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by Dan Perkins
The 2009 World Series
is likely to be
the subject of
lively conversations
for years to come;
but I hope that 2009
will end with a
lot of buzz about
the League's efforts in the field
of supplier
diversity.
When it comes to
supplier diversity
in professional
sports, Major League
Baseball stands in a
league of its own
(pun intended).
And, while the World
Series is still
fresh on our minds, I thought it
would be interesting
to publish excerpts
from a recent
interview I
conducted with
former baseball
great, Garry
Maddox, who is a
fascinating
African American
entrepreneur and a
man who knows a
great deal about
winning and the
Phillies
organization.
Garry Maddox
was referred to me
earlier this year
when I sat down to
talk with executives
of the Phillies
about their
participation in
Major League
Baseball's
Diverse Business
Partners Program.
As the 2008 World
Series Champions,
the Phillies were
awarded the
opportunity to
recognize up to ten
of their best
Diverse Business
Partners under the
Champions First
component of the
America's Best
Diverse Suppliers
(ABDS) Program,
which is hosted
exclusively by
diversityinbusiness.com.
Each year, Major
League ball clubs
are invited to
select one
outstanding Diverse
Business Partner for
recognition as one
of America's Best
Diverse Suppliers;
and each year, the
winner of the World
Series is given the
honor of recognizing
as many as ten
Diverse Business
Partners. At
diversityinbusiness.com,
we figure
there is a pretty
good chance that
many Diverse
Businesses stand
behind any club
successful enough to
win the World Series
-- and over the past
three years, that
assumption has been
upheld by the
Chicago White Sox,
St. Louis
Cardinals and
Boston Red Sox.
Things are a
little different
this year, however.
To my surprise, the
Phillies
respectfully
declined to
participate in the
selection of
suppliers for the 2009 Class of
America's Best
Diverse Suppliers.
Instead, club
executives
recommended that I
speak with their
former center
fielder, Garry
Maddox. I was
told that the
Phillies
organization has a
strong and mutually
beneficial business
relationship with
Mr. Maddox -- one
that reflects a
best-in-class model
for the
Phillies
organization and the
League.
While I was
disappointed by the
Phillies'
lack of
participation, I was
intrigued by their
relationship with
Garry Maddox.
I eagerly reached
out to Garry
Maddox and found him
welcoming of
the opportunity to
talk not only about
his relationship
with the Phillies,
but also the full
array of his
business activities.
In preparation for
the interview, I
went to
wikipedia.com to
see what devotees of
that website had to
say about the former
Phillies great.
I discovered that
Garry Maddox was not
only a decorated
ball player, but
also a man who
underwent numerous
transitions both in
and out of the game
of baseball.
Here's what I found
on wikipedia.com:
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Garry Lee
Maddox (born
September 1,
1949 in
Cincinnati,
Ohio) is a
former
center
fielder in
Major League
Baseball who
was known
for his
outstanding
defense.
Maddox was
drafted by
the San
Francisco
Giants in
the second
round of the
1968 amateur
draft,
missed two
seasons due
to military
service in
the Vietnam
War (see
below), and
reached the
major
leagues with
the Giants
in 1972. On
May 4, 1975,
the Giants
traded him
to the
Philadelphia
Phillies for
first
baseman
Willie
Montaņez.
That season,
Maddox won
his first
Gold Glove
Award as the
top center
fielder in
the National
League.
Montanez was
traded away
the next
year, so
this trade
disproportionately
helped the
Phillies.
Maddox's
1975 Gold
Glove was
his first of
eight in a
row. His
sparkling
play led
Phillies
broadcaster
Harry Kalas
to remark,
"Two-thirds
of the Earth
is covered
by water,
the other
one-third is
covered by
Garry
Maddox."[1]
(This quote
has also
been
attributed
to Ralph
Kiner, the
Hall-of-Fame
slugger-turned-broadcaster
for the New
York
Mets.[2])
Kalas
nicknamed
Maddox the
"Secretary
of Defense."
In 1976,
Maddox had
his best
year as a
hitter, with
a .330
batting
average, and
helped the
Phillies win
the National
League
Eastern
Division,
their first
finish in
first place
in 26 years.
But the team
lost three
straight
National
League
Championship
Series,
including in
1978, when
an
uncharacteristic
error by
Maddox on
Dusty
Baker's fly
ball allowed
the winning
run to score
in the
clinching
game for the
Los Angeles
Dodgers. He
would redeem
himself in
1980, when
his
tenth-inning
double
scored the
pennant-winning
run, and
then caught
the final
out, for the
Phillies in
Game 5 of
the NLCS,
defeating
the Houston
Astros for
the team's
first World
Series
appearance
in 30 years.
The Phillies
beat the
Kansas City
Royals for
their first
World
Championship.
Maddox
continued to
win Gold
Gloves,
steal bases
and hit well
for the
Phillies
until 1985,
when he fell
off badly.
He retired
early the
next season.
That year,
he was
honored with
the Roberto
Clemente
Award, given
annually to
a player who
demonstrates
the values
the
Pittsburgh
Pirates
Hall-of-Famer
(like
Maddox, one
of the
best-fielding
outfielders
ever)
displayed in
his
commitment
to community
and
understanding
the value of
helping
others.
During his
career,
Maddox
played in
six
postseasons,
winning five
full-season
Division
Titles, two
pennants and
one World
Series, all
with the
Phillies.
His lifetime
batting
average was
.285. Never
a slugger,
his peak
year brought
him just 14
home runs,
and he hit
117 for his
career. But
he also hit
337 doubles
and 62
triples, a
product of
the speed
that also
allowed him
to reach fly
balls few
outfielders
could get
to, and to
steal 20 or
more bases
in nine
straight
seasons. |
I turned to other
sources to learn
about Gary Maddox's
post-baseball
business activities,
and discovered that
he not
only owns several
businesses, but also sits on the
board of the
Federal
Reserve Bank of
Philadelphia.
I had a fascinating
conversation with
Garry Maddox, which
I have organized into eight
video segments, each
offering insight to how Gary
Maddox has fielded
various transitions
in this personal and
professional life.
This presentation is the
first of many that
will appear under
the banner, Winning Perspectives,
which is a new
feature of this
website. I invite you
to take a moment to get acquainted
with Garry Maddox.
He is a man who has
much say about
winning and fielding
transitions.
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