when you face batters that haven't seen you," said Maddux. "Plus, I've been getting a lot of run support and that will help out any pitcher." "He was throwing the ball where he wanted to right from the very first pitch," added Tampa Bay manager Larry Rothschild. "You could see the movement from the side. That's what makes him what he is." The game featured some hostilities as Atlanta designated hitter Andres Galarraga was hit with a pitch for the third straight game. Arrojo hit the first baseman in the sixth and Maddux then plunked Rich Butler in the back with two out and no runners on in the seventh. Tampa Bay reliever Scott Aldred hit Eddie Perez in the eighth. Rothschild felt Maddux should have been ejected after hitting Butler. "He hit him on purpose," said Rothschild. "And if he did, he should have been thrown out of the game. My feeling was he hit him on purpose. They'll never say it, he'll never say it. It happens in baseball. If the umpire thinks he did it on purpose he does not have to warm him, he can just throw him out."
July 2, 1998
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Greg Maddux was just getting started when Rolando Arrojo faded. Maddux pitched his second straight shutout to beat Arrojo in a matchup of All-Star pitchers, leading the Atlanta Braves over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 6-0 Thursday. "You've got to take advantage when you face hitters that haven't seen you. It gives you a slight advantage," said Maddux, who has shutouts in three of four starts against AL opponents this season. The four-time Cy Young winner beat Baltimore 9-0 on June 7, defeated Toronto 2-0 on June 27 and shut down the Devil Rays on five hits -- none after the sixth inning. "He was throwing the ball where he wanted right from the start. You could see the movement ... That's what makes him what he is," Tampa Bay manager Larry Rothschild said. Maddux (12-2), the winningest pitcher in the majors, has won 10 consecutive decisions, the longest current streak in the majors. He struck out eight and walked one in the 27th shutout of his career. The right-hander, who has six complete games and four shutouts this year, has pitched 18 consecutive scoreless innings. A hit batter and two-out walk in the ninth gave the Devil Rays their only runners after the sixth. "I'm getting a lot of runs," Maddux said, explaining his recent success. "I've had a lot of games where I've had six or more runs, and that helps. Teams aren't as likely to hit-and-run and steal and bunt and all when they're down three or four runs. I think that has a lot to do with it." The matchup of All-Star pitchers wouldn't have occurred if not for a passport problem the Devil Rays feared might keep Arrojo from accompanying the team to Toronto for a weekend series. The Cuban defector was scheduled to face the Blue Jays on Friday night. However, a Costa Rican passport he obtained in 1996 has expired and Devil Rays officials weren't sure how quickly it would be renewed. "It was exciting for me," Arrojo said through a team interpreter. "It was a good game. I faced a great pitcher and a great team. Somebody had to win and somebody had to lose. It was a great game to be in." Jones beat out an infield single, went to second when Andres Galarraga was hit by a pitch for the third straight game and scored on Randall Simon's single that made it 2-0. Maddux hit Rich Butler with a pitch with two outs in the seventh, then struck out Kevin Stocker, the Devil Rays' No. 9 hitter, to end the inning. Rothschild complained to plate umpire John Shulock that Maddux hit Butler on purpose and should have been thrown out of the game. "They'll never say it. He will never say it, but it's my feeling," the manager said. "It happens in baseball."
Notes: Maddux has won 16 straight road games in his last 22 road starts. His last road loss was at Houston on April 2, 1997. ... Fred McGriff's fourth-inning double off Maddux was his first extra-base hit at home since June 6
June 1998
Sammy Sosa and Greg Maddux
Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs, who recorded 40 RBI and a record 20 home runs in the month of June, was voted the National League Player of the Month and Greg Maddux of the Atlanta Braves, who posted a 4-0 record and a 1.29 ERA in June, was voted the National League Pitcher of the Month.
Maddux won four games in six starts in June. In 49.0 innings pitched, Maddux struck out 45, while yielding 36 hits, one home run and three walks. He also recorded four complete games and two shutouts.
Greg Maddux was undefeated (4-0) in June. Robb Nen of the San Francisco Giants finished second in the balloting with nine saves, 11 games finished, a 1-0 record and 0.55 ERA in the month of June. Al Leiter of the New York Mets also received votes for his 4-1 record and 2.10 ERA.
The Player of the Month award is the second for Sammy Sosa. He was voted National League Player of the Month in July 1996. This marks the second National League Pitcher of the Month award for Greg Maddux. The All-Star pitcher was voted NL Pitcher of the Month in July 1995.
Voting for the monthly awards is done by writers and broadcasters who cover the League's games on a regular basis. Sammy Sosa and Greg Maddux will each receive an engraved Diamond award for being voted National League Player and Pitcher of the Month.
June 27, 1998
Greg Maddux is nothing if not considerate. Noting the sultry Turner Field game-time temperature of 94 degrees, Maddux fanned a career-high 13 for his league-leading 11th win as the Atlanta Braves blanked the Toronto Blue Jays, 2-0, in a major-league season-low one hour, 46 minutes. Michael Tucker helped expedite matters by snapped a scoreless tie with a seventh-inning homer off a gritty Juan Guzman, giving the four-time Cy Young Award winner all the cushion he needed to win his ninth straight decision and notch his fifth complete game. Maddux (11-2) was at his best in the middle innings, retiring 12 in a row after a two-out single by Ed Sprague in the second. Guzman (4-10) rose to the challenge of facing Maddux, giving up just two hits over the first six innings before Tucker led off the seventh with a drive over the left-center field wall. One out later, Ryan Klesko cleared the right-field fence. It was Tucker's 11th homer and Klesko's 13th. The game was played seven minutes faster than Atlanta's 3-2 loss at Baltimore on June 5th, which had been the quickest game of the season.
June 27, 1998
ATLANTA (AP) -- The Atlanta Braves needed a victory and Greg Maddux just happened to be the guy who delivered. Maddux struck out a career-high 13 and became the NL's first 11-game winner, pitching the Braves past the Toronto Blue Jays 2-0 Saturday night. The win ended the Braves' three-game losing streak and was only their third win in 10 games. Maddux also put an end to Toronto's season-high six-game winning streak. Maddux said there wasn't any added pressure on him to come through. "I only get to pitch every fifth day regardless of what the team has done in the last week or so. I just go out there and pitch the same as always," he said. And, it was plenty good, one of his better efforts. "It's right up there," said Maddux. "That's about as good as it gets," said Atlanta manager Bobby Cox. "He was outstanding. Has he thrown any better? I think last year against the Yankees was the best I've ever seen him, but this was real close." That was a 2-0 win on July 2 when he beat the Yankees on a three-hitter, striking out eight without a walk. "Yeah. That was it, definitely," said Maddux. Why? "It was at Yankee Stadium, against a team that had won the World Series and it was on the road," he said. Maddux (11-2) is 9-0 in his last 12 starts and leads the majors with a 1.64 ERA and three shutouts. The four-time Cy Young winner earned his 100th victory since signing with the Braves as a free agent before the 1993 season. Maddux said the key to his 13 strikeouts was his changeup, which he threw about one of every four-or-five pitches of the 104 he threw, 77 strikes. Maddux walked none and allowed eight hits in his fifth complete game of the year. The game took only 1 hour, 46 minutes and was the fastest in the majors this year. Michael Tucker and Ryan Klesko hit home runs in the seventh inning off Juan Guzman (4-10). Guzman had matched Maddux through six innings, allowing only two hits until the seventh. "It was another one of Greg's performances he does four or five times a year," said Klesko. "Tonight he was tremendous, not just good." What had worked for Maddux was Guzman's downfall. Toronto manager Tim Johnson said the Blue Jays knew what they had to do against Maddux, but failed to deliver with men on base. "He's done it in the National League for years. We just didn't get any hits when we needed them," said Johnson. "He's a tough pitcher. He has a reputation of throwing strikes, and that's what he did." The Blue Jays' biggest threat came in the ninth when Carlos Delgado and Tony Fernandez led off with singles. But Maddux got Darrin Fletcher to ground into a double play to escape the jam. Maddux has not lost since Colorado beat him 7-6 on April 26. He is 100-35 lifetime for the Braves and 195-110 overall in his career with 26 shutouts. Juan Samuel, playing in place of injured Jose Canseco, struck out four times.
Notes: Maddux pitched only six innings in his last start, leaving early at Yankee Stadium because of a sore neck. He said the soreness went away after a couple of days and he was 100 percent.
June 27, 1998
Greg Maddux, Ismael Valdes, Rolando Arrojo and Sterling Hitchcock on Saturday put together one of the most impressive days of pitching the major leagues have seen all year. Combining their Saturday starts, you get 35 innings pitched, 17 hits, two runs, one walk, 35 strikeouts and four commanding wins. But sheer box score numbers don't fully bring out how overpowering these performances were. Here's a look at a few points from each game that help to illustrate these four pitchers' mastery. Greg Maddux: 9 IP, 8 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 13 SO in Atlanta's 2-0 win over Toronto. Maddux once again showed why he is baseball's most dominating pitcher, dispatching the Toronto Blue Jays in one hour, 46 minutes -- the fastest game this season. He only went five or more pitches into the count on six batters, regularly getting Blue Jay batters to swing, and make weak contact, on the first or second pitches of the at-bat. Maddux also economized his work, throwing 76 of his 104 pitches for strikes as he recorded a career-high 13 Ks. ESPNet
June 22, 1998
NEW YORK (AP) -- A sore neck slowed Greg Maddux. An old pain in the neck stopped Dennis Martinez.
