Greg Maddux is the only pitcher in MLB history to win at least 15 games for 17 straight seasons.
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70 Facts About Greg Maddux
2.
Greg Maddux has the most wins among pitchers who made their debuts after World War II.
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3.
Greg Maddux 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.
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4.
Greg 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.
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5.
Greg Maddux was named the organization's Graduate of the Year in 1984.
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6.
Greg Maddux was drafted in the second round of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft by the Cubs, and made his major league debut on September 3,1986, the conclusion of the September 2 game which had been postponed due to darkness.
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7.
Greg Maddux then pitched in the 18th inning, allowing a home run to Billy Hatcher and taking the loss.
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8.
Greg Maddux's first start, five days later, was a complete game win.
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9.
Greg Maddux established himself as the Cubs' ace in 1989, winning 19 games, including a September game at Montreal's Olympic Stadium that clinched the Cubs' second-ever National League Eastern Division championship.
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10.
Greg Maddux allowed eight runs and was relieved after surrendering Will Clark's grand slam with two outs in the fourth.
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11.
Greg Maddux took a no-decision in Game Four; the Cubs ended up losing the NLCS four-games-to-one.
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12.
Greg Maddux won against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game Two of the NLCS, but with Atlanta trailing 3 games to 2, lost the decisive Game Six.
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13.
Greg Maddux led the National League in wins and innings pitched in his third Cy Young-winning year.
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14.
Greg Maddux finished 5th in National League Most Valuable Player voting in 1994.
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15.
Greg Maddux became the first pitcher to post back-to-back ERAs under 1.
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16.
Greg Maddux pitched effectively in all three of the Braves's postseason series, winning a game in each.
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17.
Greg Maddux took the loss in Game Five, but the Atlanta Braves won their first World Series championship two days later.
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18.
Greg Maddux finished third in that year's National League Most Valuable Player voting.
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19.
From 1996 to 1998, Greg Maddux finished fifth, second, and fourth in the Cy Young voting.
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20.
From 1993 to 1998, Greg Maddux led the National League in ERA four times, and was second the other two seasons.
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21.
On July 22,1997, Greg Maddux threw a complete game with just 78 pitches against the Cubs.
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22.
Greg Maddux allowed just 20 bases on balls in 1997, including six intentional walks.
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23.
Greg Maddux struck out 200+ batters for the only time in his career in 1998.
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24.
Greg Maddux outdueled the Cubs' Kerry Wood to clinch the NLDS, but the Braves were eliminated in the next round.
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25.
On June 14,2000, Greg Maddux made his 387th putout to break Jack Morris's career record.
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26.
Greg Maddux tied Jim Kaat's career record of 16 Gold Gloves after the 2006 season.
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27.
At various times Greg Maddux used Charlie O'Brien, Eddie Perez, Paul Bako, and Henry Blanco, for the majority of his starts, though regular starter Javy Lopez did sometimes catch Greg Maddux in the postseason.
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28.
Greg Maddux was the crown jewel in the much-vaunted Braves trio of Greg Maddux, Glavine, and Smoltz, who pitched together for over a decade as the core of one of the best pitching staffs in the history of the game.
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29.
Greg Maddux returned to the Cubs as a free agent prior to the 2004 season, when he signed with them on February 18,2004.
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30.
On July 26,2005, after a three-hour rain delay, Greg Maddux struck out Omar Vizquel to become the thirteenth member of the 3,000 strikeout club and only the ninth pitcher with both 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts, having reached both marks against the San Francisco Giants.
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31.
Greg Maddux finished as one of the four pitchers to top 3,000 strikeouts while having allowed fewer than 1,000 walks.
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32.
Greg Maddux started the third and final game, throwing an ineffective no-decision.
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34.
On December 5,2006, Greg Maddux agreed to a one-year, $10 million deal with the San Diego Padres with a player option for the 2008 season, an option that Greg Maddux later exercised at a reported $10 million.
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35.
Greg Maddux earned his 338th victory in the game that Trevor Hoffman earned his milestone 500th save.
