Atlanta Braves Opening Day countdown: 31, Mad Dog

The Atlanta Braves had a number of elite pitchers in the franchise history, but perhaps none has been better than the team’s big free agent signing before the 1993 season.

After two World Series losses the previous two seasons, the Atlanta Braves made the decision to go all-in on a big free agent before the 1993 season. There were two elite free agents on the market that were in their prime and in their mid-20s, Barry Bonds and Greg Maddux. In the end, they chose Maddux, and many will certainly believe they made the right choice.

Pre-Braves

Greg Maddux was the original high school phenom from the Las Vegas area, drafted in the 2nd round by the Chicago Cubs in 1984. He moved quickly through the minor leagues, making his major league debut in 1986, tossing 31 innings.

His first full season in 1987 was forgettable, as he posted a 6-14 record and a 5.61 ERA over 155 2/3 innings. Things began to turn around in 1988 as Maddux made his first All-Star game, going 18-8 with a 3.18 ERA over 249 innings.

He followed up with a 19-win season in 1989 and a pair of 15-win seasons in 1990 and 1991 before breaking through with his first Cy Young season in 1992, going 20-11 with a 2.18 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and 199 strikeouts over 268 innings, going into free agency on a high note.

Atlanta Braves career

Signing a pitcher off a career year would likely get a team criticized today, but obviously, it worked out well for the Atlanta Braves. Maddux would win the next three Cy Young awards as a member of the Atlanta Braves and finish in the top 5 in Cy Young voting every season until 1998. Over that 10-year contract, Maddux won 3 Cy Young Awards, 10 Gold Gloves, made 6 All-Star teams, and he led the league in ERA four times. Money well spent!

Interestingly, Maddux was coming off a very solid season in 2002 when the Atlanta Braves assumed he would head elsewhere to sign another big deal, even though he was going into his age-37 season. They offered arbitration, which was what was required at the time to get draft pick compensation when a player left in free agency. Instead, Maddux accepted. That sent the cash-strapped Braves into a tough spot, causing the team to trade starter Kevin Millwood to save money.

Maddux finished that 2003 season with another 16 victories, but it was certainly his worst season with the Atlanta Braves, posting a 3.96 ERA over 218 1/3 innings, allowing a career-high in home runs to that point with 24. It certainly lessened his market, really making the better choice perhaps for both parties to have departed one year earlier.

Post-Braves

Maddux returned to the Cubs in 2004. While he had posted just one season over a 3.60 ERA in his 11 seasons with the Atlanta Braves, he would never again have a season under a 4.00 ERA, though he was able to continue being a reliable arm in the middle and back of a rotation, tossing at least 190 innings in every one of his final five seasons spent with the Cubs, Dodgers, and Padres.

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Those final five seasons drove Maddux’s career ERA over 3.00. While he didn’t have 300 wins when the 2003 season completed, his 2.89 ERA over nearly 4,000 innings at the time. Only

and

would have had lower ERAs over their career since the dead ball era with at least 3,750 innings.

Atlanta Braves legacy

Even with his final season “stuff”, Maddux remains one of the most popular Atlanta Braves over the last 30 years. His demeanor and excellence on the mound and off it were adored by fans.

He finished his Braves career with a 194-88 record over 2,526 2/3 innings, posting a 2.63 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, and an incredibly low 3.8% walk rate. He’s in the top 10 in Atlanta Braves history in pitcher WAR, ERA, wins, WHIP, H/9, BB/9, games pitched, starts, innings, strikeouts, shutouts, K/BB, and ERA+.

Greg Maddux was certainly among not just the elite Atlanta Braves to have ever put on the #31, but the elite in the game to ever wear a Major League jersey. The Braves retired his number in 2009.