A crowd of 53,316 saw the Yankees come back three times in a meeting of the teams that began the day with the two best records in baseball. They play again Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium, and move the next two days to Turner Field.
Maddux, trying to become the first 11-game winner in the majors, was pulled after six innings and only 87 pitches. He left with a 4-3 lead and, it was revealed later, a sore neck that almost forced the Braves to start Kevin Millwood instead.
"I just slept on it bad last night," Maddux said. "I was aware of it every pitch. It's why I came out. I said, 'Enough's enough."'
"Obviously, I wasn't as comfortable as I'd like to be. But that's not why I gave up the hits and runs. Really, they're smart hitters. They made nice adjustments."
Martinez (2-4) took over for Maddux and wound up losing his 13th straight decision to the Yankees. He fell to 2-19 lifetime against New York, and remained winless at Yankee Stadium since 1977.
Maddux left with a chance at his ninth consecutive victory and his 100th career win for the Braves. But Martinez put himself in immediate danger by walking Chuck Knoblauch to start the seventh.
June 22, 1998 ESPNet: Braves 4-6 loss to Yankees
Starting pitchers Greg Maddux and Andy Pettitte already were gone when the Yankees struck for three runs in the seventh against three Braves relievers.
Dennis Martinez (2-4) took over for Maddux with a 4-3 lead, but instead lost his 13th straight decision to the Yankees.
Managers Joe Torre and Bobby Cox both made plenty of moves in the interleague game, much like they did in the 1996 World Series when the Yankees beat Atlanta. Cox was not around to see Raines' two-out double off Martinez, having been ejected earlier in the seventh while arguing a foul ball call.
Maddux, seeking his ninth consecutive victory and his 100th career win for the Braves, was pulled after six innings and 87 pitches. His chances of becoming the first 11-game winner in the majors this year, however, started to look slim when Martinez walked Chuck Knoblauch to start the seventh.
Cox was tossed for disputing a bunt that third base umpire Mike Reilly -- as replays showed -- correctly called foul for hitting Derek Jeter in the batter's box.
Notes: Plate umpire Tim McClelland took off his mask, walked toward the Yankees dugout and exchanged words with Torre in the third, apparently about strike calls Maddux was getting. In the sixth, however, Maddux and the Braves began walking off the field on a close, two-strike pitch to Joe Girardi that McClelland called a ball. ... Atlanta won two of three interleague games at Yankee Stadium last season. A total of seven runs scored in that series. Maddux pitched a three-hit shutout for Atlanta.
June 22, 1998 ESPNet: Around the Horn
Quote of the night
"I just slept on it bad last night. I was aware of it every pitch. It's why I came out. I said, 'Enough's enough. Obviously, I wasn't as comfortable as I'd like to be. But that's not why I gave up the hits and runs. Really, they're smart hitters. They made nice adjustments."
-- Greg Maddux on his sore neck, which forced him to leave after allowing nine hits and three runs in six innings. The Yankees beat the Braves 6-4.
June 19, 1998
by Rany Jazayerli-Baseball Prospectus
The topic of pitcher abuse is one we follow closely here at Baseball Prospectus. The injury rate of pitchers, in particular young pitchers, is astonishing. Pitchers are several times more likely to get injured than hitters, and for every prospect that becomes a successful major league pitcher, a dozen more have their careers stalled or ended by injury. This is a reality of baseball that has persisted since the game was invented; the act of throwing a ball overhand is inherently unnatural, and the repetition of throwing, even with excellent mechanics, can lead to inflammation or injury to the muscles of the rotator cuff, or in the ligaments that hold the elbow in place. For a century this has been an accepted part of the game - pitchers got injured all the time, and nobody ever bothered to wonder why, or whether there was a way to prevent it. Pitchers who in the dead-ball era of baseball history were able to throw 300-350 innings a season without injury were subsequently marveled at as "iron men" whose exploits could not be repeated by contemporary pitchers. Later hurlers were accused of lacking the work ethic or the determination to approach previous standards of greatness; they were too weak to "tough out" the sore arms that they developed by the bushel.
We know better now. Most of us do, anyway; the perception is still there among ex-ballplayers and old-time baseball men that great pitchers somehow "know" how to stay healthy or are able to "pitch through the pain". The reality, of course, is that of the vast number of minor league pitchers every year with outstanding ability, the ones who, for whatever reason, are able to avoid the injury bug are the ones most likely to become great pitchers.
But how? How does a major league franchise protect its most valued resource - its young pitchers? The focus has, for years, centered around not overtaxing a pitcher, by limiting their number of starts (the 5-man rotation developed in the early 70's) and number of innings (no pitcher has thrown 300 innings in a season since Steve Carlton in 1980). But these developments - progressive as they were - focused on imperfect measures of a pitcher's abuse. All innings are not created alike, and to compare 260 innings thrown by Roger Clemens with 260 innings thrown by Christy Mathewson is an oversimplification: Mathewson faced fewer batters and threw fewer pitches in the dead-ball era, and in his own autobiography talked about not throwing with maximum effort on each pitch.
In Craig Wright's excellent book "The Diamond Appraised", he talked about using the numbers of batters faced per start (BFP) as a measure of how overworked a starter might be. In particular, he found that pitchers with more than 30 BFP early in their careers - before they turned 25 - were far more likely to crash and burn than those who were brought along more slowly. This brings up another point - young pitchers are far, far more susceptible to long-term injury - career-ending rotator cuff tears and the like - than older ones. David Cone was abused by the Mets in his late 20's, and while his durability has suffered, he has continued to pitch effectively. Bill Pulsipher was in his early 20's when the Mets slagged his arm, and he is still fighting to get back to the major leagues.
But still, given enough abuse, even a veteran pitcher can suffer major injuries from overuse. When Orel Hershiser led the NL in innings pitched 3 straight years from 1987-1989, and then blew out his arm in 1990, it was graphic evidence that being overworked had led to his injury. When Greg Maddux led the NL in innings from 1991-93, there was a widespread assumption that Maddux, like Hershiser, was a surgery case waiting to happen.
He wasn't. Maddux went on to lead the NL in innings the next two seasons, throwing 202 innings in just 25 starts in the strike-shortened 1994, and has continued to be the best pitcher in baseball. Maddux, more than anyone, has convinced the baseball community that, to put it bluntly: it's the pitches, stupid.
Maddux throws fewer pitches per batter, and per inning, than anyone of his generation. We've all marveled at his 79-pitch complete games, but what is more remarkable is that he never endures a 130-pitch start. Part of that is his incredible efficiency, and part of that is the Bobby Cox/Leo Mazzone tandem that still has not received enough credit for the amazing run of health by the Braves' rotation that has allowed them to build one of baseball's most enduring dynasties.
Partly because of that, and partly because of the exponential growth of statistics available in today's game, pitch counts are routinely reported in today's box scores. Ten years ago, even five years ago, you could watch a pitcher labor through the 7th and 8th innings of a game and have no idea the next day if he threw 110 or 150 pitches. Today, that information is readily available - and a manager can not expect to let his starter throw 140 pitches without being noticed. Nowhere was that more evident than in last year's World Series, where the whole world watched as Jim Leyland let Kevin Brown - and more significantly, rookie Livan Hernandez - rack up enormous pitch counts, sometimes in games that were already in the bag.
And yet, no one yet has systematically looked at the pitch counts of each starter and attempted to make sense of the data. What we have is anecdotal evidence - we know that Bartolo Colon threw 136 pitches in a game this year - but we don't have any way of putting that in context. How dangerous is a 130-pitch game? Is it worse to throw 140 pitches in a game or 120 pitches in 3 straight games? What pitcher has been abused the worst this year?
I don't claim to be able to have the answers; I'm not sure anyone does. But for the first time, we have the data to find out. When Dwight Gooden threw 16 complete games and threw 276 innings as a 20-year-old, it was generally known that he was probably overused. But by how much? What would have been an appropriate limit for him? We simply didn't know at the time. But now, every time Kerry Wood takes the mound, everyone keeps one eye on the radar gun and one eye on his pitch count. That, in itself, is a huge step.
That said, we still need a universal measure to compare pitchers to each other. Average pitch count per start is a useful tool, but it has a major limitation - a pitcher who throws 130 pitches one start, then gets bombed in his next start and throws 70 pitches, is indistinguishable from the pitcher that throws 100 pitches in each start. It's not the number of pitches thrown - it's the number of pitches thrown tired - when mechanics fall off, muscles are sore, and the body is unable to handle the stress of each pitch as well. And so we need a way to measure, on start-by-start basis, how much abuse a pitcher is subject to.
For this, I have created a system designed to award pitchers points - Pitcher Abuse Points, or "PAP's" for short - based on the number of pitches they throw in each start. It's not perfect, but it's a start.
Pitcher Abuse Points
Situation PAP/Pitch
Pitches 1-100----0
Pitches 101-110--1
Pitches 111-120--2
Pitches 121-130--3
Pitches 131-140--4
Pitches 141-150--5
Pitches 151+-----6
These points are cumulative: a 115-pitch outing gets you 20 PAP's - 1 for each pitch from 101-110 (10 total), and 2 for each pitch from 111-115 (10 total). A 120-pitch outing is worth 30 PAP's, while a 140-pitch outing is worth 100 PAP's - more than 3 times as much. This seems fair; a pitcher doesn't get tired all at once, but fatigue sets on gradually, and with each pitch the danger of continuing to pitch grows.
