Atlanta Braves Mount Rushmore Runoff Election

The Mount Rushmore election for the Atlanta Braves closed yesterday (Dec 17th) with Hank Aaron, Warren Spahn and Chipper Jones taking the top 3 spots. But, Eddie Mathews and Greg Maddux finished tied for the fourth and final Mount Rushmore spot.

This run-off election will decide the fourth player on the Braves’ Mount Rushmore. To participate, please cast one vote for either candidate. The election closes at midnight (24:00) Pacific time on Mon, Dec 22nd.

Here is the season-by-season statistical story for our two candidates.

Eddie Mathews

Year Age Tm Lg G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ Pos Awards
1952 20 BSN NL 145 593 528 80 128 23 5 25 58 59 115 .242 .320 .447 .767 113 *5 MVP-21,RoY-3
1953 ★ 21 MLN NL 157 681 579 110 175 31 8 47 135 99 83 .302 .406 .627 1.033 171 *5 AS,MVP-2
1954 22 MLN NL 138 600 476 96 138 21 4 40 103 113 61 .290 .423 .603 1.026 172 *57 MVP-19
1955 ★ 23 MLN NL 141 616 499 108 144 23 5 41 101 109 98 .289 .413 .601 1.014 170 *5 AS,MVP-18
1956 ★ 24 MLN NL 151 651 552 103 150 21 2 37 95 91 86 .272 .373 .518 .892 143 *5 AS
1957 ★ 25 MLN NL 148 666 572 109 167 28 9 32 94 90 79 .292 .387 .540 .927 154 *5 AS,MVP-8
1958 ★ 26 MLN NL 149 649 546 97 137 18 1 31 77 85 85 .251 .349 .458 .807 120 *5 AS
1959 ★ 27 MLN NL 148 682 594 118 182 16 8 46 114 80 71 .306 .390 .593 .983 168 *5 AS,MVP-2
1960 ★ 28 MLN NL 153 671 548 108 152 19 7 39 124 111 113 .277 .397 .551 .948 166 *5 AS,MVP-10
1961 ★ 29 MLN NL 152 672 572 103 175 23 6 32 91 93 95 .306 .402 .535 .937 156 *5 AS,MVP-17
1962 ★ 30 MLN NL 152 643 536 106 142 25 6 29 90 101 90 .265 .381 .496 .877 137 *5/3 AS,MVP-29
1963 31 MLN NL 158 675 547 82 144 27 4 23 84 124 119 .263 .399 .453 .852 146 *57
1964 32 MLN NL 141 590 502 83 117 19 1 23 74 85 100 .233 .344 .412 .756 112 *5/3
1965 33 MLN NL 156 626 546 77 137 23 0 32 95 73 110 .251 .341 .469 .810 126 *5 MVP-20
1966 34 ATL NL 134 517 452 72 113 21 4 16 53 63 82 .250 .341 .420 .761 108 *5
1967 35 TOT MLB 137 511 436 53 103 16 2 16 57 63 88 .236 .333 .392 .725 111 35
1967 35 HOU NL 101 383 328 39 78 13 2 10 38 48 65 .238 .333 .381 .714 108 35
1967 35 DET AL 36 128 108 14 25 3 0 6 19 15 23 .231 .331 .426 .757 120 53
1968 36 DET AL 31 57 52 4 11 0 0 3 8 5 12 .212 .281 .385 .665 98 /35
17 Yrs 2391 10100 8537 1509 2315 354 72 512 1453 1444 1487 .271 .376 .509 .885 143
