I was watching some of those Greg Maddux games this week on MLB Network on the occasion of the Hall of Famers 54th birthday and it reminded me of a story Maddux and the late Gene "Stick" Michael told me four years ago.
The Yankees pursued Maddux as a free agent after the 1992 season, although he eventually signed with the Atlanta Braves.
Michael, then the Yankees general manager, made a big push. Stick was Maddux's first manager when the right-hander broke into the majors with the Cubs in 1986. Now, as a 26-year old Cy Young Award winner and the best pitcher on the market, Maddux was an easy target for the Yankees as they began to dig out from some lean years and rebuild themselves into contenders.
Maddux made clear that he was looking for a five-year contract with a championship caliber team, and preferred to stay in the National League. And while he was open to listening to the Yankees, Maddux told Stick early in the process that it wasn't necessarily going to be the highest bidder that won his services.
After showing Maddux and his wife all that New York had to offer—restaurants, a Broadway show, and suburban golf courses—during a two-day trip in November, the Yankees prepared a contract offer for $34 million over five years. It would make Maddux the highest-paid pitcher in the game.
"I didn't think I had a chance to stay in the National League when I made that little trip to New York," Maddux said. "I thought nothing was going to happen with the Cubs or the Braves when I had made that trip. Things change in free agency. And actually it was on my return flight home from New York to Vegas when the Braves jumped in the picture again. The Braves were my first choice all along."
When Michael found out Maddux had agreed to the Braves offer—which was for $6 million less than the Yankees proposal—he made a frantic phone call to Maddux to get him to change his mind.
"I felt bad because I felt like I was going to New York (on the earlier trip) to sign a contract," Maddux said.
Maddux admired Stick very much and tried to express that he was sorry, but he had made the verbal promise to sign with Atlanta and was going to keep it.
As Michael made his last-ditch plea, Maddux asked, "You wouldn't want me to go back on my word now, would you?"
"Yes, I would!!" Michael screamed.
Maddux stayed true to his word, though, signed with Atlanta and helped lead the Braves to a World Series championship in 1995. That year he won his third straight Cy Young Award with Atlanta and his fourth straight overall.
After missing out on Maddux, the Yankees signed left-hander Jimmy Key, a free agent from Toronto.
Key became a two-time All-Star in New York and finished second in the 1994 Cy Young Award voting. In 1996, Key was the winning pitcher in Game 6 of the World Series when the Yankees beat the Braves to win the World Series and launch a dynasty.
The losing pitcher for Atlanta that night was Maddux.