Please note that this an arbitrary system, and probably not relevant for every pitcher. Steve Ontiveros can't go more than 50 pitches without having to watch his arm come off and sail halfway to the plate, while knuckleballers like Tim Wakefield could throw 140 pitches, pop a couple of Advils, and be fine. But there's no firm way to tell how susceptible a pitcher is to injury. Rail-thin pitchers like Ramon Martinez can be abused by Tommy Lasorda and survive (although that is in question as I write this), while hefty lefty Sid Fernandez had reservations each year for his spot on the DL.
So let's see what kind of information we can gleam from the PAP system. All data is through the games of May 31st.
12 Most Abused Pitchers
Pitcher---------Age--PAP--Starts--PAP/Start
Johnson, Randy---34--420--11--38.2
Clemens, Roger---35--398--11--36.2
Colon, Bartolo---23--374--11--34.0
Schilling, Curt--31--364--12--30.3
Hernandez, Livan-23--293--12--24.4
Martinez, Pedro--26--281--12--23.4
Candiotti, Tom---40--272--12--22.7
Leiter, Al-------32--223--10--22.3
Moyer, Jamie-----35--265--12--22.1
Sanchez, Jesus---23--175---8--21.9
Pettite, Andy----26--260--12--21.7
Finley, Chuck----35--260--12--21.7
These points are cumulative: a 115-pitch outing gets you 20 PAP's - 1 for each pitch from 101-110 (10 total), and 2 for each pitch from 111-115 (10 total).
Well, there are few surprises here; this list is mostly dominated by veteran pitchers, in particular those pitchers considered to be among the best in baseball. It's no surprise that Randy Johnson has been "abused" more than any other pitcher; he's 6'10", his team has the worst bullpen in baseball, and he has shown over the last 5 years that he can take this kind of abuse without blowing out his arm. (In addition, the Mariners probably care less about Johnson's long-term future than most teams would care about their ace.) The other names - guys like Clemens, Curt Schilling, Chuck Finley, even Al Leiter - are not surprises either; their teams rely on them to be their stopper. Pedro Martinez and Andy Pettite are both just 26, but each of them has established themselves as durable, consistent staff aces. Guys like Jamie Moyer and Tom Candiotti are nobody's idea of "stoppers", but Moyer has been the Mariners' most consistent starter, and Candiotti is a knuckleballer, and so evaluating his pitch counts is essentially useless.
But the other names on this list - Colon, Hernandez, Jesus Sanchez - that's where the meat of this study lie. These are young pitchers - pitchers with exquisitely sensitive rotator cuffs - who are being senselessly abused.
12 Most Abused Young Pitchers
Pitcher----------Age-PAP Starts PAP/Start
Colon, Bartolo---23--374--11--34.0
Hernandez, Livan-23--293--12--24.4
Sanchez, Jesus---23--175---8--21.9
Radke, Brad------25--171--11--15.5
Wright, Jaret----22--166--11--15.1
Estes, Shawn-----25--178--12--14.8
Wood, Kerry------21--128---9--14.2
Haynes, Jimmy----25--153--11--13.9
Schmidt, Jason---25--133--11--12.1
Saunders, Tony---24--117--11--10.6
Gonzalez, Jeremi-23--104--10--10.4
Millwood, Kevin--23--101--11---9.2
Now this is what we want to look at. Look at the drop-off between Sanchez and Brad Radke on this list. Without question, Colon, Hernandez, and Sanchez are having their right arms thrown to the wolves. This is senseless brutality, and as you can see, it is restricted to just a couple of teams. Jim Leyland, for all the criticism he has already received, is due for some more. The Marlins aren't going anywhere, but rather than treat his young arms gingerly in preparation for the future, he's testing their "manhood" by driving them into the ground. After Sanchez threw 146 pitches in one start, Leyland praised him by saying he "has the heart of a lion". If Leyland keeps this up, Sanchez may have the arm of a Rhesus monkey by year's end. And as for Hernandez... keep in mind this doesn't even include his 153-pitch flogging earlier this month. Sign me up for August 14th in the office pool for his surgery date.
Mike Hargrove hasn't been much kinder to his young pitchers, however. Bartolo Colon has exploded on the league this year, but that's no excuse for forcing him to throw so many pitches. And Hargrove doesn't have the excuse of a poor bullpen; the Indians are so deep in reliever they can't find room for Tom Martin and Ron Villone gets into a game once a week. And while it has been more subtle, Jaret Wright has struggled with his control more than Colon has, and while he hasn't thrown as many innings as Colon, he has received almost as much abuse.
Many of the other pitchers on this list are at much less risk; Radke, Jason Schmidt and Shawn Estes are all 25 and about to leave this list, and they have all had a few years of steadily increasing work in the major leagues to get accustomed to the higher workload. Jimmy Haynes has been on a roller coaster of success and failure the last three years, so the A's may want to show more caution in his use. Jeremi Gonzalez and Tony Saunders are both sophomores who just make the list, and are probably at relatively low risk for a major injury.
One interesting name on the list is Kevin Millwood, who barely makes the list but who is notable for being a Brave, and thus generally protected by the Bobby Cox-Leo Mazzone brain trust. Millwood's place on the chart can be attributed to one start; he threw 131 pitches in one start, accounting for 64 of his 101 PAP's. I don't know if Mazzone and Cox fell asleep at the wheel that day, but none of the other Braves starters have thrown so many pitches in one game this year.
And, of course, I can't write this article without mentioning Kerry Wood. At 21, he's the youngest name on this list, and he's in the middle of the pack as far as abuse goes. He hasn't thrown more than 128 pitches in a game this year, but he has a number of outings in the 120+ range. I don't think he's in grave danger of injury - he's a big guy with good mechanics, relies on his fastball, and doesn't throw a splitter. But I do think that Jim Riggleman should take a little more care of the most prized arm of the decade.
12 Least Abused Pitchers
Pitcher----------Age----PAP-Starts--PAP/Start
Moore, Trey------25--0--10--0.00
Drabek, Doug-----35--2--11--0.18
Anderson, Brian--26--3--11--0.27
Tewksbury, Bob---37--3--10--0.30
Key, Jimmy-------37--5--10--0.50
Suppan, Jeff-----23--8--11--0.73
Maddux, Greg-----32--9--12--0.75
Saberhagen, Bret-34--8--10--0.80
Silva, Jose------24--11-11--1.00
Swift, Billy-----36--10-10--1.00
Mercker, Kent----30--12-11--1.09
Grace, Mike------28--11-10--1.10
This list is predominantly made up of young pitchers who get pulled at the first sign of trouble (Trey Moore, Brian Anderson, Jeff Suppan), veteran pitchers who typically run out of gas after 6 innings (Doug Drabek, Jimmy Key, Kent Mercker, Bob Tewksbury), and pitchers with such a morbid injury history that even Dallas Green would think twice before sending them out to start the 8th (Bret Saberhagen, Mike Grace, Bill Swift). Also note that Moore, the only pitcher on this list who has yet to throw over a 100 pitches in a game, has Felipe Alou as a manager. As a team, the Expos have the lowest PAP score in baseball - yet another indication about why Alou is such a great manager. And Gene Lamont, who replaced Leyland in Pittsburgh, has kept Jose Silva - despite Silva's pitching success - on a tight leash, only to see him get hurt. Buck Showalter also deserves some credit: Anderson and Suppan were the team's top two selections in the expansion draft, and both have significant pitching experience in the major leagues, but he has brought both of them along slowly.
I leave you with this: Greg Maddux, who is averaging about 7.5 innings a start, ranks as one of the least abused pitchers in the game. He has yet to throw more than 107 pitches in a start this year. For those of us looking for yet another reason to proclaim him the best pitcher of our time, or any time, this may be the best reason of all: he might just pitch forever.
June 19, 1998 by Rob Neyer in ESPNet:
Oh, and I know everyone's excited about Greg Maddux -- "He's so great, he can even hit!" -- but that .317 average this season is just a fluke born of 41 at-bats. He might be The Smartest Pitcher That Ever Lived, but he ain't no hitter. Maddux came into this season hitting .173, and that's about where he'll leave it.
June 18, 1998 by Rob Neyer in ESPNet:
Getting back to John's question, I do think .250 is too much to ask for. Everything has become so specialized that there's not time for pitchers to learn to hit better. After all, with the real hitters coming out for early BP half the time, and certainly not willing to give up any of their regular swings, when are the pitchers going to get the practice they would need?
And even if they could get time in the cage, are you going to tell Maddux and Glavine that they've got to skip their tee time and take some extra swings in the ol' cage instead? Don't think so. And you know, you can't really "teach" someone to hit anyway, even if you're only looking for .250 with no power. If you don't have the hand-eye coordination and muscle memory when you're 22, you're never going to. Hitting 90-mph fastballs is not an easy thing.
June 18, 1998 in ESPNet:
Jeremi Gonzalez went 3-for-3 for the Cubs. The last Cubs pitcher to go 3-for-3 was Greg Maddux in August 1990.