162 Game Avg. 162 684 578 102 157 24 5 35 98 98 101 .271 .376 .509 .885 143
G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ Pos Awards
ATL (15 yrs) 2223 9532 8049 1452 2201 338 70 493 1388 1376 1387 .273 .379 .517 .896 145
DET (2 yrs) 67 185 160 18 36 3 0 9 27 20 35 .225 .315 .413 .728 113
HOU (1 yr) 101 383 328 39 78 13 2 10 38 48 65 .238 .333 .381 .714 108
NL (16 yrs) 2324 9915 8377 1491 2279 351 72 503 1426 1424 1452 .272 .377 .511 .888 144
AL (2 yrs) 67 185 160 18 36 3 0 9 27 20 35 .225 .315 .413 .728 113
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/18/2014.
Year Age Tm Lg G PA Rbat Rbaser Rdp Rfield Rpos RAA WAA RAR WAR oWAR dWAR oRAR Pos Awards
1952 20 BSN NL 145 593 7 -0 0 -7 0 0 0.0 23 2.3 3.1 -0.8 30 *5 MVP-21,RoY-3
1953 ★ 21 MLN NL 157 681 56 -0 2 3 1 62 5.8 88 8.3 8.2 0.3 85 *5 AS,MVP-2
1954 22 MLN NL 138 600 53 1 0 3 0 58 5.6 80 7.8 7.7 0.2 77 *57 MVP-19
1955 ★ 23 MLN NL 141 616 49 -1 1 4 1 53 5.0 76 7.3 7.2 0.2 72 *5 AS,MVP-18
1956 ★ 24 MLN NL 151 651 32 2 2 -2 1 34 3.2 58 5.7 6.4 -0.4 61 *5 AS
1957 ★ 25 MLN NL 148 666 42 0 3 3 2 50 5.0 74 7.4 7.3 0.4 71 *5 AS,MVP-8
1958 ★ 26 MLN NL 149 649 17 3 1 16 2 40 4.0 63 6.4 4.9 1.9 47 *5 AS
1959 ★ 27 MLN NL 148 682 57 -2 1 -2 3 57 5.8 80 8.2 8.5 0.1 83 *5 AS,MVP-2
1960 ★ 28 MLN NL 153 671 48 1 0 -5 3 47 4.8 72 7.3 8.0 -0.3 77 *5 AS,MVP-10
1961 ★ 29 MLN NL 152 672 47 -2 2 -1 3 48 4.8 73 7.2 7.4 0.2 74 *5 AS,MVP-17
1962 ★ 30 MLN NL 152 643 27 -2 1 1 3 30 3.2 55 5.6 5.4 0.5 53 *5/3 AS,MVP-29
1963 31 MLN NL 158 675 33 -2 0 14 0 45 5.3 70 8.0 6.2 1.8 56 *57
1964 32 MLN NL 141 590 8 2 1 5 2 19 2.2 41 4.6 3.8 1.0 36 *5/3
1965 33 MLN NL 156 626 20 1 -0 3 3 27 3.0 51 5.4 5.1 0.7 47 *5 MVP-20
1966 34 ATL NL 134 517 3 -0 1 1 2 6 0.8 25 2.7 2.5 0.4 24 *5
1967 35 HOU NL 101 383 2 0 1 -4 -4 -5 -0.5 9 0.9 1.3 -0.8 13 35
1967 35 DET AL 36 128 3 0 0 0 -0 4 0.4 8 0.9 0.9 -0.0 8 53
1968 36 DET AL 31 57 -1 -0 0 1 -0 0 0.0 2 0.2 0.1 0.1 1 /35
17 Seasons 2391 10100 505 0 18 33 21 578 58.6 949 96.4 93.8 5.5 916
Lg G PA Rbat Rbaser Rdp Rfield Rpos RAA WAA RAR WAR oWAR dWAR oRAR Pos Awards
ATL (15 yrs) 2223 9532 501 -0 16 35 26 578 58.6 929 94.3 91.6 6.3 894
DET (2 yrs) 67 185 3 0 0 2 -1 5 0.5 11 1.1 0.9 0.1 9
HOU (1 yr) 101 383 2 0 1 -4 -4 -5 -0.5 9 0.9 1.3 -0.8 13
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/18/2014.

