Greg Maddux

Gregory Alan Maddux (born April 14, 1966), also known as "Mad Dog" and "the Professor," is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs. Maddux was the first pitcher in MLB history to win the Cy Young Award four consecutive years (1992–1995), matched by only one other pitcher, Randy Johnson. During those four seasons, Maddux had a 75–29 win–loss record with a 1.98 earned run average (ERA), while allowing fewer than one baserunner per inning. An eight-time All-Star, he won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over the Cleveland Indians.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history, Maddux is the only pitcher in MLB history to win at least 15 games for 17 straight seasons. He also holds the record for most Gold Gloves by any player with 18, and most putouts by a pitcher with 546, including a tied live-ball-era record of 39 putouts in a season (1990, 1991, 1993). A superb control pitcher, Maddux won more games during the 1990s than any other pitcher and is 8th on the all-time career wins list with 355. Only Warren Spahn (363) recorded more career wins than Maddux since the start of the post-1920 live-ball era. Maddux also has the most wins among pitchers who made their debuts after World War II. He is one of only ten pitchers ever to achieve both 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts, and is the only pitcher to record more than 300 wins, more than 3,000 strikeouts, and fewer than 1,000 walks (exactly 999 walks overall).

Since his retirement as a player, Maddux has also served as a special assistant to the general manager for both the Cubs and Texas Rangers. In 2014, he was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility, receiving 97.2% of the votes. In 2012, writer Jason Lukehart coined the term "Maddux" to describe when a pitcher throws a complete game shutout in fewer than 100 pitches; Maddux holds the record for most times accomplishing this feat (13) since pitch counts began to be tracked in 1988. The runner-up for this accomplishment is Zane Smith with seven such games.

Maddux was born in San Angelo, Texas, and spent much of his childhood in Madrid, Spain, where the United States Air Force stationed his father. His father exposed him to baseball at an early age. Upon his return to Las Vegas, Nevada, Maddux and his brother Mike, who became a pro player himself, trained under the supervision of Ralph Meder, a former scout from the majors. Meder preached the value of movement and location above velocity, and advised throwing softer when in a jam instead of harder. Maddux would later say, "I believed it. I don't know why. I just did."

Though Meder died before Maddux graduated from Valley High School in Las Vegas in 1984, he instilled a firm foundation that would anchor Maddux's future career. At Valley High, he was teammates on the school's baseball team with future Major League pitcher Steve Chitren and helped lead the school to a state championship as a junior in 1983. While in Las Vegas, he played American Legion Baseball with Post 8. He was named the organization's Graduate of the Year in 1984.

His brother, Mike, was drafted in 1982. When scouts went to observe the elder Maddux, their father, Dave, told them, "You will be back later for the little one." Some baseball scouts were unimpressed by Maddux's skinny build, but Chicago Cubs scout Doug Mapson saw past the physique. Mapson wrote a glowing review that read in part, "I really believe this boy would be the number one player in the country if only he looked a bit more physical."

The Chicago Cubs selected Maddux in the second round of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft and he chose to sign in lieu of honoring a commitment to play college baseball at the University of Arizona. He made his major league debut on September 3, 1986, the conclusion of the September 2 game which had been postponed due to darkness (lights were not installed at Wrigley Field until 1988). At the time, Maddux was the youngest player in the majors. His first appearance in a major league game was as a pinch runner (for catcher Jody Davis) in the 17th inning against the Houston Astros. Maddux then pitched in the 18th inning, allowing a home run to Billy Hatcher and taking the loss. His first start, five days later, was a complete game win. In his fifth and final start of 1986, Maddux defeated his older brother, who was pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies, marking the first time rookie brothers had pitched against each other. Mike Maddux was well used to his younger brother's competitive spirit, saying of their youth, "If Greg couldn't win, he didn't want to play, plain and simple."

In 1987, his first full season in the majors, Maddux struggled significantly. Entering his start on July 8 against the San Diego Padres, Maddux was warned that if he did not get the win in what was his eighteenth start of the season, he would be sent back to Triple-A.