June 17, 1998 in ESPNet:
|
|
|||
| A comparison of the three pitchers with ERAs under 2.00: | |||
| Leiter | Maddux | Irabu | |
| ERA | 1.53 | 1.62 | 1.68 |
| W-L | 8-3 | 10-2 | 6-2 |
| GS | 13 | 16 | 11 |
| CG | 3 | 4 | 1 |
| SHO | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| IP | 88.1 | 122.1 | 75 |
| Hits | 65 | 89 | 50 |
| BB | 30 | 16 | 32 |
| SO | 83 | 90 | 57 |
| Opp. Avg. | .206 | .204 | .191 |
June 12, 1998 ESPNet: Braves 7-5 loss to Expos>
Rookie DaRond Stovall belted his first career grand slam with none out in the ninth inning as the Montreal Expos rallied for a 7-5 victory over the Atlanta Braves, spoiling Greg Maddux's attempt to become baseball's first 10-game winner.
Maddux left with a 5-2 lead after striking out eight over seven innings. Kerry Ligtenberg worked a perfect eighth and was replaced by Mark Wohlers, who walked Chris Widger on four pitches to begin the ninth.
Mike Cather (2-2) came on and hit Mark Grudzielanek and walked Brad Fullmer to load the bases. Stovall pinch-hit for Mike Mordecai and connected on an 0-1 pitch for his second career home run and a 6-5 advantage.
Miguel Batista (2-3) notched the win after working the eighth and Ugueth Urbina had two strikeouts in the ninth to record his 16th save. The Expos have won consecutive games following a three-game losing streak and evened the season series with Atlanta at 2-2.
Maddux, who allowed two runs, six hits and one walk, leads the National League in wins and is tied for the major-league lead with Texas' Aaron Sele, who pitches on Saturday.
The four-time Cy Young Award winner has not given up more than two runs since his last loss on April 26th against Colorado and has pitched at least seven innings in 13 of his 15 outings this season.
June 8, 1998 ESPNet: Who Do You Want Starting The Big Game?
It's the last day of the regular season. You're tied for first place. You need the win.
Who do you want as your starting pitcher?
Greg Maddux was the overwhelming choice of Zone users. He collected 9,860 first-place votes, well ahead of the 1,670 of second-place Roger Clemens.
Complete results:
| Player | 1st-place votes | Total points |
| Greg Maddux | 9,860 | 109,768 |
| Roger Clemens | 1,670 | 86,429 |
| Tom Glavine | 1,179 | 84,479 |
| Pedro Martinez | 673 | 75,031 |
| Curt Schilling | 786 | 74,230 |
| Kerry Wood | 309 | 41,804 |
| HIdeki Irabu | 346 | 38,523 |
| Jaret Wright | 258 | 32,652 |
June 7, 1998 ESPNet Braves victory 9-0 victory over Orioles
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Greg Maddux accomplished a rarity, and he made it look incredibly easy.
The Baltimore Orioles had gone a major-league best 128 games without being blanked before Sunday, when Maddux pitched a four-hitter to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 9-0 victory.
Maddux (9-2) struck out four and walked one in becoming the NL's first nine-game winner. The Orioles had not been shut out since Jamie Navarro of the White Sox did it last July 20.
It was the third complete game of the season for Maddux and his second shutout. The four-time Cy Young winner lowered his NL-leading ERA to 1.69 in winning his seventh straight decision.
The Orioles' best chance to score came in the fourth, when Maddux hit Brady Anderson with a pitch and gave up a one-out double to Harold Baines. After Rafael Palmeiro struck out, Maddux made a leaping grab of a grounder by Roberto Alomar and easily made the throw to first.
Baltimore had only two baserunners over the final five innings.
The game was virtually over the exact moment Jones' 10th homer of the season cleared the left-field wall to make it 5-0 in the third. Maddux is 73-2 since June 26, 1991, when the Braves score five or more runs for him.
June 7, 1998 ESPNet Around the Horn
Line of the night
Greg Maddux
9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K
Maddux needed 100 pitches to spin the first shutout against Baltimore in 128 games.
The Maddux file
Ho-hum, Greg Maddux does it again.
Sure, The Smartest Pitcher Who Ever Lived (to quote SportsZone columnist Rob Neyer) doesn't throw as hard as Kerry Wood or strike out as many batters as Curt Schilling or make quite as much money as Pedro Martinez.
But he's still the best pitcher on the planet.
Maddux became the first nine-game winner in the major leagues as he tossed a masteful 4-hit shutout against the Orioles, throwing 100 pitches and lowering his ERA to 1.69. Baltimore hit only one fly ball and had just two baserunners after the fourth inning.
"He's always good, but was maybe a tad better today," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "He was awesome. Absolutely awesome."
Remember when Maddux was "struggling"? He actually allowed 11 runs in back-to-back outings in late April. Well, in his eight starts after that he's 7-0 with a 1.17 ERA. Since June 26, 1991, when he was still with the Cubs, Maddux is 73-2 when his team scores five or more runs for him.
"He's great. It's sort of amazing to watch him pitch and to face him," Baltimore's Brady Anderson said. "If anything he's a little average at holding on runners. I'd imagine it's because he's a little inexperienced at that."
June 7, 1998 NL Players of the Week-Greg Maddux and Sammy Sosa
Four-time Cy Young Award winner Greg Maddux of the Atlanta Braves and Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs have been named National League Co-Players of the Week for the period of June 1-7, 1998.
Maddux (9-2), who went 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA, threw two complete games while allowing just one walk, two runs, nine hits and 14 strikeouts in 18 innings of work. On Sunday (June 7), Maddux hurled a four-hit shutout against the Baltimore Orioles to stop a major league-best streak of 128 consecutive games without being blanked and aid a 9-0 victory. Earlier in the week versus Colorado (Monday, June 1), he went the distance in a 5-2 triumph with a five-hit, 10-strikeout effort. He currently leads the majors with nine wins and sports 1.69 ERA, tops in the NL. This marks the sixth time Maddux has garnered the award in his career.
Maddux and Sosa will each receive a specially engraved timepiece from the Bulova Company for being named National League Co-Players of the Week.
June 6, 1998 in ESPNet
Greg Maddux's Game Log
| DATE Mar. 31 Apr. 5 Apr. 10 Apr. 15 Apr. 20 Apr. 26 May 1 May 6 May 11 May 16 May 22 May 27 Jun. 1 Jun. 7 |
OPP Mil Phi @Phi Pit @Col Col SF LA @Cin @Hou ChN Mon @Mil @Bal |
IP 7.0 8.0 8.0 9.0 8.0 5.0 7.0 7.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 8.1 9.0 9.0 |
H 6 5 5 6 8 10 6 5 3 5 5 6 5 4 |
R 1 2 0 0 5 6 2 0 1 2 2 0 2 0 |
ER 1 1 0 0 4 6 2 0 1 1 2 0 2 0 |
HR 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 |
BB 3 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 2 3 0 1 0 1 |
SO 6 6 5 5 4 5 4 5 4 5 7 6 10 4 |
DEC - L - W W L W W W - W W W W |
ERA 1.29 1.20 0.78 0.56 1.35 2.40 2.42 2.14 2.08 2.00 2.03 1.83 1.85 1.69 |
| Totals |
|
IP 106.1 |
H 79 |
R 23 |
ER 20 |
HR 5 |
BB 13 |
SO 76 |
W - L 9 - 2 | ERA 1.69 |
Maddux (9-2) struck out four and walked one in becoming the first nine-game winner in the majors and lowering his NL-leading ERA to 1.69. Baltimore hit only one fly ball and had just two baserunners after the fourth inning.
"It was like the wind was blowing you right in the face out there. If you were a knuckleball pitcher, that would be great," Maddux said. "I think it gives your pitch better movement, and it wasn't carrying when you hit it in the air."
As if he needed any help. Brady Anderson, who hit the only fly ball off Maddux, was duly impressed.
"He's great. It's sort of amazing to watch him pitch and to face him," Anderson said. "If anything he's a little average at holding on runners. I'd imagine it's because he's a little inexperienced at that."
Andres Galarraga homered twice and Andruw Jones also connected as the Braves won two of three to avenge a three-game interleague sweep by the Orioles in Atlanta last season.
The Braves outscored Baltimore 19-5 in the final two games. The three games drew 144,227 fans, a record for a three-game series at Camden Yards.
It was the seventh straight victory, third complete game and second shutout of the season for Maddux. The Orioles had not been blanked since Jamie Navarro of the White Sox did it last July 20.
"I guess if somebody's going to do it, it's going to be that guy," Orioles manager Ray Miller said. "He put on a clinic. He's a master at working both sides of the plate, changing speeds and sinking the ball."
The Orioles' best chance to score came in the fourth, when Maddux hit Anderson with a pitch and gave up a one-out double to Harold Baines. After Rafael Palmeiro struck out, Maddux made a leaping grab of a grounder by Roberto Alomar and easily made the throw to first.
The game was virtually over the exact moment Jones' 10th homer of the season cleared the left-field wall to make it 5-0 in the third. Maddux is 73-2 since June 26, 1991, when the Braves score five or more runs for him.
Atlanta jumped on Doug Drabek (5-6) at the start. Chipper Jones hit a two-out single in the first and Galarraga followed with his sixth career homer off the Baltimore right-hander.
"There are a lot of days where we never have gotten him much run support," Cox said. "We got him plenty today."
Sacrifice flies by Walt Weiss and Chipper Jones made it 4-0 in the second. Galarraga's second homer of the game and 23rd of the season, a two-run drive off Alan Mills, upped the score to 7-0 in the sixth.