Greg Maddux

Year Age Tm Lg W L W-L% ERA G GS CG SHO IP BB SO ERA+ FIP WHIP H9 HR9 BB9 SO9 SO/W Awards
1986 20 CHC NL 2 4 .333 5.52 6 5 1 0 31.0 11 20 74 3.90 1.774 12.8 0.9 3.2 5.8 1.82
1987 21 CHC NL 6 14 .300 5.61 30 27 1 1 155.2 74 101 76 4.50 1.638 10.5 1.0 4.3 5.8 1.36
1988 ★ 22 CHC NL 18 8 .692 3.18 34 34 9 3 249.0 81 140 114 3.41 1.249 8.3 0.5 2.9 5.1 1.73 AS
1989 23 CHC NL 19 12 .613 2.95 35 35 7 1 238.1 82 135 129 3.45 1.276 8.4 0.5 3.1 5.1 1.65 CYA-3
1990 24 CHC NL 15 15 .500 3.46 35 35 8 2 237.0 71 144 119 3.15 1.321 9.2 0.4 2.7 5.5 2.03 GG
1991 25 CHC NL 15 11 .577 3.35 37 37 7 2 263.0 66 198 116 3.06 1.133 7.9 0.6 2.3 6.8 3.00 GG
1992 ★ 26 CHC NL 20 11 .645 2.18 35 35 9 4 268.0 70 199 166 2.58 1.011 6.8 0.2 2.4 6.7 2.84 AS,CYA-1,MVP-11,GG
1993 27 ATL NL 20 10 .667 2.36 36 36 8 1 267.0 52 197 170 2.85 1.049 7.7 0.5 1.8 6.6 3.79 CYA-1,MVP-13,GG
1994 ★ 28 ATL NL 16 6 .727 1.56 25 25 10 3 202.0 31 156 271 2.39 0.896 6.7 0.2 1.4 7.0 5.03 AS,CYA-1,MVP-5,GG
1995 ★ 29 ATL NL 19 2 .905 1.63 28 28 10 3 209.2 23 181 260 2.26 0.811 6.3 0.3 1.0 7.8 7.87 AS,CYA-1,MVP-3,GG
1996 ★ 30 ATL NL 15 11 .577 2.72 35 35 5 1 245.0 28 172 162 2.73 1.033 8.3 0.4 1.0 6.3 6.14 AS,CYA-5,GG
1997 ★ 31 ATL NL 19 4 .826 2.20 33 33 5 2 232.2 20 177 189 2.43 0.946 7.7 0.3 0.8 6.8 8.85 AS,CYA-2,MVP-12,GG
1998 ★ 32 ATL NL 18 9 .667 2.22 34 34 9 5 251.0 45 204 187 2.81 0.980 7.2 0.5 1.6 7.3 4.53 AS,CYA-4,GG
1999 33 ATL NL 19 9 .679 3.57 33 33 4 0 219.1 37 136 126 3.40 1.345 10.6 0.7 1.5 5.6 3.68 GG
2000 ★ 34 ATL NL 19 9 .679 3.00 35 35 6 3 249.1 42 190 153 3.23 1.071 8.1 0.7 1.5 6.9 4.52 AS,CYA-3,MVP-12,GG
2001 35 ATL NL 17 11 .607 3.05 34 34 3 3 233.0 27 173 146 3.12 1.060 8.5 0.8 1.0 6.7 6.41 GG
2002 36 ATL NL 16 6 .727 2.62 34 34 0 0 199.1 45 118 159 3.43 1.199 8.8 0.6 2.0 5.3 2.62 GG
2003 37 ATL NL 16 11 .593 3.96 36 36 1 0 218.1 33 124 108 3.89 1.182 9.3 1.0 1.4 5.1 3.76
2004 38 CHC NL 16 11 .593 4.02 33 33 2 1 212.2 33 151 110 4.36 1.180 9.2 1.5 1.4 6.4 4.58 GG
2005 39 CHC NL 13 15 .464 4.24 35 35 3 0 225.0 36 136 104 4.06 1.222 9.6 1.2 1.4 5.4 3.78 GG
2006 40 TOT NL 15 14 .517 4.20 34 34 0 0 210.0 37 117 109 3.80 1.219 9.4 0.9 1.6 5.0 3.16 GG
2006 40 CHC NL 9 11 .450 4.69 22 22 0 0 136.1 23 81 99 3.80 1.291 10.1 0.9 1.5 5.3 3.52
2006 40 LAD NL 6 3 .667 3.30 12 12 0 0 73.2 14 36 137 3.80 1.086 8.1 0.7 1.7 4.4 2.57
2007 41 SDP NL 14 11 .560 4.14 34 34 1 0 198.0 25 104 97 3.58 1.242 10.0 0.6 1.1 4.7 4.16 GG
2008 42 TOT NL 8 13 .381 4.22 33 33 0 0 194.0 30 98 92 4.09 1.206 9.5 1.0 1.4 4.5 3.27 GG
2008 42 SDP NL 6 9 .400 3.99 26 26 0 0 153.1 26 80 95 4.05 1.220 9.5 0.9 1.5 4.7 3.08
2008 42 LAD NL 2 4 .333 5.09 7 7 0 0 40.2 4 18 83 4.21 1.156 9.5 1.1 0.9 4.0 4.50
23 Yrs 355 227 .610 3.16 744 740 109 35 5008.1 999 3371 132 3.26 1.143 8.5 0.6 1.8 6.1 3.37
162 Game Avg. 16 10 .610 3.16 34 34 5 2 229 46 154 132 3.26 1.143 8.5 0.6 1.8 6.1 3.37
