1994 HEADLINE: Greg Maddux Wins Third Straight Cy Young Award

1994 HEADLINE: Greg Maddux Wins Third Straight Cy Young Award

On this day in 1994, Greg Maddux won his third straight Cy Young award.  He was the first pitcher in major league history to earn the award in three consecutive seasons.

Being one of the best pitchers in the sport over that length of time is a major accomplishment.  And when some of your greatest competition is coming from your teammates, I am sure that the pride of being the ‘Ace’ of the staff gave Maddux even more gratification.

Here is a look at Maddux’s numbers from those three seasons:

1992 – 20-11, 2.18 ERA, 9 complete games, All-Star, Gold Glove

1993 – 20-10, 2.36 ERA, 10 complete games, Gold Glove

1994 – 16-6, 1.56 ERA, 10 complete games, All-Star, Gold Glove

Oh, and it should be noted that Maddux went on to win the Cy Young award in 1995 too – setting an all-time record with four consecutive wins!!

Happy Anniversary Mr. Maddux!!!

Happy Birthday Greg Maddux!!!

Happy Birthday Greg Maddux!!!

Greg Maddux turns 48 years old today.

Greg Maddux was the epitome of a hard-working pitcher.  His talent was immense and he often came across as a calm and relaxed guy.  But once Maddux took the mound, he was all about business and he excelled at a record pace.

After 23 seasons in the big leagues, Greg Maddux retired with 355 wins and 277 loses.  He has pitched over 5,000 innings during the course of his career while starting 740 games.  In his 23 seasons, Maddux threw 35 shutouts and pitched 109 complete games.

For his career, Maddux won 15 or more games in 18 of his 23 seasons; 17 of them being consecutive.  Maddux won 20 or more in 2 seasons.  He also eclipsed the 3,000 strikeout plateau with 3,371 career K’s.  His ERA at the end of his career was 3.16.

As a pitcher in the National League for the course of his career, Maddux had a career batting average of .171.  While considered to be a pretty good hitting-pitcher, Maddux hit 5 home runs and drove in 84 runs.  He has 272 hits, 103 runs scored, and 11 stolen bases to his credit.

Greg Maddux won 4 consecutive Cy Young Awards.  And in 9 straight seasons from 1992-1990, he placed in the Top 3 for the award 8 times.  Greg Maddux is an 8-time All-star and has won 18 Gold Gloves for his dominance as a defensive pitcher.

In his best season of 1995, Maddux went 19-2 while throwing 10 complete games and 3 shutouts.  In that season, his ERA was an amazing 1.63 and he struck out 181 batters while walking just 23.  In that year Maddux won his 4th and final Cy Young award, a Gold Glove, and was an All-star.

Greg Maddux was played in 3 World Series contests while winning 1 championship title.  In 1995 his Atlanta Braves were victorious.  Maddux started 2 games in that match-up as he won 1 game and lost 1 game.  In 16 innings of work, he struck out 8 batters and allowed 4 runs.

He is a member of the 2014 Baseball Hall of Fame class.

Happy Birthday ‘Professor’!!

Players & Picks For The ‘Greg Maddux Hall Of Fame Contest’

Players & Picks For The ‘Greg Maddux Hall Of Fame Contest’

Well friends, we are just a few hours away from the Baseball Hall of Fame announcing who has been elected to represent the Class of 2014.

And with that announcement, we will also have a winner for my contest.

Again, the player coming closest to the actual percentage of votes that Greg Maddux receives, without going over, will be the winner.

Here are the players:

Player	Pick
irondequoit36	85.4
unclemoe	88.0
eric	91.0
BamattyP	91.7
gerad	92
pancuco	92.1
jared w	92.7
fuji	93.2
play at the plate	93.9
jeff p	94.2
scott o	94.6
scott	95.2
rich	95.3
spiegel	95.5
adam	95.8
john h	96.0
30-YOC**	96.1
q	96.4
ron	96.8
mgrlr	97.1
jeff	97.2
kelly	97.3
henry	97.6
defgav	97.8
matt w	98
nick	98.2
rob	98.3
ryan	98.6
jt	98.8
zebulon	98.8
charley8	99.2
wrigley regular	99.2
tom s	99.8
matt d	99.9
hackenbush	100.0

You’ll see that I put my name into the hat at 96.1%.  My vote does not count, but I could not resist playing – this was fun!