"He's a threat every time he gets up," Cox said of Galarraga. "That first one, I think he got it all and the wind played tricks with it."
Eddie Perez hit a run-scoring groundout and Danny Bautista singled in a run in the ninth off Radhames Dykhoff, who was making his major league debut.
June 1, 1998 ESPNet Braves 5-2 victory over Brewers
It was a homecoming 33 years in the making for the Braves, and pitcher Greg Maddux made sure it was a successful one.
The Braves, who returned to Milwaukee for the first time since leaving for Atlanta in 1965, rekindled the memories of their past and Maddux came within one out of a shutout in a 5-2 victory over the Brewers.
The Braves played in Milwaukee from 1953-65 without a losing season and were the first franchise in major-league history to draw two million fans in a single season, doing so in 1954.
The Braves also gave the city of Milwaukee their only World Series championship in 1957 and reached the Fall Classic again the following year, playing the New York Yankees in two epic seven-game battles.
"I was kind of anxious to see the old stadium again," admitted Braves manager Bobby Cox, who played for the Yankees in 1968 and 1969. "I haven't been here in a long time. I'm certainly looking forward to the year 2000, to play in the new one, too, and that'll be fun."
The Brewers new ballpark, Miller Park, will be open for the 2000 season.
But in front of a crowd of 21,873, it was Maddux (8-2), the four-time Cy Young Award winner, who stole the show. His only mistake was a two-out, two-run homer to Jeromy Burnitz in the ninth.
"The defense was good," said Maddux. "The mistakes I made, it seemed like they were positioned right and the guys made the play. It seemed like the balls they hit hard were right at people."
He's got his changeup and sinkers working," said Braves catcher Eddie Perez. "He used to have just one or two working in a game, but today he got his slider, his sinker and changeup working. That's why he was tough today. It's easier to catch him because he puts the ball where I put the glove."
Maddux finished with a five-hitter and struck out a season-high 10 without a walk for his second complete game of the season. He joins Tampa Bay Devil Rays rookie Rolando Arrojo and Pittsburgh's Jason Schmidt as the only eight-game winners in the National League.
"We weren't able to do anything with him," said Brewers manager Phil Garner. "We get the leadoff single by (Fernando) Vina, we steal a base and look like we might be able to do something with it. He settles down and that was it for the ballgame."
"It was a typical Greg Maddux game, and you really can't talk much more about it, other than what you saw," said Cox. "And that's just the way it is with him. "
Steve Woodard (3-3) was reached for three runs and six hits in five innings for Milwaukee, which had a five-game winning streak halted.
Maddux helped his cause by starting a rally in the third with a one-out single. He raced to third on a single by Ozzie Guillen before Keith Lockhart lifted a sacrifice fly to right field.
An RBI single by Perez in the fourth pushed the lead to 2-0 and Chipper Jones' 16th homer made it 3-0 in the fifth. Another RBI single by Perez and a run-scoring groundout in the eighth by Maddux completed Atlanta's scoring.
On the mound, Maddux's dominance recalled the days of Braves right-hander Lew Burdette, who won three games in the 1957 World Series and had six straight seasons of 17 wins or more in Milwaukee.
After allowing only two hits over the first four innings, Maddux finally ran into trouble in the fifth. Marc Newfield singled and took second on a throwing error by Jones. After Newfield took third on a groundout, Maddux struck out Darrin Jackson and got pinch-hitter Jose Valentin to ground out to first.
That started a run of 13 straight batters retired by Maddux until Mark Loretta had a one-out single in the ninth. He recorded a strikeout in every inning but the first and did not allow a ball out of the infield from the fifth until Burnitz's home run in the ninth.
"The guy's great, there's no doubt about it," said Burnitz. "I mean, even guys that hit hard balls up the middle, he's all over them, he snags them. He's not overpowering, he's just throws a number of different pitches exactly where he wants them and that's why he's so great."
June 1, 1998 ESPNet Around the Horn
Three pitchers -- Pittsburgh's Jason Schmidt, Atlanta's Greg Maddux and Tampa Bay's Rolando Arrojo -- won their eighth games Monday.
Schmidt cooled off the Mets, stopping their nine-game winning streak in a 4-3 victory. Schmidt beat Maddux by an hour to become the NL's first eight-game winner.
Maddux also just missed a shutout. He gave up a two-out home run to Jeromy Burnitz in the bottom of the ninth of Atlanta's 5-2 win over Milwaukee.
The Braves returned to County Stadium for the first time since leaving Milwaukee for Atlanta following the 1965 season.
Maddux found the old ballpark much to his liking.
"This is a good place to pitch," he said. "High mound. High grass. What more do you want? It's ideal. The gaps look pretty big, too. It's a good look, with the backstop and everything."
May 1998 NL Pitcher of the Month-Orel Hershiser
Orel Hershiser of the San Francisco Giants, who posted a 5-0 record and a 0.86 ERA in May, was voted the National League Pitcher of the Month.
Hershiser won five games in six starts in May. In 42.0 innings pitched, Hershiser struck out 27, while yielding 19 hits, one home run and 15 walks.
Kerry Wood of the Chicago Cubs garnered votes with a 3 - 0 record and 60 strikeouts along with Greg Maddux of the Atlanta Braves (5-0, 1.25 ERA) and Rick Reed of the New York Mets (5-0, 1.49 ERA).
This marks the seventh Pitcher of the Month award for Hershiser, fifth in the National League (July '84, June '87, August '88 and September '88) along with two in the American League (June '96 and June '97).
Voting for the monthly awards is done by writers and broadcasters who cover the League's games on a regular basis.
May 28, 1998 By Rob Neyer in ESPNet
I was hoping to find an interesting item from 1968, but I'm afraid the Baseball Guide started getting pretty boring by the late '60s. Anyway, there was some weird stuff in the Braves/Expos game last night. Javier Vazquez, one of Montreal's promising young pitchers, allowed only two hits in seven innings ... and both of them were by Greg Maddux. What's more, both of them should have been doubles. I say "should have been," because Maddux slid around a tag beautifully but was called out anyway, in the third inning. He would later double cleanly in the sixth. (Incidentally, Maddux was born in San Angelo, Texas.)
Hey, did you ever wonder how Maddux keeps winning all those Gold Gloves? I mean, isn't he like the easiest pitcher in the majors to steal against? Hmm, could it be that stolen bases aren't as important as everyone says, and major-league managers and coaches (they're the ones who vote the Gold Gloves) know this? Just wonderin'...
May 27, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 2-0 win over Expos
Greg Maddux outdueled rookie Javier Vazquez and became the fourth seven-game winner in Atlanta's awesome starting rotation with a tidy 8 1/3 innings as the Braves blanked the Montreal Expos, 2-0, for their fourth straight victory.
A sacrifice fly by Ryan Klesko off the surprisingly tough Vazquez (1-6) in the seventh inning was all the four-time Cy Young Award winner needed to notch his fifth straight decision.
Maddux also singled and doubled for two of his team's three hits off Vazquez, who dropped his fourth straight decision. Eddie Perez's eighth-inning homer was Atlanta's only other hit.
In typical fashion, Maddux (7-2) scattered six hits -- only one for extra bases -- while walking one and striking out six in lowering his ERA to 1.83. Kerry Ligtenberg got the last two outs for his seventh save in nine opportunities.
Denny Neagle, Kevin Millwood and Tom Glavine have also won seven games each for the Braves, who won for the 23rd time in their last 28 games.
May 22, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 8-2 win over Cubs
Pinch-hitter Gerald Williams blasted a tie-breaking three-run homer in the seventh inning and Greg Maddux allowed five hits over eight innings to remain perfect against his former team as the Atlanta Braves defeated the Chicago Cubs, 8-2.
"I was just trying to come in and make a positive contribution and drive the ball," said Williams. "It was a fast ball away. You just want to get in and put a swing on it and get the job done." Maddux (6-2) gave up both runs, walked none and struck out seven, improving to 7-0 against the Cubs. In his last four starts versus Chicago, the four-time Cy Young Award winner has allowed only three earned runs in 33 innings for a 0.82 ERA.
Maddux refused to gloat about his domination of the Cubs.
"I want to be a good pitcher," he said "(The success against the Cubs) is not my reason for wanting to be good. It's nice if you accomplish it. As soon as (former Cubs general manager) Larry Hines left, I didn't care." Mike Cather finished up with a scoreless ninth.
After Maddux gave up a 444-foot solo homer to Sammy Sosa in the top of the first, Andres Galarraga belted a two-run shot, his 16th, off Clark in the bottom of the inning to give the Braves a 2-1 lead.
"We came here playing good baseball, that's why this loss hurts," said Sosa, who had two hits. "The game was played well until the seventh inning. They came through. You've got to give credit to Maddux. He's still my idol." Cubs shortstop Jeff Blauser went 1-for-3 in his return to Atlanta. Blauser had spent his entire career with the Braves before signing with Chicago over the winter.
May 16, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 2-3 loss to Astros
Maddux was seeking his fourth straight win and sixth in seven decisions. He yielded two runs -- one earned -- and five hits, also walking three and striking out five. Mike Cather worked the eighth before Ligtenberg came on to start the ninth.
Two playoff teams, two good pitching staffs, this is the kind of game you expect," Atlanta manager Bobby Cox said. "We made some mistakes and gave away a run in the fifth inning. But being the good team they are, the Astros earned their other two runs. Two good starting pitchers gave their clubs seven strong innings apiece. We just have to come out and try to win this series, which we still can do."