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36.
Greg Maddux achieved another milestone with the same win, becoming the only pitcher in the major leagues to have 20 consecutive seasons with at least 10 wins and placing him second on the list for most 10-win seasons, tied with Nolan Ryan and behind Don Sutton, who has 21.
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37.
Also in 2007, Greg Maddux reached 13 wins for the 20th consecutive season, passing Cy Young for that major league record.
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38.
Greg Maddux won a record 17th Gold Glove award in 2007, surpassing the record held by Brooks Robinson.
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39.
Greg Maddux pitched four innings of relief during the series, allowing no runs.
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40.
Greg Maddux received his 18th Gold Glove Award in November 2008, extending his own major league record.
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41.
On January 11,2010, Greg Maddux was hired by the Chicago Cubs as an assistant to General Manager Jim Hendry.
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42.
Greg Maddux was announced as the pitching coach for the USA team in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
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44.
Greg Maddux relied on his command, composure, and guile to outwit hitters.
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45.
Greg Maddux was noted for the late movement on his sinker, which, combined with his control, made him known as an excellent groundball pitcher.
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46.
Greg Maddux alternated his two-seam fastball with an excellent circle changeup.
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47.
Greg Maddux would begin by throwing strikes with his fastball down and away, and then expand the strike zone with his changeup—sometimes obtaining borderline strike calls from umpires simply on the strength of his reputation.
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48.
In complement with this strategy, Greg Maddux popularized a tactic of throwing his two-seam fastball off the plate inside to left-handed hitters, only to have the ball break back over the inside corner for a strike.
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49.
Greg Maddux was known for intensely studying hitters in preparation for his starts.
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50.
Finally, Greg Maddux has been praised for his superior pitching mechanics, helping him avoid serious arm injuries throughout his lengthy career.
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51.
Greg Maddux has been credited by many of his teammates with a superior ability to out-think his opponents and anticipate results.
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52.
Braves catcher Eddie Perez tells the story of Greg Maddux intentionally allowing a home run to the Astros' Jeff Bagwell, in anticipation of facing Bagwell in the playoffs months later.
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53.
Greg Maddux felt Bagwell would instinctively be looking for the same pitch again, which Greg Maddux would then refuse to throw.
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54.
Greg Maddux had noticed that Hernandez, who'd been pitched inside by Braves pitching during the series, had shifted his batting stance slightly.
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55.
Early in the 2000 season, Greg Maddux was asked by sportswriter Bob Nightengale what had been the most memorable at-bat of his pitching career.
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56.
Greg Maddux said it was striking out Dave Martinez to end a regular season game.
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57.
Nightengale was surprised Greg Maddux hadn't picked a postseason game, or a more famous player.
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58.
Greg Maddux never walked more than 82 batters in any season of his career, averaging fewer than 2 walks per game.
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59.
Greg Maddux's low walk totals kept his pitch counts down, enabling him to go deeper into games.
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60.
Greg Maddux is the career leader for this stat, having pitched thirteen such games.
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61.
Greg Maddux pitched in 13 Division Series contests, 17 League Championship games and five World Series games.
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62.
Greg Maddux was chosen for the National League All-Star team eight times.
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63.
Greg Maddux won four ERA titles, and led the NL in shutouts five times.
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64.
Greg Maddux holds the major league record for seasons leading his league in games started.
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65.
Greg Maddux holds the record for most seasons finishing in the top 10 in the league in wins.
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66.
The methodology for this included the fact that though Greg Maddux only won 20 games twice, he won 19 games five times.
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67.
Greg Maddux had only one season of 200 or more strikeouts but had seasons of 199,198 and 197, respectively, which diminished his reputation as a strikeout pitcher.
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68.
In 1999, Greg Maddux ranked 39th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the highest-ranking pitcher then active.
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69.
Greg Maddux was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.
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70.
Greg Maddux was born on April 14,1966, the same day as former Braves teammate David Justice, and shares a birthday with former teammate Steve Avery.
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