And here is one more look at the prize:

Good luck everyone.  And good luck to Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Frank Thomas, Craig Biggio, Mike Piazza, and the other possible electees.

CONTEST TIME: Predict the Percentage Of HOF Votes Greg Maddux Gets And Win!!!

CONTEST TIME: Predict the Percentage Of HOF Votes Greg Maddux Gets And Win!!!

Alright guys and girls, welcome to the first contest of the year at ’30-Year Old Cardboard’.

And this one is going to be a blast, I promise!

Early next week, the Hall of Fame is going to announce the results of their ballot for the Class of 2014.  And while nothing is an absolute certainty, it is a very safe bet that Greg Maddux will be elected to Cooperstown on his first ballot.

Maddux, considered the finest pitcher of his era, has the credentials to match many of the sport’s greatest pitchers and he deserves to be selected as the ‘lead player’ to be enshrined into the class of 2014.

But, how many votes will he get?  What percentage of the voters will choose him?

Care to guess?  I hope so, because that is what this contest is all about – Predict the Percentage of HOF Votes Greg Maddux Gets And Win!!!

To enter this contest, submit your number into the comments section of this post.  All entries must contain a decimal, so if you think is going to get 100% of the vote, you must submit 100.0 as your number.  And if you think he is going to nab 95.5% of the vote, you must submit 95.5.  It’s that simple.  Also, once a number is chosen, it cannot be taken again so choose wisely and quickly.

The person whose number is closest to Maddux’s actual tally, without going over, will win.

The prize?

Greg Maddux baseball cards, of course!!  Have a look:

Sound like fun?  Great, let’s play.  Submit your number into the comments section of this post and let’s go!!

I will keep the entry window for this contest open until Tuesday night at 9:00PM EST.  And I will post the final list of the players and their picks on Wednesday morning.

Good Luck to all!!

1994 HEADLINE: Greg Maddux Wins Third Straight Cy Young Award

1994 HEADLINE: Greg Maddux Wins Third Straight Cy Young Award

On this day in 1994, Greg Maddux won his third straight Cy Young award.  He was the first pitcher in major league history to earn the award in three consecutive seasons.

Being one of the best pitchers in the sport over that length of time is a major accomplishment.  And when some of your greatest competition is coming from your teammates, I am sure that the pride of being the ‘Ace’ of the staff gave Maddux even more gratification.

Here is a look at Maddux’s numbers from those three seasons:

1992 – 20-11, 2.18 ERA, 9 complete games, All-Star, Gold Glove

1993 – 20-10, 2.36 ERA, 10 complete games, Gold Glove

1994 – 16-6, 1.56 ERA, 10 complete games, All-Star, Gold Glove

Oh, and it should be noted that Maddux went on to win the Cy Young award in 1995 too – setting an all-time record with four consecutive wins!!

Happy Anniversary Mr. Maddux!!!

Happy Birthday Greg Maddux!!!

Happy Birthday Greg Maddux!!!

Greg Maddux turns 47 years old today.

Greg Maddux was the epitome of a hard-working pitcher.  His talent was immense and he often came across as a calm and relaxed guy.  But once Maddux took the mound, he was all about business and he excelled at a record pace.

After 23 seasons in the big leagues, Greg Maddux retired with 355 wins and 277 loses.  He has pitched over 5,000 innings during the course of his career while starting 740 games.  In his 23 seasons, Maddux threw 35 shutouts and pitched 109 complete games.

For his career, Maddux won 15 or more games in 18 of his 23 seasons; 17 of them being consecutive.  Maddux won 20 or more in 2 seasons.  He also eclipsed the 3,000 strikeout plateau with 3,371 career K’s.  His ERA at the end of his career was 3.16.

As a pitcher in the National League for the course of his career, Maddux had a career batting average of .171.  While considered to be a pretty good hitting-pitcher, Maddux hit 5 home runs and drove in 84 runs.  He has 272 hits, 103 runs scored, and 11 stolen bases to his credit.

