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Monday, December 8, 2008
Maddux will be missed; could Ankiel be a Brave?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Las Vegas — He walked among us as just another guy, with an rather unimpressive physique and a wonderful whacked-out, self-deprecating sense of humor.
But atop the pitcher’s mound, Greg Maddux was not just another guy. Or even just another major league ace.
He was a pitching god. The best I’ve ever seen. An absolute master. The smartest, craftiest, and most aware baseball player - not just pitcher - that I ever had the privilege of covering or just watching.
Oh, and did I mention, a joy to be around? He really was. Made you glad you did something like this for a living, he was that special.
And yes, there was that penchant for sick humor and practical jokes, most of them unfit to be discussed here (teammates knew not to reach into the bin of sanitary socks without looking first, for Maddux was known to leave something, uh, unsanitary).
I could tell you about how he (allegedly) urinated in the hot tub when he was a young Cubs pitcher, that story told to me years ago by Andre Dawson, who was in the big tub with a couple of other Cubs veterans when young Maddux informed them that he’d relieved himself in it a few minutes earlier.
Most of the stories are funnier, but also more offensive.
Maddux was the neighbor most of us would probably like to hang out with, to watch a ballgame and have a beer with.
It was remarkable to think that one who was capable of being so immature (in a good way) at times, could be so ferocious and dedicated when it came to pitching, and so brilliant when discussing any aspect of the game, not just pitching.
He was a relentless competitor, pitching through aches and seldom producing less than an exemplary, often overwhelming, performance.
“Greg Maddux is the best artist I ever saw paint a baseball game,” the Hall of Fame pitcher Don Sutton told me this morning. “And the most secure, confident-within-himself pitcher I watched work.
“Some of the things he could forsee happening in a game, and the ways he could manipulate hitters, I’ve never seen anyone else do. I wish I could have played with him - through osmosis, I probably would have won 50 more games. He may be the smartest baseball man I’ve ever been around.”
Sutton was a Braves broadcaster, of course, during the Big Three heyday of Braves pitching, when Maddux, Glavine and Smoltz ruled the roost in the majors’ best rotations, year after year after year.
“That group there in Atlanta was amazing,” Sutton said. “They would watch every pitch and dissect, which you don’t see other pitching staffs do. Maddux, Smoltz and Glavine made each other better.
“In my mind, the Phi Beta Kappa of the group was Maddux. He was absolutely brilliant.”
Well said, Don.
Yes, the broke the mold when them made Maddux. I don’t expect to ever see another pitcher as great as him, much as I don’t expect to see a basketball player as great as Michael Jordan.
I am certain I will never know another pitcher as smart and unassuming, and with such a sense of humor.
I filed a long story that should be posted at our website soon, but here’s a few other Maddux quotes that didn’t make it in the story.
Maddux on:
His years with the Braves: ”Very special. We won all 11 years I was in Atlanta. They won before I got there and won every year I was there. And just to be around that atmosphere … I remember Bobby talking about in spring training, that we were getting ready for the postseason. We weren’t getting ready for the season, we were getting ready for the postseason. We did a little bit less in spring training because we knew our season was going to be seven months, not six.
“We had that winning attitude back in February. Bobby, thank you, for everything you taught me about the game. Leo as well, and all the coaches. I just had a lot of coaches that taught me so much about the game, that hopefully I’ll use in the future and pass down as time goes on.”
On whether he ever wondered what might’ve been if he never left Chicago:: “A little bit. Not a whole lot. You know, when I left Chicago I was not ready to leave. Buy sometimes the grass is greener on the other side. You know, I got a chance to win in Atlanta, and win a lot.
“To share that with guys like Smoltzy, Glav, Avery, Kevin Millwood, all the guys I had a chance to pitch with … it was pretty cool. And just to go there and actually learn how to have fun, and to play golf between starts. Smoltz always had something set up [to play golf]; that was pretty cool.