W L W-L% ERA G GS CG SHO IP BB SO ERA+ FIP WHIP H9 HR9 BB9 SO9 SO/W Awards
ATL (11 yrs) 194 88 .688 2.63 363 363 61 21 2526.2 383 1828 163 2.95 1.051 8.1 0.5 1.4 6.5 4.77
CHC (10 yrs) 133 112 .543 3.61 302 298 47 14 2016.0 547 1305 112 3.52 1.245 8.8 0.7 2.4 5.8 2.39
LAD (2 yrs) 8 7 .533 3.94 19 19 0 0 114.1 18 54 112 3.95 1.111 8.6 0.9 1.4 4.3 3.00
SDP (2 yrs) 20 20 .500 4.07 60 60 1 0 351.1 51 184 96 3.78 1.232 9.8 0.8 1.3 4.7 3.61
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/18/2014.
Year Age Tm Lg IP G GS R RA9 RA9avg RAA WAA WAR RAR waaWL% 162WL% Awards
1986 20 CHC NL 31.0 6 5 20 5.81 5.23 -2 -0.2 0.0 1 .461 .499
1987 21 CHC NL 155.2 30 27 111 6.42 5.42 -19 -1.8 -0.4 -3 .439 .489
1988 ★ 22 CHC NL 249.0 34 34 97 3.51 4.43 24 3.0 5.2 46 .588 .518 AS
1989 23 CHC NL 238.1 35 35 90 3.40 4.38 25 3.1 5.0 44 .589 .519 CYA-3
1990 24 CHC NL 237.0 35 35 116 4.41 5.24 18 2.0 4.0 42 .558 .513 GG
1991 25 CHC NL 263.0 37 37 113 3.87 4.34 12 1.3 3.5 35 .536 .508 GG
1992 ★ 26 CHC NL 268.0 35 35 68 2.28 4.16 55 7.2 9.2 75 .705 .544 AS,CYA-1,MVP-11,GG
1993 27 ATL NL 267.0 36 36 85 2.87 4.17 34 3.7 5.8 61 .604 .523 CYA-1,MVP-13,GG
1994 ★ 28 ATL NL 202.0 25 25 44 1.96 4.69 60 7.0 8.5 79 .778 .543 AS,CYA-1,MVP-5,GG
1995 ★ 29 ATL NL 209.2 28 28 39 1.67 4.77 69 8.1 9.7 90 .790 .550 AS,CYA-1,MVP-3,GG
1996 ★ 30 ATL NL 245.0 35 35 85 3.12 4.81 47 5.2 7.1 67 .649 .532 AS,CYA-5,GG
1997 ★ 31 ATL NL 232.2 33 33 58 2.24 4.30 53 6.0 7.8 73 .682 .537 AS,CYA-2,MVP-12,GG
1998 ★ 32 ATL NL 251.0 34 34 75 2.69 4.17 41 4.6 6.6 63 .636 .528 AS,CYA-4,GG
1999 33 ATL NL 219.1 33 33 103 4.23 4.86 15 1.5 3.2 36 .544 .509 GG
2000 ★ 34 ATL NL 249.1 35 35 91 3.28 4.91 44 4.6 6.6 69 .631 .528 AS,CYA-3,MVP-12,GG
2001 35 ATL NL 233.0 34 34 86 3.32 4.52 30 3.2 5.1 52 .595 .520 GG
2002 36 ATL NL 199.1 34 34 67 3.03 4.21 25 2.8 4.4 43 .582 .517 GG
2003 37 ATL NL 218.1 36 36 112 4.62 4.50 -4 -0.4 1.3 16 .490 .498
2004 38 CHC NL 212.2 33 33 103 4.36 5.03 14 1.5 3.2 35 .546 .509 GG
2005 39 CHC NL 225.0 35 35 112 4.48 4.90 10 1.1 2.8 30 .530 .507 GG
2006 40 CHC NL 136.1 22 22 78 5.15 5.28 2 0.2 1.3 15 .511 .501 GG
2006 40 LAD NL 73.2 12 12 31 3.79 5.19 12 1.2 1.8 18 .602 .508 GG
2007 41 SDP NL 198.0 34 34 92 4.18 4.59 10 1.0 2.6 27 .530 .506 GG
2008 42 SDP NL 153.1 26 26 80 4.70 4.29 -6 -0.6 0.6 6 .476 .496 GG
2008 42 LAD NL 40.2 7 7 25 5.53 4.45 -5 -0.4 -0.1 -1 .436 .497 GG
23 Seasons 5008.1 744 740 1981 3.56 4.62 567 64.9 104.6 1018 .587 .518
Lg IP G GS R RA9 RA9avg RAA WAA WAR RAR waaWL% 162WL% Awards
ATL (11 yrs) 2526.2 363 363 845 3.01 4.53 415 46.3 66.0 650 .628 .525
CHC (10 yrs) 2016.0 302 298 908 4.05 4.73 140 17.4 33.8 318 .558 .513
LAD (2 yrs) 114.1 19 19 56 4.41 4.93 7 0.8 1.7 17 .541 .504
SDP (2 yrs) 351.1 60 60 172 4.41 4.46 4 0.4 3.1 33 .507 .502
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/18/2014.