Jones connected off Reynolds in the top of the third and Atlanta doubled its lead one inning later on a squeeze bunt by Maddux.
Houston started its comeback in the fifth. With Brad Ausmus at second and two out, shortstop Walt Weiss fielded Derek Bell's grounder but his throw short-hopped first baseman Andres Galarraga and rolled up the right-field line. Ausmus scored to halve the margin.
Bill Spiers doubled home Richard Hidalgo with one out in the sixth to tie it but was stranded at third when Reynolds struck out.
May 16, 1998 ESPNet Around the Horn
Biggio Sends 'em Home Happy
A record full house at the Astrodome gave Craig Biggio and the Houston Astros an extra lift Saturday night.
And Biggio used that adrenaline to help him hit a dramatic, bottom-of-the-ninth inning home run to send the Astros to a 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves.
Biggio's one-out homer thrilled the largest regular-season crowd in Astrodome history. The crowd of 51,526, which bettered the previous mark of 50,908 set on June 22, 1966, against Los Angeles, saw the Astros come back from a 2-0 deficit against Greg Maddux.
Biggio hit the game-winning off reliever Kerry Ligtenberg (3-2).
Said Biggio: "Walking into the building and seeing all these people really gave us a lift."
May 11, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 8-1 win over Reds
The Atlanta Braves set a franchise record by homering in their 23rd straight game and Greg Maddux cruised to his fifth win in an 8-1 pounding of the Cincinnati Reds.
Maddux (5-2), who was staked to a 7-1 lead after 4 1/2 innings, allowed just one run and three hits while walking two and striking out four over six innings. The four-time Cy Young Award winner allowed a leadoff triple to Dmitri Young in the fourth but allowed only one other runner to reach as far as second.
Young had three of the four hits for Cincinnati, which fell to 0-8 when trying to go over the .500 mark.
May 7, 1998 By Rob Neyer in ESPNet:
Pitchers who help themselves
By Rob Neyer
ESPN SportsZone
When we talk about dominating pitchers, we generally mean those hurlers who strike out a lot of hitters. After all, the more batters you strike out, the less you must rely on the fielders behind you, right? So perhaps strikeout pitchers deserve a little "extra credit" for doing more of the job themselves.
But there's another way for pitchers to take care of their own business. Have you ever noticed how often Greg Maddux induces weak little ground balls right back to the mound, resulting in 1-3 plays or (even better) 1-6-3 double plays?
We checked every pitcher who finished 1997 with at least 100 innings pitched, noted their assists, and from that computed assists per nine innings
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| Pitcher | IP | Ast | Ast/9 |
| K. Rogers | 145.0 | 42 | 2.61 |
| K. Rueter | 190.2 | 53 | 2.50 |
| R. Bailey | 191.0 | 53 | 2.50 |
| M. Hampton | 223.0 | 57 | 2.30 |
| D. Telgheder | 101.0 | 24 | 2.14 |
If you look at the chart, you might notice one surprising absence: the aforementioned Greg Maddux, who ranked seventh in the majors last season with 1.90 assists per game. Actually, if we restricted our list to ERA qualifiers (at least 162 innings), Maddux would rank fifth. So your eyes haven't been deceiving you, The Smartest Pitcher Who Ever Lived really does make a lot of plays.
Mike Hampton's presence here is yet another testament to his athletic ability. In addition to being a deft fielder, Hampton is very fast, probably faster even than teammate Craig Biggio.
Do pitcher assists equal pitcher success? Rueter, Bailey and Hampton were all pretty good, combining for a 37-26 record and a 3.86 ERA. Bailey's 4.29 ERA was particularly impressive, given that 14 of his 29 starts were in Coors Field.
On the other hand, Telgheder and Rogers were awful last season.
What about the other side of the coin?
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| Pitcher | IP | Ast | Ast/9 |
| H. Nomo | 207.1 | 8 | 0.35 |
| C. Eldred | 202.0 | 10 | 0.45 |
| W. Williams | 194.2 | 10 | 0.46 |
| R. Person | 128.1 | 8 | 0.56 |
| D. Cone | 195.0 | 13 | 0.60 |
Which pitchers don't really need to wear a glove on the mound?
Nomo's numbers are pretty amazing when you think about them. Thirty-three starts, 207 innings ... and only eight assists? How do you do that, anyway? I mean, I know he's essentially a power pitcher, but wouldn't you think his splitter would result in some dribblers back to the mound?
In general, this group of non-assisters resembles the other group, the maximum-assisters -- a good group, but not particularly brilliant. Which perhaps is just proof that there's more than one way to make something of yourself in your chosen profession. Especially if your chosen profession happens to be throwing a baseball.
May 6, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 7-0 win over Dodgers
Greg Maddux pitched seven scoreless innings and Michael Tucker and Chipper Jones each homered to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 7-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers and a sweep of their three-game series.
"We did everything right," said Braves manager Bobby Cox. "The pitching, the hitting, the baserunning, everything is working for us right now."
Maddux (4-2) allowed five hits, walked none and struck out five. He retired 14 straight batters from the first through the fifth inning.
The Dodgers had their best chance to score in the seventh inning when Raul Mondesi hit his second double of the game and advanced to third on Todd Zeile's infield single. Zeile's hit caromed off the left leg of Maddux, who shook off the injury and retired pinch-hitter Thomas Howard on an inning-ending double play.
"I got hit in the knee, but it wasn't hit that hard," said Maddux. "It's just a bruise. No big deal."
Nevertheless, Maddux was pulled by Cox after the seventh inning. Mike Cather worked the final two innings and yielded two hits to complete Atlanta's fourth shutout of the season. Maddux threw 85 pitches, 61 of which were strikes, and improved to 8-3 in 19 career outings against the Dodgers.
May 1, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 6-2 win over Giants
Greg Maddux returned to his Cy Young form, tossing seven solid innings, and Andruw Jones smacked a go-ahead two-run homer in the fourth inning as the Atlanta Braves posted their fourth straight victory, 6-2 over the San Francisco Giants.
Maddux got off to a shaky start, surrendering a two-run homer to Barry Bonds in the first inning. But the four-time Cy Young Award winner was nearly flawless the rest of the way, allowing just four hits and two walks while holding the Giants scoreless over the next six innings.
"Maddux was outstanding except for one pitch," Braves manager Bobby Cox said.
Maddux, who gave up six hits and struck out four, had been tagged for 11 runs and 18 hits over 13 innings in his last two starts. However, he is an astounding 11-1 with an ERA under 2.00 against San Francisco since August 25th, 1993.
"There wasn't a lot of difference between this time and last time except I didn't make as many mistakes," said Maddux, who was ripped for six runs in five innings to lose his last outing. "I got the ball down more. It takes more than one bad game to put me in a brain funk."
"The chances aren't going to be many against Maddux," Giants manager Dusty Baker said. "I know a couple of innings he threw more pitches than he wanted to. I figured if we got close we could get him."
"I'm just staying patient and trying to relax," said Jones, who is now batting .206 after opening the season 4-for-40. "I don't think home run, I just try to hit the ball."
After Bill Mueller singled, Bonds recorded his sixth home run when he hit a 1-1 pitch from Maddux over the right-field fence. Bonds, who also walked and doubled off the wall, was the only Giant with two hits.
"It doesn't matter how much success I have against him (Maddux), I could face him three times and hit three home runs. But if we don't win, that's what matters," Bonds said. "I don't care about Maddux or anyone else, I care about us winning. He always finds a way to win."
April 26, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 6-7 loss to the Rockies
ATLANTA -- Vinny Castilla belted two home runs to take over the major league lead with 11 and had five RBI as the Colorado Rockies pounded Greg Maddux and held on for a 7-6 victory over the Atlanta Braves.
After doubling in two runs in the first inning, Castilla hit a two-run homer off Maddux in the third and a solo shot off Mike Cather in the eighth.
Jerry DiPoto earned his fifth save, despite allowing a sacrifice fly to Javier Lopez in the ninth. Maddux surrendered six runs and 10 hits and was pulled after five innings, marking the first time in his six starts this season he did not pitch at least seven. In his three previous home starts, he gave up only three earned runs in 24 innings.
The Rockies reached Maddux, who threw 94 pitches, for four runs in the top of the first on Dante Bichette's RBI single, Castilla's two-run double and a fielder's choice by Jeff Reed.
"They didn't miss," said Maddux. "I threw five or six bad pitches and they hit every one of them. I made a lot of mistakes. I left some pitches up and I didn't get away with anything."
It marked the first time Maddux allowed four runs in the first inning in 217 starts, dating back to June 30th, 1991 when he was a member of the Chicago Cubs.
"Usually, you get away with some mistakes," said Maddux. "They weren't getting cheap hits. I got beat today. I let down the team. I don't feel good about it."
"Maddux was not as sharp as he usually is," added Castilla.
Colorado stretched its lead to 6-0 on Castilla's two-run homer in the third, before Atlanta stormed back with five runs in the bottom of the fourth.
"(Maddux) didn't have his stuff today," said Braves manager Bobby Cox. "It wasn't there. We're partly human, I guess. We made it a ballgame."
April 26, 1998 ESPNet Around the Horn
"I made a lot of mistakes. I left some pitches up. I didn't get away with anything. Usually, you get away with some mistakes. Not today."