“To meet people from all over the country on the golf course, and at the same time win ever year, and to have such an enjoyment to go to the park every day. I think winning creates that, and it was nice to be a part of that.”
On possibly coaching or managing in the future: “You know, I might. Right now I want to take a year off and spend time with the family, do things that I haven’t been able to do because of baseball, and see if I like it. I assume I’ll like it, but I also don’t know how bad I’m gonna miss the game.
“I mean, baseball is all I know. I don’t really know a whole lot about anything, but I think I know a few things about baseball. I’m gonna miss it, and hopefully I don’t miss it too much. I haven’t gotten to that point yet. Right now it’s kind of a long offseason for me, doing things I’ve done for the last 20 offseasons. Nothing’s really different for me [yet].
On the Braves-Mets rivalry and games at Shea Stadium: “It was fun. It was always fun to go to New York. We had Chipper on our team, and Chipper always used to do big things there. It was fun watching the guys play there, and it was also fun being part of it.
“Shea Stadium is one of the best places to play baseball, and especially when the Mets were good. For us to go there, I’ll just never forget it. There was a smell, there were just some things about Shea Stadium that felt like, this is a pretty cool place to be.”
On his amazing run in the ‘90s:: I guess you just get locked in. You’re comfortable with what you’re trying to do with the baseball…. There weren’t too many pitchers that threw the way I threw, and hitters didn’t see it a lot. I think that was a big advantage at the time. You know, you just kind of have a couple of good games and start on a roll from there.”
On learning from Tom Glavine:: “I think probably the biggest thing I learned pitching alongside Glavine, was to realize you don’t have to be 100 percent to win. You have to take the ball and you have to go out there. That’s what he taught me. Because before I got to Atlanta, I had always felt pretty good. Physically, it was no big deal making a start.
“Sometimes it’s really easy to say, I need another day or two. But in Atlanta, we pitched. I think Tommy led the way with that. He showed everybody that if you go out there, if you could throw the ball over the plate you had a chance to win, no matter how bad you felt. That’s probably one of the biggest things I learned from Glav, was how to compete when you’re not feeling your best.”
On pitch movement: “I was just very fortunate. When I was 15 or 16 years old, I had a pitching coach, Ralph Medar, who taught me that movement was more important than velocity. And I believed him. I don’t know why I believed him, but I believed him. At a young age, he taught me about movement and started learning how to pitch. I wasn’t learning how to throw; I threw hard enough. But I learned that movement was more important than velocity, and changing speeds was more important than velocity, and location was more important than velocity…. It just kind of went from there.”
On what he’d think about being called the Greatest Living Pitcher, after someone mentioned to him that Joe DiMaggio used to request that he [DiMaggio] be referred to as the Greatest Living Ballplayer in his latter years before he died:
“Well, it’d be a nice compliment. I’m very proud of what I did on the baseball field, but I never really considerd myself as things like that. I like to think I’m the same person I was 20 years ago. Just a few things have changed. But as far as how I think of myself, I don’t think of myself that way.”
On what he’d do to improve the game if he were King of Baseball for a day:
“There’s really not a lot you can do to improve it. The game is almost perfect the way it is. I think this game’s played now the way it was played 100 years ago. I think that’s the beauty of it. It might just be a little faster, that’s about it. But I think the game itself, there’s really nothing wrong with it. Players are probably better now than they were before, but they’ll probably be better in 20 years than they are now. That’s just the way it is. It’s hard to change something that’s pretty close to perfect.
His thoughts about the Hall of Fame in five years: I don’t really have any thoughts right now at this moment. There’s a lot of good players in there. I don’t really have any thoughts. I know my son’s got a tournament there [in Cooperstown, N.Y.] next summer. I’m looking forward to going there to watch him play, and hopefully get a chance to look around.”
On one of the secrets of his success; “I would like to think my wife. Part of why I had so much success on the field was, for me, everything was very simple for me at home. If I got home late after a road trip, I was allowed to sleep in. On days I was pitching, I was left alone and had lunch made for me at 2 o’clock before I went to the park. I had everything taken care of me away from the park, so the only thing I had to worry about anything was when I was on the mound. For that I thank you [look at his wife, Kathy, in the front row].