Now it’s your turn. Select one player for the Braves’ final Rushmore spot. If the ballot does not display in your browser, you can also vote here.

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

23 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
John Autin
Editor
9 years ago

I chose Maddux — not on stats, but just for narrative balance. A Bravos Rushmore of Aaron & Spahn, Chipper & Maddux would have the best position player and best pitcher from each of the team’s best eras. Mathews may be more deserving in a purely head-to-head comparison. He owns 8 of the team’s 36 modern 7-WAR seasons; Aaron had 13, and Chipper’s three ranks third. It won’t seem right to “carve” Chipper and not Mathews. And comparing Maddux’s 11 Braves years against Mathews’s best 11-year run, both ranked 3rd in MLB WAR, trailing only icons (Willie & Mickey, Unit… Read more »

Hartvig
Hartvig
9 years ago
Reply to  John Autin

What he said☝☝☝☝

(just to be clear, that finger sticking up is the INDEX finger…)

Hartvig
Hartvig
9 years ago
Reply to  Hartvig

Geez, I just cast my vote and saw the current results.

23 votes for Maddux & 23 votes for Mathews

How do you have a runoff election for a runoff election?

Voomo Zanzibar
Voomo Zanzibar
9 years ago

I vote to remove Chipper and elect Kid Nichols.
_____

Alright alright…
Between 1955 and 1962,
when Mathews did most of his damage at the plate, he primarily batted 3rd.

The guy who batted 4th we’ve already elected.

I vote Maddux.
_____

Mathews batting 3rd, by year.

Aaron batting 4th, by year.