Greg Maddux won 4 consecutive Cy Young Awards.  And in 9 straight seasons from 1992-1990, he placed in the Top 3 for the award 8 times.  Greg Maddux is an 8-time All-star and has won 18 Gold Gloves for his dominance as a defensive pitcher.

In his best season of 1995, Maddux went 19-2 while throwing 10 complete games and 3 shutouts.  In that season, his ERA was an amazing 1.63 and he struck out 181 batters while walking just 23.  In that year Maddux won his 4th and final Cy Young award, a Gold Glove, and was an All-star.

Greg Maddux was played in 3 World Series contests while winning 1 championship title.  In 1995 his Atlanta Braves were victorious.  Maddux started 2 games in that match-up as he won 1 game and lost 1 game.  In 16 innings of work, he struck out 8 batters and allowed 4 runs.

Happy Birthday ‘Professor’!!

2008 Upper Deck Basbeall Heroes With Nolan Ryan, Greg Maddux, And Randy Johnson

2008 Upper Deck Basbeall Heroes With Nolan Ryan, Greg Maddux, And Randy Johnson

I’m always eager to check out any multi-player cards issued in modern sets.  For me, I just really like to examine the pairings of the players.

Some are done with a team theme.  Some are done due to some kind of comparable feat.  And some simply make no sense at all.

This card is from the 2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes set and it features Nolan Ryan, Greg Maddux, and Randy Johnson.

Take a look:

 

There is no debating that these are three of the most accomplished pitchers of the last 40 years.  Ryan is a Hall of Famer, and both Greg Maddux and Randy Johnson will rightfully sit beside him in Cooperstown when they are eligible for election.

Between the three of these players, you are looking at 982 pitching wins and 13,906 strikeouts.

DAMN!!

1994 HEADLINE: Greg Maddux Wins Third Straight Cy Young Award

1994 HEADLINE: Greg Maddux Wins Third Straight Cy Young Award

On this day in 1994, Greg Maddux won his third straight Cy Young award.  He was the first pitcher in major league history to earn the award in three consecutive seasons.

Being one of the best pitchers in the sport over that length of time is a major accomplishment.  And when some of your greatest competition is coming from your teammates, I am sure that the pride of being the ‘Ace’ of the staff gave Maddux even more gratification.

Here is a look at Maddux’s numbers from those three seasons:

1992 – 20-11, 2.18 ERA, 9 complete games, All-Star, Gold Glove

1993 – 20-10, 2.36 ERA, 10 complete games, Gold Glove

1994 – 16-6, 1.56 ERA, 10 complete games, All-Star, Gold Glove

Oh, and it should be noted that Maddux went on to win the Cy Young award in 1995 too – setting an all-time record with four consecutive wins!!

Happy Anniversary Mr. Maddux!!!

Baseball Card Show Purchase #6 – Greg Maddux ’50 Years Of Topps’ – Base & Chrome

Baseball Card Show Purchase #6 – Greg Maddux ’50 Years Of Topps’ – Base & Chrome

Greg Maddux is one of my favorite pitchers of all-time.  And while his legacy was cemented while pitching for the Atlanta Braves, I collect his cards from his days with the Chicago Cubs.

To be more specific, I collect cards of him in a Cubs uniform from the 1st phase of his career in Chicago.

The two cards that I picked up are from the same set – 2001 Topps ’50 Years Of Topps’.  They both feature Maddux’s 1987 Topps Traded rookie card and I found both the base and Chrome versions for just ten cents each.

Have a look:

SCORE!!!

Baseball Card Show Purchase #2 – 2006 Upper Deck Hot Stove Headlines ‘Maddux Returns To Cubs’

Baseball Card Show Purchase #2 – 2006 Upper Deck Hot Stove Headlines ‘Maddux Returns To Cubs’

I had never seen this card before and it immediately drew my eye.

I find any card that features a ‘newspaper’ look to be appealing.  Some of the old Topps All-Star cards and Fleer Headliners are favorites of mine.

This one is from Upper Deck’s 2006 set tagged as ‘Hot Stove Headlines’.  The card looks really cool, and Upper Deck did a great job selecting the colors and fonts to use for this one.

Best of all, it celebrates Maddux’s return to the Cubs!!!

Here it is: