Inside Pitch / June 16 – July 24, 2014  3

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Rick Vaughn EXECUTIVE EDITORS George Pappas, Dave HallerCREATIVE DIRECTOR Erik Ruiz MANAGING EDITOR Jake Hornstein PHOTOGRAPHY Steven Kovich, Skip Milos PRINTING HOUSE MLI Integrated Graphic SolutionsCONTRIBUTORS Dave Scheiber, Lauren Mannion, Andrew Tortu, Craig Vanderkam

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16 The Dirt on Jake McGeeIf he weren’t touching 100 mph with his fastball, Jake McGee would excel at racquetball.

38 Never a Dull MomentIt's physically impossible to keep four children ages 6 and under still for a photo — but Sean and Giselle Rodriguez get an A for effort.

49 An Extraordinary ClassCooperstown welcomes six new members to the distinguished National Baseball Hall of Fame this July. Inside Pitch takes a look back at their celebrated careers.

HEART OF THE ORDER

  5  Promotions & Events Schedule

  8  The Rundown » Dugout Club returns to rec centers » Ryan Hanigan polices the base paths » Rays strut their stuff on the Runway

20  The Squad: 2014 Roster

30  Game Break: Photo Difference

34  Game Scorecard

59  Fan 411: Ballpark Info » Frequently Asked Questions » Best Places to Eat » Things to Do

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The LineupJUNE 16 – JULY 24, 2014 / ISSUE 3

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T H E O F F E N S I V E M A C H I N E known later as the “Big Hurt” was cut from his high school team the first time he tried out. He wasn’t drafted after hitting .440 as a senior, and was passed up for a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team. However, after 19 major league seasons — 16 of which came with the White Sox — Frank Thomas can add Hall of Fame honors to his giant list of accomplishments. A legend on Chicago’s South Side, Thomas is the Sox franchise leader in nearly every offensive category, including ca-reer homers, RBI, runs, doubles, walks, intentional walks, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and on-base plus slugging percentage. He joins fellow Hall of Famers Babe Ruth, Mel Ott and Ted Williams as the only sluggers to hit above .300 and compile at least 500 homers, 1,500 RBI, 1,000 runs scored and 1,500 walks. He’s also the first player in major league history to win two Silver Slugger awards at differ-ent positions (1993-94 at first base; 1991, 2000 as designated hitter) and retired as the all-time leader in home runs (269) as a DH. Thomas is also the only player to hit over 100 sacrifice flies without collecting a single sacrifice bunt over the course of his career. At 46, he is the youngest member in his class to be elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, receiving 83.7 percent of votes cast by the Baseball Writ-ers’ Association of America.

CAREER G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG19 YEARS 2322 8199 1494 2468 495 12 521 1704 32 1667 1397 .301

TEAMS Chicago White Sox ( 1990-2005 ) • Oakland A’s ( 2006, 2008 ) • Toronto Blue Jays ( 2007-08 )

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“I’ve never understood why players say they don’t think

of the Hall of Fame, I want it. I’m not embarrassed to say

that. I want to be the best.”— FRANK THOMAS

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FRANK THOMAS D H • F I R S T B A S E M A N

M U C H O F T H E N A R R A T I V E for Tony La Russa’s 33-year managerial career is that he found suc-cess wherever he went, once he got there. La Russa was a journeyman middle infielder from Tampa who bounced between the majors and minors with six teams in the 1960s and ’70s — three of which he’d go on to manage, but not before graduating from Florida State University’s College of Law and be-ing admitted to the Florida Bar. He was named the 1983 American League Manager of the Year when his White Sox won the AL West, the highlight of his first stop. He found tremendous success in Oakland, leading the Athletics to three consecutive AL pennants and one World Series title in 1989. But St. Louis may very well have been La Russa’s Gateway from the West to the Hall of Fame. The Cardinals averaged 88 wins per season under his direction, totaling 1,408 victories over 16 years to go along with seven Na-tional League Central crowns, three NL pennants and two World Series championships. He also became the first manager to win an All-Star Game in both leagues. La Russa retired in 2011 ranking third all-time with 2,728 wins. Today he serves as Chief Baseball Officer for the Arizona Diamondbacks. The four-time Manager of the Year is the second Tampa native to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, joining Al Lopez.

CAREER W L W-L% G33 Years 2728 2365 .536 5097

TEAMS Chicago White Sox ( 1979–86 ) • Oakland A’s ( 1986–95 ) • St. Louis Cardinals ( 1996–2011 )

“Just because you’re down to your last strike, you’re not out yet. You can always do more …

That’s true in baseball, rescuing animals, and in life generally.”

— TONY LA RUSSA

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TONY LA RUSSA M A N A G E R

J O E T O R R E I S E N T E R I N G the Hall of Fame ranking fifth among managers in career wins, but he also had a notable playing career. A nine-time All-Star, Torre led the National League in batting and RBI in 1971 en route to being named NL MVP. He wrapped up his playing career with 252 career homers, 1,185 RBI and a .297 career average. However, Torre’s most significant claim to fame came while managing the New York Yankees. He led the Bronx Bomb-ers to the postseason in each of his 12 seasons, winning six American League pennants and four World Series titles, to go with two Manager of the Year Awards. He’s the only manager to have recorded more than 2,000 hits as a player and 2,000 wins in the dugout. The Yankees are set to retire his No. 6 in August, shortly after Torre’s plaque is installed in Cooperstown portraying the former skipper sporting a Yankee cap. Torre, 73, now serves as Executive Vice President of Baseball Opera-tions for Major League Baseball.