Then Maddux drew laughs when he added that he hoped his wife would continue making him lunch every day for a while.
On what he’ll miss most now that he’s retired: “I’ll miss the game. I’ll miss all of it. I’ll miss pitching. I’ll miss hitting, running the bases. I’ll miss sitting on the bench and trying to get what pitch is coming next and where it’s going to be hit. I’ll miss those kinds of things.
“Obviously I’ll miss the four days off between starts and I’ll miss hanging out with the guys. I really enjoyed playing golf on the road over the years with the guys. That made it even more enjoyable when you’d go to the ballpark, because you’d have a break from just sitting in your hotel room all day waiting for the game to start.
“I’ll miss the plane flights, and the poker games on the flights. That was fun. Just hanging out with the guys. Spring training was always fun. Spring training, to me, was a blast. Spring training is where you get to go and do baseball stuff. Down in Orlando we’d spend a lot of time going to amusement parks with the family, taking the kids to do all that.
“So many things that go in baseball have nothing to do with the first through ninth innings that I’ll miss. And I’m sure as time goes by, I’ll miss them even more.”
His closing remarks at the news conference: “Again, I just want to say thank you for everything. The game has given me and my family so much, that I just want to say thank you. And the one thing I hope is, I hope that I gave back. I played the game the way I want my teammates to play it. Again, thank you for everything. I’ll miss it. Thanks you.”
Me, I’ll really miss Greg Maddux. The game will miss him. Everything about him. Bet you all feel the same.
OK, back to the meetings: We’re in a bit of a holding pattern regarding the pitching pursuit, waiting for an A.J. Burnett decision. But I am hearing things that lead me to think that the free agent right-hander might make a decision this week and not necessarily wait for CC Sabathia to decide first.
We’ll see about that. I’d guess it’ll take a guaranteed five-year offer from the Braves to make that happen, for otherwise A.J. seems more likely to wait and see if Sabathia spurns the Yankees and Brian Cashman decided to throw more money and a guaranteed fifth year at A.J. in order to make sure the Yanks aren’t shut out by the few aces available.
The Braves last week offered A.J. a four-year deal with a fifth-year option, worth at least $15 mill annually. They’ve given off signals that they would make that fifth-year guaranteed if that’s absolutely necessary to get Burnett signed, but they obviously would prefer to avoid that, given his DL stints for elbow and shoulder soreness in the past.
Insurers generally only insure contracts for three years, and clubs have to renew the policy after that period, provided the player is healthy. If a pitcher got hurt in, say, the third year of a five-year guaranteed deal worth $15 mill annually, well, that would be a potentially big blow for a team that has any sort of payroll restrictions (i.e., probably any team not named the Yankees).
The power-bat pursuit: Though Frank Wren has indicated the Braves might not make a deal for a run-producing outfielder until spring training or even during the season, there are indications they could get it done before then with a Cardinals outfielder not named Ludwick.
How does Rick Ankiel sound? The former lefty pitcher-turned-center fielder is available, and the Cardinals are said to prefer trading him instead of Ludwick because Ludwick will still be cheap for several more years. Braves would probably have to give up at least Kelly Johnson to get Ludwck, and the Cardinals might even demand Yunel Escobar.
But not for Ankiel, who’s eligible for free agency after the 2009 season, and a Scott Boras client the Cardinals probably have no confidence they could afford to re-sign.
The Braves might prefer Ankiel over Ludwick anyway, since Ludwick’s 37-homer, 113-RBI season in 2008 was far and away his career best, and at age 29. The Braves, like other teams, have questions as to whether Ludwick could reasonably be expected to replicate that sort of performance, given that his previous bests in an injury-slowed big-league career were 14 homers and 52 RBI in 2007.
Ankiel has 36 homers and 110 RBI in 584 at-bats over two seasons since returning to the majors as an outfielder, after his promising pitching career went awry several years ago when he could no longer throw strikes consistently.