Voomo Zanzibar
Voomo Zanzibar
9 years ago
Reply to  Voomo Zanzibar

Those links don’t work. They were’ perma-links for Aaron and Mathews’ yearly batting orders. Dunno wha’happened.

John Autin
Editor
9 years ago
Reply to  Voomo Zanzibar

Voomo, I fixed your links. Seems that they wrapped across two lines in a text browser, and the link was assigned only to the pre-wrap text. I hope I read your intentions correctly.

Voomo Zanzibar
Voomo Zanzibar
9 years ago
Reply to  John Autin

Excellent. Thank you.

dr. remulak
dr. remulak
9 years ago

Matthews. Maddux spent too many seasons in other uniforms.

oneblankspace
oneblankspace
9 years ago
Reply to  dr. remulak

Maddux was a Brave for 50.45% of his career IP.
Mathews was a Brave for 94.38% of his career IP.

Maddux played for the Chicago Cubs, the Atlanta Braves, and the Chicago Cubs.
Mathews played for the Boston Braves, the Milwaukee Braves, and the Atlanta Braves.

oneblankspace
oneblankspace
9 years ago
Reply to  oneblankspace

Mathews was a Brave for 94.38% of his career PA. He was not a pitcher. D’oh!

BillH
BillH
9 years ago

Matthews. Maddux is part Cub, part Brave.

Steven
Steven
9 years ago

Voted for Mathews.

John
John
9 years ago

Tried to cast 1/2 vote for Matthews, and 1/2 vote for Maddux. Didn’t work. So I asked my wife, the Braves fan She said Maddux. I said I wanted to vote for a 2-headed monster, Matthux. She said Maddux. So I voted for Maddux. Check the results. A perfect 24-24 split. I don’t envy you guys one bit!

PaulE
PaulE
9 years ago

Mathews.
If Maddux had retired in 1968with the same great record, I don’t believe he would have been considered the superior of Walter Johnson, Alexander, or Mathewson, or even Cy Young. However, Mathews was greater than all 3b untilSchmidt came along. Mathews’ superior positional ranking wins out for me. Plus, Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta….and, Maddux came through the Cubs chain

and, he was better than Chipper, too 🙁

bells
bells
9 years ago
Reply to  PaulE

I think it’s a bit inaccurate to present a ‘positional’ comparison between a 3B and a pitcher as an apples to apples kind of thing; there are many more pitchers in baseball than third baseman. Perhaps it’d be more appropriate to ask how Mathews compares to other infielders before him, if you really want comparable numbers, although that is unsatisfying for other reasons. Either way, I didn’t vote for either of these guys the first time around, as I voted for the top 3 and Kid Nichols. But I felt less bad about not voting for Maddux, just due to… Read more »

Paul E
Paul E
9 years ago
Reply to  bells

bells: Good point on the positional comparison. For the sake of brevity, I used BR WAR from 1893 forward: If we compare Maddux to all RH pitchers, his career WAR of 104.6 places him 6th through 2014; however, he’d be 4th through 1969. If we compare him to all pitchers, through 1969 he’s 5th, and 7th through 2014 Mathews, when compared to all infielders, places 10th through 2014 and 6th through 1969 in WAR. Mathews doesn’t suffer too badly here. Hey, I could have voted for Rico Carty An interesting item: Pedro Martinez accumulated approximately 83% of the WAR Maddux… Read more »

PP
PP
9 years ago

Maddux over Chipper for sure. But much as I hate to do it, it’s Eddie Lee over Maddux. Tough decision though.

PP
PP
9 years ago
Reply to  PP

Of course Jones will probably be a 1st ballot HOFer in 2020 (?) while it took Mathews 5 tries to get in. No respect for Eddie except from advanced stats: JAWS has him the #2 3B.

brp
brp
9 years ago

Can we kick out Chipper and put these two in instead?

Mike HBC
Mike HBC
9 years ago

Well, Greg Maddux is my favorite baseball player ever, so… yeah.

oneblankspace
oneblankspace
9 years ago

Mathews 41, Maddux 40 through 81 votes.

Steve
Steve
9 years ago

Eddie Mathews – Eddie should have made it over chipper