Of all the pitchers in baseball you'd expect to make those remarks, perhaps this would be your last possible guess: Greg Maddux.
But those were his words all right. And amazingly, they were accurate.
Proving that even the game's top pitchers can get roughed up now and again -- especially against the big bats of Colorado -- Maddux was rocked Sunday, giving up six earned runs on 10 hits. He threw 94 pitches in five innings.
"He didn't have his stuff today," Atlanta manager Bobby Cox said. "It just wasn't there. He threw as many pitches in five innings (that) he normally would in nine innings."
Maddux's ERA, second-best in the league at 1.35 entering the game, soared to 2.40. Eight of the hits and six runs came before the four-time Cy Young Award winner had gotten the Rockies out in the third inning.
It was the most runs and hits Maddux has allowed in 60 starts since June 7, 1996, when the Rockies got seven earned runs and 11 hits in 3 1-3 innings.
Maddux had gone 217 starts since June 30, 1991, without allowing as many as four runs in the first inning. In that 1991 game, St. Louis did it against him at Wrigley Field when he was still with the Chicago Cubs.
Rockie players recognized right away that the vintage Maddux had failed to show.
"He wasn't as sharp as he usually is," Vinny Castilla, who had a two-run double and a two-run homer off Maddux, said. "In the first inning, he threw me a fastball right down the middle with an 0-2 count. That's something that usually never happens."
Well, so far this season, only when Maddux faces Colorado.
He has a 6.92 ERA against the Rockies, allowing nine earned runs in 13 innings. Against the rest of the league, it's 0.56 (two earned runs in 32 innings).
April 24, 1998
Paul G. Wenthold-rec.sport.baseball
I asked Neyer about this recently and did the following looking around. Even though Maddux doesn't get a lot of strikeouts (well, OK, not as many as Randy Johnson), it seems that he gets a lot of groundball to pitcher outs. I thought maybe this would be reflected by the number of assists the pitcher gets. For the most part, I think it's OK with the main other contributor being assists on sacrifices, but those are sufficiently rare to not worry about it. Neyer pointed out to me that Mike Hampton lead the league last year with 57 A, while Maddux had 49. In terms of the rates, that puts Hampton at 2.3/9IP, while Maddux is at 1.9. OTOH, last year is a little out of line with the careers for each, as Hampton for his career is 1.94 and Maddux is 2.04.
However, I'm not sure that A/IP is really what I want to look at, so I decided to take SO out of the equation. Now I'm just looking at the rate of GB to P for non-SO's. In that case, Hampton had 2.90A/9 non-KIP last year, while Maddux was at 2.54. For their careers, Hampton is at 2.50 and Maddux is 2.66. For comparison, I looked at a few other guys pulled semi-randomly off ESPNet:
Career numbers
Belcher 1.20
Smoltz 1.44
Randy Johnson 1.68
Saberhagen 1.91
Pedro Martinez 1.37
Clemens 1.36
Eckersley 1.32
Pettitte 1.94
The highest I found outside of Hampton and Maddux is Bill Swift, a notorious groundball pitcher, at 2.19, still well below Maddux.
Maddux had 71 A in 1996, which gave him 3.50 A/nKIP. I don't know how this compares with any historical seasons.
After looking through this stuff, it looks like Maddux is exceptional at inducing ground outs to pitcher. Whether that is due to him being a good fielder or just his superb pitching I don't know. Moreover, I don't know how it compares to any historical figures.
April 21, 1998
Marty Winn: This made me realize that someone must have 11 or so assists in a game.
Chris Dial: Bingo. Good guess. Rip Sewell in 1941. Big Ed Walsh for the ChiSox in the '07 (twice) some other guys in the teens.
Marty Winn: It would seem to call for a pitcher who does not strike out many (steals outs) and gets lots of grounders. But this could be a two game record or 15 assists for a pitcher.
Chris Dial: Since 11 has been done 6 times, and 5 times in the deadball era, I doubt 15 is a record over 2 games. In fact, as I read on, Ed Walsh has the record for most chances accepted in two games: 20 - 2 putouts and 18 assists.
Marty Winn: Anyone know what the record is for assists, put outs, double plays, and/or total chances per game by position. Can anyone help me out with the records I seek? Where can I find them?
Chris Dial: All the info is in the Sporting News Complete Baseball Record Book. In this order: A, PO, DP, Chances Accepted, Errors. Pitchers: 11 Assists Rip Sewell, 7 Putouts Maddux, 4 DPs last by Hal Newhouser, 13 Chances Walsh, 4 E's Chester Ross 1925.
April 20, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 7-5 win over Rockies
Andruw Jones belted two home runs off Darryl Kile and Chipper Jones added a two-run double as the Atlanta Braves overcame a subpar effort from Greg Maddux and held on for a 7-5 victory over the Colorado Rockies.
But the Rockies rallied against Maddux (2-1), ripping the four-time Cy Young Award winner for four runs in the seventh inning. A three-run homer by pinch-hitter John VanderWal pulled Colorado within 7-5, but Maddux got Mike Lansing to fly out and Neifi Perez to ground out to end the inning.
Mark Wohlers relieved Maddux in the ninth.
Maddux had not given up an earned run in his last 23 innings and had not been scored upon in 17 frames coming into this contest. He got the win despite watching his ERA rise to 1.35, allowing five runs -- four earned -- and eight hits with no walks and four strikeouts.
April 19, 1998
The Sporting News April 19, 1998
When he was a kid, four-time Cy Young winner Greg Maddux use to lean over the railings at ballparks and shout for the players to throw a ball to him or at least sign an autograph. In fact, Maddux clearly remembers the first time a big-league ballplayer tossed him a baseball. He dropped it.
Maddux talks with TSN correspondent Ray Glier about the biggest compliment anyone has ever paid him, his common looks and demeanor that help maintain privacy, the ball thrown to him by a Reds catcher, his pitching philosophy, 300 victories and the advice he'd give to a young pitcher.
Probably the biggest compliment anyone has paid me was Andre Dawson. He said, "I'll play behind him any time." Whether he was lying or meant it, I don't know. That's probably it. It was when I first coming up . . . maybe my first or second year. You always want to earn the respect of your teammates more so than anybody else, maybe more than your manager or even the fans. It's something I remember, and it meant a lot to me.
(When with the Cubs early in career) I was worrying so much about winning and losing, or getting an out, or giving up a hit, that it was affecting the way I was pitching. It was interfering with my ability to make good pitches.
I think Dick Pole (pitching coach with Cubs) mentioned it to me the third or fourth year in the big leagues. I even talked to a shrink, and he kind of said the same thing, maybe a different way. I believed them; it made a lot of sense to me, so I tried to do it. It's easier said then done because you play this game to win. But at the same time you have to forget about that and concentrate on what it takes to win. For me, it's making good pitches.
I never think about 300 victories. I'm aware of what my stats are. I read the stats, I look at my stats, more so because I'm curious. I don't pitch for them, but I like to look at them. I don't even have 200 yet, so why think about 300?
Piece of cake (to hide my identity). I'm thankful for that sometimes. It's not by accident, either. The way I dress and carry myself in public has something to do with it. I'm very casual. Some guys carry themselves like athletes; I don't. I walk like I walk. I don't walk like some big-time athlete. I wear a hat a lot, but that's more because I'd rather throw on a hat than spend the extra five minutes combing my hair.
I don't do a lot of the TV stuff. Other guys would rather do it, which is fine by me. I don't think it hurts my privacy. The other thing is we don't go a lot of places. I go to the golf course; maybe we'll go to a movie, but we don't get out of the house much.
The Reds were my team. Pete Rose. Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench. Tony Perez.
Cesar Geronimo. Ed Armbrister. My parents grew up in southern Indiana, and my dad was a huge Reds fan. So I guess it's like father, like son. He liked the Reds. I liked the Reds. If we'd go to a baseball game, it was the Reds. We'd go to Riverfront. When we lived in LA for a couple of years, the only time we watched the Dodgers was when they were playing the Reds. We hated the Dodgers and loved the Reds.
I remember Don Woerner, I think he was a backup catcher, threw me a ball one time. I was one of the dorky little kids leaning over the wall begging for a ball. It was during batting practice, and we were out near the bullpen. He threw it to me, it hit me right in the glove, perfect throw, and I dropped it. He scooped it up and flipped it up to me on the way by. I was probably 5. I think we were using it the next day in the street.
The advice I'd give to a young pitcher is to work on the fastball. Do whatever you need to do to work on the fastball and make it better, whether you're going to college or you want to get drafted out of high school. If you think throwing curveballs, sliders and knuckleballs hurts your fastball by the time you're 17 or 18, don't throw 'em.
Do whatever you think you need to do to have the best fastball because that's the one pitch they really can't teach you. They can teach you all the other stuff, but they really can't teach you a good fastball.
April 15, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 7-0 win over Pirates
Greg Maddux tossed a six-hitter and Chipper Jones had three hits, including his league-leading seventh homer, as the Atlanta Braves blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates for the second straight game, 7-0.
Maddux (1-1) walked none and struck out five, giving Atlanta back-to-back complete-game shutouts of the Pirates. Kevin Millwood threw a one-hitter with 13 strikeouts in Monday's 6-0 victory at Pittsburgh.
"I was OK, I got lucky with some pitches and caught some breaks," Maddux said. "I made some good pitches, too. It's all right, I can't complain. My slider (stunk) again. The runs were huge and the defense was huge. It was big."