There is plenty of reason to believe Ankiel will continue developing as a hitter after batting .264 with 25 homers and 71 RBI in 120 games last season. And the other important thing that separates him from most available outfielders: He is strong defensively, in center and right field (and presumably in left, though he’s played that the least for St. Louis).
But he’s eligible for free agency after the upcoming season, which is why the Cardinals, looking for pitching in return, don’t really expect to get a promising starter for Ankiel. Maybe that take a proven young reliever as the principle in a deal?
The Braves could pencil in Ankiel for CF or LF in 2009, and could have him or Jordan Schafer ready to play RF if, for whatever reason, Jeff Francoeur doesn’t bounce back from his poor 2008 season and gets dealt eventually.
Cox said Monday that he thinks Francoeur will bounce back and drive in 100 runs, etc. But hey, what else is he going to say?
Frank Wren reiterated Monday that team officials see LF Matt Diaz fitting on the Braves in some capacity.
Thinking aloud here, maybe Ankiel could move between a couple of outfield positions and Diaz could play a lot against lefties (Ankiel hit .224 with a .716 OPS against lefties, compared to .279 with an .891 OPS against righties).
The Braves continue to express interest in Seattle free agent corner outfielder Raul Ibanez, 36, a .286 career hitter with more than 20 homers in each of the past four seasons, 30-plus doubles for seven straight seasons, and 338 RBI in the past three seasons.
Problem is, Ibanez is getting plenty of other interest from some big-market teams, and could end up commanding a deal as long as three years and for perhaps $10 mill or more annually. That’s more years and dollars than the Braves want to pay for a merely serviceable defensive player of his age.
Also hearing Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy and free agent Rafael Furcal still being mentioned in connection with the Braves again, which leads me to believe the Braves are indeed still at least talking to teams interested in Escobar or deals that might possibly include him.
(Personally, I’d trade him for nothing short of an ace pitcher.)
And though I’ve heard nothing about them revisiting talks for Jake Peavy, wouldn’t surprise me if Padres GM Kevin Towers came knocking at Frank Wren’s door (or at least ringing his cell) if things stay stalled with other teams that seem to be getting colder on Peavy all the time.
One way or another, I’m really starting to get a feeling that Escobar could be traded this winter.
Blogmeister addendum: Right after I wrote that last sentence about Escobar, Cox provided this quote that could certainly be viewed as a reason to believe the Braves won’t trade Escobar:
“I think he’s a special talent, and I certainly want him on our team,” Cox said. “He’s as good a shortstop as we’ve ever had here. He can do so much. He’s going to hit right at .300, I think, ever year. He’s got the type of mechanics that allows me to say that. He stays inside the ball so well, and he’s an extremely gifted shortstop. A pair of the best hands you’d ever see, and he’s got a great arm. And he’s strong. If he wants to, he could hit in the 20s [home runs].”
”THE HIGHWAYMAN” by Jimmy Webb
I was a highwayman
Along the coach roads I did ride
With sword and pistol by my side
Many a young maid lost her baubles to my trade
Many a soldier shed his life blood on my blade
The bastards hung me in the spring of ‘25
But I am still alive
I was a sailor
I was born upon the tide
And with the sea I did abide
I sailed a schooner ‘round the horn to Mexico
I went aloft to furl the mainsail in a blow
And when the yards broke off they said that I got killed
But I am living still
I was a dam builder
Across the river deep and wide
Where steel and water did collide
A place called Boulder on the wild Colorado
I slipped and fell into the wet concrete below
They buried me in that great tomb that knows no sound
But I am still around.
I’ll always be around, and around, and around, and around, and around…
I’ll fly a starship
Across the Universe divide
And when I reach the other side
I’ll find a place to rest my spirit if I can
Perhaps I may become a highwayman again
Or I may simply be a single drop of rain
But I will remain
And I’ll be back again
and again, and again, and again, and again….
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