Phillies' Garry Maddox heads class of Philly Sports Hall of Fame

PHILLIES public address announcer Dan Baker has been belting out the names of the team's players since 1972, so it wasn't a surprise that when Garry Maddox was selected as one of the inductees in the 2015 class of the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame yesterday, Baker was on hand to call him onto stage for the announcement.

"No. 31, Phillies centerfielder Garrrrrryyyy, Madddddoxxxx," Baker rang out to those in attendance, introducing and celebrating the career of Maddox, a defensive star in the outfield and an integral member of the Phillies' 1980 World Series championship team.

"It's just like old times, getting ready to go lace 'em up," Maddox, who played 15 major league seasons, 12 with the Phillies, said of Baker's call, placing him back on the Veterans Stadium artificial turf as if he were chasing down a fly ball from Dave Parker and snagging it just in time, as always.

"I'm just taken back that I can be remembered in such high regard."

He shouldn't be shocked. His eight Gold Glove Awards and his pennant-winning double in the 10th inning of the 1980 NLCS against the Houston Astros will continue to be key parts of Phillies lore.

His prowess in the field continues to be what he was most known for, as former Daily News scribe Ray Didinger famously wrote the oft-repeated claim: "Two-thirds of the earth is covered by water. The other third is covered by Garry Maddox."

Also inducted will be Tim Brown, Rich Gannon, Walt Hazzard, Rick MacLeish, Billy Markward, Benny McLaughlin, Bob Montgomery, Lou Nolan, Karen Shelton, Sam Thompson, Cindy Timchal, Dick Williams, Dick Vermeil and Dave Zinkoff. Induction will be Nov. 12.

Maddox might not be a Philadelphian by birth, but has become a proud resident of the area over the last four decades.

"I would've sworn that when my career was winding down and about to end that my wife and I would've been heading back to Los Angeles," he said. "That's the approach in baseball. You might get traded somewhere and pick your family up and go reside there and if you get traded, you go to another town, but, in the end, you always say that you're going back.

"In the end, it would've been better for me if I kept my family and myself here in Philadelphia. And I'll say deciding to be in Philadelphia, what it has meant to me, my family, my kids growing up here as well, it was one of the best decisions I made in my life."

Speaking like a true Philadelphian, Maddox boasted, "I do consider Philadelphia my home and am very proud of that fact."

Maddox said he still keeps in regular contact with his teammates from that 1980 squad.

"We're at that age where the team gets honored every five years now. I see everybody on those occasions," Maddox said about the 1980 Phils. "Fortunately, there's a lot of [players from 1980] on the Phillies' Wall of Fame, so they all come in for that alumni weekend."

When Phillies stars and playoff heroes of the past descend upon Citizens Bank Park to see slugger Pat Burrell become the latest to be enshrined on the team's Wall of Fame on July 31, the start of Alumni Weekend, the Secretary of Defense will be right at home in his adopted city, deservingly standing among the franchise's greats, just as he is worthy of this latest honor.

Tim Brown, football

Rich Gannon, football

Walt Hazzard, basketball

Rick MacLeish, hockey

Garry Maddox, baseball

Billy Markward, basketball

Benny McLaughlin, soccer

Bob Montgomery, boxer

Lou Nolan, announcer

Karen Shelton, field hockey

Sam Thompson, baseball

Cindy Timchal, lacrosse

Dick Vermeil, football

Dick Williams, tennis

Dave Zinkoff, announcer