It was the Braves' first set of back-to-back complete games since Maddux and Tom Glavine turned the trick on June 15th-16th, 1995. Maddux tamed Montreal and Glavine stymied Colorado the following day, both by scores of 2-0.
Maddux, who also had two hits, threw just 97 pitches -- 70 for strikes -- in his second complete game of the season and 82nd of his career. He lowered his ERA to a miniscule 0.56, allowing only two earned runs in 32 innings this season.
The four-time Cy Young Award winner has won 125 games since 1991, the most in the majors. Since June 26th, 1991, Maddux is 68-1 when he gets five runs or more of support. Atlanta scored just three runs total for Maddux in his first three starts.
April 10, 1998 in ESPNet after Braves 0-1 loss to Phillies
Curt Schilling threw a two-hitter and outpitched Greg Maddux for the second time in a week as the Philadelphia Phillies moved two games over .500 for the first time in nearly two years with a 1-0 triumph over the Atlanta Braves.
Maddux, who held the Phillies scoreless through eight innings, allowed five singles, walked none and struck out five. He surrendered just two fly balls and threw 67 of 94 pitches for strikes. The game took just two hours to complete.
April 10, 1998 in ESPNet Around the Horn
I'll trade a Cy Young for a run
Hey Atlanta -- ever heard of run support? Through three starts, Greg Maddux has allowed three runs over 23 innings -- that's an ERA of 0.78 -- but the four-time Cy Young winner doesn't have a win to show for it. He's just been the victim of circumstance.
Did we say circumstance? We mean Curt Schilling. The Phillies flame-thrower torched Maddux and the Braves for the second game in a week, beating Atlanta 1-0 Friday.
"I'm happy with the way I'm throwing," Maddux said. "I'm sure not going to change anything."
Of course, it doesn't help that Atlanta has scored the same number of runs -- three -- that Maddux has given up in his three starts.
Friday night's game was almost a mirror-image of Philadelphia's 2-1 win over Atlanta on April 5. The only way the Phillies managed to score on Maddux was via an unearned run thanks to a Chipper Jones throwing error.
In two games against Schilling, this is what Atlanta's offense has mustered: One Curtis Pride single, one Eddie Perez single, one Rafael Belliard single, one Tony Graffanino single, one Chipper Jones single, one single by Jones in which he was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double and a home run by Jones.
April 6, 1998 ESPNet Which ace will have the best year?
The winner of the the year's first Best in the Biz is Greg Maddux, your choice as the ace who will have the best year. Maddux beat out Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling. All three, of course, are off to unbelievable starts, with ERAs under 1.00 after three starts.
| Player | 1st-place votes | Total points |
| Greg Maddux | 954 | 19,613 |
| Pedro Martinez | 701 | 17,500 |
| Curt Schilling | 488 | 15,648 |
| Kevin Brown | 341 | 13,962 |
| Roger Clemens | 147 | 12,958 |
| Mike Mussina | 265 | 11,472 |
| Randy Johnson | 73 | 10,891 |
| Andy Pettitte | 47 | 6,532 |
April 5, 1998 in ESPNet After Braves 2-1 loss to Phillies
ATLANTA -- Curt Schilling struck out 15 batters to outduel Greg Maddux in a battle of premier pitchers and Scott Rolen broke a tie with an eighth-inning sacrifice fly as the Philadelphia Phillies edged the Atlanta Braves 2-1.
"You know, when you're facing a guy like Maddux, you can't make many mistakes," Schilling said.
Maddux (0-1) remained winless in two starts this season, allowing two runs -- one earned -- and five hits in eight innings with six strikeouts. His ERA is just 1.20 despite the lack of a victory.
"I'm really happy with the way I'm throwing," Maddux said. "If I keep throwing like that I'll be OK."
While Chipper Jones accounted for the Braves' only run, it was his throwing error from third base that allowed leadoff batter Alex Arias to reach in the eighth. Schilling reached on a sacrifice bunt as Maddux's throw went into center field, though no error was given. Doug Glanville sacrificed to advance the runners and, following an intentional walk to Gregg Jefferies, Rolen lifted a sacrifice fly to right field.
"I didn't have hold of the ball and I shouldn't have thrown it," Maddux said of the throw into center field. "I gave them a window and they took advantage."
The Phillies also manufactured a run off Maddux in the second. Jefferies and Rolen opened with singles and Jefferies came home when Mike Lieberthal grounded into a double play.
The two runs would be enough as the Braves were baffled by Schilling.
Jefferies was 2-for-3 to raise his lifetime average against Maddux to .352.
April 1, 1998 in ESPNet Around the Horn
Greg Maddux issued three walks, one intentional, in getting a no-decision. That ties his single-game high from last year (which he did only once), when he walked only 20 all season -- and six of those were intentional.
March 31, 1998 in ESPNet After Braves 3-1 victory over Brewers
Four-time Cy Young Award winner Greg Maddux started for Atlanta and allowed one run and six hits over seven innings, walking three and striking out six. Maddux walked 20 in 33 starts all of last season.
"I have had better games but I got two breaks," Maddux said. "Andruw made two great plays in center field. I made some bad pitches but got the breaks. They have good contact hitters and good situational hitters."
Cal Eldred drew the Opening Day assignment for Milwaukee and matched Maddux, surrendering one run and five hits over six innings. Former Brave Chad Fox added two scoreless frames in relief.
The Brewers manufactured a run off Maddux in the third. Vina and Cirillo reached on one-out infield singles, and Jaha scored when John Jaha singled to right.
Milwaukee had a chance to get to Maddux in the first but the Atlanta ace retired Grissom on a groundout with two aboard. A missed hit-and-run opportunity cost Atlanta in the third and Eddie Perez grounded out with a runner on second in the fourth.
The Braves had runners on first and second and two out in the fifth but Chipper Jones struck out. Maddux showed why he hasn't had an ERA above 2.72 in six seasons when he escaped a bases-loaded jam in the sixth inning by getting Marc Newfield to bounce into an inning-ending double play.
March 18, 1998 By Rob Neyer in ESPNet:
Finally, have you been reading SportsZone's spring-training reports, filed from Arizona and Florida by David Schoenfield and David Kull? I hope so, because they've been excellent, and I'm not saying that because those guys are my pals.
Anyway, if you haven't been reading them, you missed Kull's recounting of a conversation with Bob Feller, in which Feller had some mighty interesting things to say about Randy Johnson and Greg Maddux.
Johnson? "He throws hard but his fastball's not that consistent. He's a thrower, not a pitcher. He'll be a pitcher someday."
Someday? Feller's description might have been apt five or six years ago, but not now. And for the record, let us note that Johnson's career strikeout-to-walk ratio is 2.33 to 1. Feller's career ratio was 1.46 to 1. So who's the thrower?
And Maddux? "I don't care that much for Maddux because he doesn't throw that hard. I like the hard throwers."
That pretty much speaks for itself. I know it's easy to pick on an old guy whose wits are an endangered species, plus I shouldn't goof on a real-life Immortal but I've got a riddle for you anyway:
What do you call 15 Bob Fellers in a room together?
The Veterans Committee. Heh heh.
February 24, 1998
KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Greg Maddux has won four NL Cy Young Awards, played in six All-Star games, won 20 games twice and 15 or more in 10 consecutive seasons. He's running out of goals.
Still, he managed to find one for this season,
"Have a higher batting average than ERA," said Maddux, who's done that only once in his previous 11 seasons.
"I would love to win 20 games," he said. "I think that's every pitcher's goal. Win a Cy Young -- I mean there's always things you try to accomplish."
But hitting well is something he would treasure. The 31-year-old right-hander had a .173 career average. He managed to hit .222 in 1994, surpassing his ERA of 1.56.
Maddux's average dropped to a career-low .104 last season, and his 2.20 ERA won second in the league behind Montreal's Pedro Martinez (1.90).
Maddux, who went 19-4, finished second behind Martinez in last year's Cy Young voting. He starts a $57.5 million, five-year contract this season and has a chance to add more Cy Youngs to his collection.
"It's being lucky and staying healthy," he said. "I think that's the biggest thing."
Maddux is 184-108 in 11 seasons with a 2.81 ERA. In five years with the Braves, he is 89-33. Since June 1991, he is 67-1 when his team scores five runs or more.
"I understand myself. I think I have a pretty good idea who I am -- what I can and can't do -- and I don't vary from it," Maddux said. "If you throw a good game, it makes you smart? It's not true. ... You go out there and make good pitches, period. You're going to get guys out."
Maddux averaged 86 pitches and seven innings per start last season, walking only 20 batters -- six intentionally -- in 232 2-3 innings, an average of 0.774 walks per nine innings. Only seven pitchers this century who qualified for the ERA title walked fewer per nine innings.
Maddux had streaks of 38 and 36 innings with no walks and went into his final start with a chance to finish with more wins and walks. But he got a no-decision and issued an intentional pass.
"The one thing I can control are the pitches I make," he said. "I can't necessarily control the results or the outcome of the game. I know if I make a lot of good pitches that's going to increase my chances of winning. Everybody says they'd rather be lucky than good. I'd rather be good than lucky. I'm the other way around."
Maddux might be a little of each, but it doesn't matter to Atlanta manager Bobby Cox.
"All I want him to do is throw the way he has in the past," Cox said. "That's all I ask."
By TOM SALADINO, AP Sports Writer