Chicago Cubs: Ex-Cubs who dominated the team after moving on

Chicago Cubs: His number might be retired at Wrigley Field, but Greg Maddux will be widely remembered as an Atlanta Brave.

Greg Maddux was just hitting his prime when the Atlanta Braves snagged him without much fight from the Cubs when he hit free agency in 1993. Maddux was coming off an absolutely dominant 1992 season where he posted a 2.18 ERA, good enough for NL Cy Young honors. After joining the Braves in 1993 he embarked on a historical stretch in Atlanta that saw him pitch to a 2.63 ERA and 2.95 FIP in 2,526 2/3 innings (363).

Maddux eventually came back to the Cubs in 2004 before being traded in 2006 to pitch his final years as a Padre and Dodger, but most of his starts against the Cubs were as a Brave. He made the Cubs pay every time he faced him…like all teams honestly did. It just felt worse knowing Maddux was once a rising star with the Cubs and that they could have kept him long term.

In 24 career starts against the Cubs (20 as a Brave) he posted a 2.65 ERA, 0.961 WHIP and tossed three complete games. He totaled 169 2/3 innings in those 24 starts and surrendered 50 earned runs and struck out 117 Cub hitters. 1999 was the only year he saw the Cubs score double-digit runs off him in two starts. Many might remember in 1997 when he threw a 76-pitch complete game against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. It’s still maddening they let him go in 1993.