Garry Maddox

Garry Lee Maddox
(The Secretary of Defense)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 184 lb.
• School Los Angeles Harbor Community College
• High School San Pedro High School
• Debut April 25, 1972
• Final Game April 20, 1986
• Born September 1, 1949 in Cincinnati, OH USA

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Biographical Information

"Two-thirds of the earth is covered by water, the other one-third is covered by Garry Maddox." - Ralph Kiner

Garry Maddox was the pre-eminent defensive center fielder of his day, winning 8 Gold Gloves, and could also hit a bit. He was a member of the 1980 World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies.

He was a 1968 second-round draft pick by the San Francisco Giants out of high school. The Giants would also draft George Foster and Gary Matthews that year. He hit .252 for the Salt Lake City Giants and .316 for the Fresno Giants in 1968.

Maddox served in the Army, including a tour in Vietnam, during the 1969 and 1970 seasons. Exposure to chemicals in Vietnam left his skin highly sensitive, and he has always since worn a full beard to protect his face. The Philadelphia Phillies had to waive their clean-shaven rule to accommodate Maddox.

Back with Fresno in 1971, Maddox batted .299/~.357/.562 with 30 homers, 105 runs, 106 RBI, 102 strikeouts and 21 steals in 23 tries. He was second in the California League in homers, two behind Frank Ortenzio, was third in runs and second to George Theodore in RBI. He made the Cal League All-Star team in the outfield. Garry torched Triple A in 1972 for the Phoenix Giants, hitting .438/~.471/1.146 with 9 homers and 29 runs produced in just 11 games before jumping to the Giants' starting lineup.

A perceived surplus of outfielders led the Giants to trade Garry, early in 1975, in return for the Philadelphia Phillies' popular slugging first baseman Willie Montanez. Maddox would win Gold Gloves as the Phillies' center fielder for the next eight years, and play key roles on five postseason teams, including the 1980 World Champions. He drove in the pennant-winning run in the 1980 NLCS. His style in the outfield, somewhere between a lope and a glide, was inimitable. With only an average arm, he specialized in running down drives that nobody else could catch, and his speed and jump on the ball helped on the springy artificial-turf surfaces of Veterans Stadium and other NL parks of the 1970s and 1980s.

In a 15-year major league career, he hit .285/.320/.413 (a 101 OPS+) with over 500 extra base hits, and stole nearly 250 bases at a 72.9% success rate. He hit .319/.350/.460 for the San Francisco Giants in 1973, along with 11 triples, and hit .330/.377/.459 in 1976 for the Phillies, along with 37 doubles.

Maddox is a quiet, thoughtful man, immensely respected by teammates; "he reads hardcover books," one of them remarked. He attended Temple University in Philadelphia after his playing days. Maddox became CEO of an office furniture company in Philadelphia, and was elected a director of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank for the term 2003-2006. He was also a Phillies broadcaster from 1987 to 1989 and 1991 to 1995. Also a renowned barbecue chef, Maddox co-hosts an annual barbecue competition that is sponsored in part by the Phillies and takes place at Citizens Bank Park.

Maddox received induction into the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame in 2001. He is the father of former minor league outfielder Garry Maddox II.

Following the 1980 World Series, Maddox appeared with four of his Phillies teammates on Family Feud for one week in 1980. He, Del Unser, Larry Bowa, Dick Ruthven and Dick Ruthven played against five members of the Kansas City Royals: John Wathan, Willie Wilson, Paul Splittorff, Dan Quisenberry and Dennis Leonard.

Notable Achievements

• 1972 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
• 8-time years NL Gold Glove Winner (1975-1982)
• Won a World Series with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1980

Related Sites

• Garry Maddox at the SABR Bio Project