Giants update: Swan the Swami correct again

I hate to say, "I told you so," but...well...

I did.

Nevertheless, congratulations to Greg Maddux, who won his 300th game by beating the Giants. Maddux is an unusual duck — a smart guy of unimposing size and underwhelming velocity who has simply outfoxed hitters over his phenomenal career with pinpoint control and a variety of pitches and speeds. He may well be the last 300-win pitcher we'll see in baseball (Maddux's ex-teammate Tom Glavine is closest at 259 wins and is still pitching well at 38, so he has an outside shot). But if someone had to be the last guy to achieve the mark, Maddux is a great choice — a pitcher who, were he just starting out in this era of obsession with the radar gun, would never get a second look from most major league scouts because he doesn't throw 95-mph fastballs.

If I ever publish my long-percolating novel about a fictional ex-Giants pitcher, sharp sabermetricians will notice that I stole my character's stats right off the back of Greg Maddux's baseball card.