Greg Maddux - Early Life

Early Life

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. His father exposed him to baseball at an early age. Upon his return to Las Vegas, Nevada, Maddux and his brother Mike Maddux trained under the supervision of Rusty Medar, a former scout from the majors. Medar preached the value of movement and location above velocity, and advised throwing softer when in a jam instead of harder; Maddux would later say, "I believed it. I don't know why. I just did." Though Medar died before Maddux graduated from Valley High School in Las Vegas, he instilled a firm foundation that would anchor Maddux’ future career. Maddux lives in the same community.

Mike Maddux was drafted in 1982. When scouts went to observe the elder Maddux, their father Dave told them, "You will be back later for the little one." Despite having a successful high school career, Maddux did not receive many athletic scholarship offers to play college baseball. This prompted Maddux to declare eligibility for the 1984 Major League Baseball Draft after graduation. Some teams were unimpressed by Maddux' skinny build, but Chicago Cubs scout Doug Mapson saw past the physique. Mapson wrote a glowing review that read in part, "I really believe this boy would be the number one player in the country if only he looked a bit more physical."