TEAMS New York Mets ( 1977–81 ) • Atlanta Braves ( 1982–84 ) • St. Louis Cardinals ( 1990–95 ) • New York Yankees ( 1996–2007 ) • Los Angeles Dodgers ( 2008–10 )

CAREER W L W-L% G29 Years 2326 1997 .538 4329

“We played the game with respect and honor, and we took those qualities from

him. He’s one of the immortals now.”— Former Yankees Catcher

JORGE POSADA on TORRE

“Greg kept everything lighthearted in the locker room … [but] was always willing to help other guys on the team.”— Former Braves Pitcher JOHN SMOLTZ on MADDUX

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JOE TORREM A N A G E R

“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that his kind of

poise, mentality [and] way of going about his business … won him over 300 games.”

— Former Braves Third Baseman CHIPPER JONES on GLAVINE

CAREER W L ERA G CG SHO IP H R ER HR SO23 Years 355 227 3.16 744 109 35 5008.1 4726 1981 1756 353 3371

TEAMS Chicago Cubs ( 1986-92, 2004-06 ) • Atlanta Braves ( 1993-2003 ) • Los Angeles Dodgers 2006, 2008) • San Diego Padres ( 2007-08 )

J O H N “ S P I D E R ” J O R G E N S E N filed his report on Greg Maddux, a hard thrower from Las Vegas Valley High School, and wrote favor-ably of his better-than-average fastball. Ironically, the Chicago Cubs area scout noted Maddux’s primary weakness was his lack of overall control on all of his pitches. The Cubs selected Maddux with their second pick in the 1984 June Draft,

and he built a reputation as a celebrated control pitcher during his 23-year career. Maddux was a technician, tallying 3,371 strikeouts (versus 999 walks) and a career 3.16 ERA. He posted a record 17 straight seasons of 15 or more victories; earned 18 Gold Glove Awards, more than any player at any other position; and won four consecutive National League Cy Young Awards from 1992-95, the last three of which Maddux earned as the ace of the Atlanta Braves staff that captured 10 division titles in a row, three NL pennants and the 1995 World Series. Today, Mad-dux, 47, is a special assistant for the Texas Rangers, where his older brother, Mike, serves as the pitching coach. He received 97.2 percent of the votes, the eighth-highest percentage ever.

GREG MADDUXR I G H T - H A N D E D P I T C H E R

T H E B R A V E S S E L E C T E D Tom Glavine in the second round of the 1984 June Draft. Less than a week later, Glavine heard his name called

again — by the Los Angeles Kings in the National Hockey League’s Entry Draft, ahead of eventual Hockey Hall of Famers Brett Hull and Luc Robitaille. A center from Billerica, Mass., Glavine set aside his skates to pursue a career as a starting pitcher but struggled during his first three full seasons. His fortune started to improve in 1991, when the wiry southpaw posted his first of three consecutive seasons of 20 or more victories. Glavine won his first of two NL Cy Young Awards and led the Braves to their first pennant since 1958. He finished second in the 1992 award voting to Greg Maddux, who joined him in Atlanta the following year. Together with Maddux, Glavine became a master of the strike zone, carrying the Braves to 10 straight division titles, three NL pennants and the 1995 World Series. Glavine ultimately posted five seasons of 20 or more wins over his career, and only three other left-ies — Warren Spahn, Steve Carlton and Eddie Plank — recorded more career victories than his 305.

YEARS W L ERA G CG SHO IP H R ER HR SO22 Years 305 203 3.54 682 56 25 4413.1 4298 1900 1734 356 2607

TEAMS Atlanta Braves ( 1987–2002, 2008 ) • New York Mets ( 2003-07 )

TOM GLAVINEL E F T - H A N D E D P I T C H E R

B O B B Y C O X E N J O Y E D M A N Y A C E L E B R A T O R Y C I G A R after Maddux and Glavine pitched his Braves to victory, making it especially fitting that the former skipper enters the Hall of Fame in the same induction class. Cox’s big league managerial career began in Atlanta in 1978. He’d served the previ-ous season as the first base coach for the World Series champion New York Yankees, and was poised to bring the same winning ways from the Bronx to Fulton County, Ga. However, Cox’s first stint in the dugout was unceremonious: The Braves finished better than .500 only once over the next four years, and Cox was fired following the strike-shortened 1981 season. At the request of Braves owner Ted Turner, Cox returned to Atlanta fresh off a 99-win season with the Blue Jays in 1985. The reigning American League Manager of the Year, Cox was tapped to become the Braves general manager, and he spent the next five years retooling the club before appointing himself field manager in 1990. Upon his return to the dugout, Cox piloted the Braves to 14 consecutive division crowns, five National League pennants and the ’95 World Series title. During that span, he became the first manager to win Manager of the Year in both leagues. He was also the only skipper to win the award in back-to-back years, and he did so without the benefit of Maddux nor Glavine on his pitching staff. He retired in 2010 with 2,504 career victories, trailing only Connie Mack, John McGraw and fellow 2014 inductee Tony La Russa for the most manage-rial wins all-time.

CAREER W L W-L% G29 Years 2504 2001 .556 4508

TEAMS Atlanta Braves ( 1978–81, 1990–2010 ) • Toronto Blue Jays ( 1982–85 )

“Of the men in my life, after my father, Bobby Cox would be right there. He’s

been the biggest influence on my career out of anybody I’ve been around.”

— Former Braves Pitching Coach LEO MAZZONE on COX

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BOBBY COX M A N A G E R