Artist Revisits Los Angeles

Major League Baseball covets the flamethrower. Authoritarian, robust monsters are cornerstones. Greg Maddux is not the aforesaid. He is not churlish. He is not muscular. His fastball is not seething. Maddux is an artiste. His accuracy is exacting. His repertoire is exquisite.

On Tuesday, the San Diego Padres traded Maddux to the Los Angeles Dodgers. As reciprocation, the Padres received a pair of minor leaguers. “You never really want to leave your team and your teammates and all that, but it's nice to be back in a pennant race,” said Maddux. “It was fun playing in San Diego and I loved it there. But I'm looking forward to the last month and a half here.”

Currently, the Dodgers are 64-60. In the National League West, the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Dodgers are even. “Last to first,” said Maddux. “It's pretty cool. One off day and I make up 16 games, so I'm excited.”

During his career, Maddux has amassed a 353-223 record. He has posted 3.14 earned run average. “I love Greg Maddux,” said catcher Russell Martin. “The thing about Greg, he keeps everything so simple. People like to make things more complicated than they need to be. You learn a lot the way he approaches the game.”

On August 11, the Diamondbacks acquired Adam Dunn. Tonight, the Dodgers responded. Only one will advance. Clearly, both crave the opportunity.