There is zero doubt that when the Dodgers announced that they were bringing Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux on board as a special assistants to president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, Dodger fans everywhere were ecstatic. I mean, why wouldn’t they be? Who wouldn’t be excited to have the guy who will most likely be the game’s last 300+ game winner mentoring guys like Jose De Leon, Chase De Jong. Julio Urias, right?

The soon-to-be 50-year-old Hall of Famer arrived at Camelback Ranch on Wednesday morning for the first time and immediately got to work sharing his vast experience with the many young Dodgers pitchers in major league camp.

“He told me to always take pride in covering your innings as a starter and to always try to outlast the other team’s starter,” said Dodgers right-handed pitching prospect Chase De Jong, who is attending his first major league spring training camp. “He also told me that if you can throw 200 innings a year it’s hard to have a bad season.”

Hall of Famer Greg Maddux plans to spend all of spring training offering whatever he can to the many young Dodgers pitchers in camp – something that right-hander Chase De Jong greatly appreciates.
(Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

Simple yet sound advice that the 22-year-old Long Beach, California native probably wouldn’t get anywhere else, not even from Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt, who spent most of his 21 years in the big leagues as a reliever not a starter.

“The main thing is to try to help the players,” Maddux told MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick “Maybe something I say or do they’ve heard for five or 10 years, but maybe I say it a little different. You just try to help them.”

Dodgers top right-handed pitching prospect Jose De Leon, who was recently ranked MLB’s 24th overall prospect, plans to spend as much time as he can around one of the greatest to have ever played the game.

“Every time you have a chance to talk to a guy like that and pick their brain is huge, I’m really excited about it,” De Leon said. “I hope to learn everything I can get … whatever I can get. I mean, with all the years he’s been around, I’ll try to absorb as many things as I can.”

Dodgers top right-handed pitching prospect Jose De Leon plans to absorb as much as he can from Maddux. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

Although Maddux plans to spend spring training in much the same manner that Dodgers legend and fellow Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax usually does – that is, to offer his knowledge and experience to those who want it – he doesn’t plan to offer it to those who do not.

“It’s always better when they come to you,” Maddux said. “Sometimes you throw stuff out there and nobody’s listening. As a player, if I needed something, I went somewhere to try to get it. If people threw it in my face, it didn’t stick as much.”

Of course, this brings up the burning question: Who in their right mind wouldn’t want the knowledge and experience that Greg Maddux has to offer? And although three-time NL Cy Young award winner and 2014 NL MVP Clayton Kershaw has yet to say publicly that he has spoken with Maddux, the crafty old veteran had nothing but high praise for the crafty young Dodgers left-hander.

“He’s top of the game, he’s the best pitcher in baseball,” Maddux said to Gurnick of Kershaw. “He sets a high standard for himself. He’s been able to turn into a winner. A lot of guys have the stuff and makeup, but not everybody is a winner. He’s able to win and stay healthy.”

It’s not just the kids who stand to gain from Maddux’s tremendous experience. Veteran left-hander Brett Anderson was all ears when the Hall of Famer spoke with him on Wednesday morning.
(Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

So why did the Dodgers decide to bring Maddux into the Dodgers fold? Dodgers president and CEO Stan Kasten had an easy answer to this question.

“He loves the game. He loves the uniform,” Kasten said. “He loves to sit with the players and coaches and talk baseball. Few guys can talk more intelligently about the game than Greg Maddux. This is a huge plus for us.”

Perhaps there may be one or two guys in Dodgers camp who feel that they don’t have the need or desire to listen to Greg Maddux – although I can’t even begin to imagine who that might be – it’s probably safe to say that “The Professor” (as Maddux was often called) will be more like that old E.F. Hutton commercial…

“When [Greg Maddux] talks, people listen.”