Swan Song for Smoltz

By Mark Kozee
Wow, I never thought I’d be saying this. We are witnessing the twilight of the career of John Smoltz, a guy who is as talented as he is competitive. A quick recap of his career is in order here: over 3,000 career strikeouts, a Cy Young Award, a bunch of All-Star game appearances, over 200 wins and over 150 saves, and an ERA in the low 3’s.
There are things about Smoltz that make him unique among professional athletes of this day. One, he has played his whole major league career with one organization, the Atlanta Braves. He could have gotten more money from a bigger-spending team. Remember, the New York Yankees made serious overtures to him in the 90’s. But he chose to stay with the team that brought its city the one and only World Championship they’ve ever enjoyed, the 1995 World Series. That move probably cost him a few million dollars, but he felt money couldn’t buy him everything he wanted.
Two, Smoltz is famous on the field yet not infamous off the field. No drug busts. No drunk driving arrests. No mention in the Mitchell Report. Sure, he had a divorce that made a few headlines, but he’s not perfect. All in all, his image is squeaky clean. And kind of boring. The only thing you’ll ever see him doing on SportsCenter is, well, pitching.
Three, Smoltz has been successful in two different roles, starting pitching and closing. I know, closing is just an abbreviated version of starting. But think of some great starting pitchers of the day, and ask yourself if you can see them closing a game. Greg Maddux? No way. Johan Santana? Maybe. The point is, most starters couldn’t effectively close a game. Smoltz did.
This leads me to what I think is the most remarkable stat about Smoltz’s career. In ’02, he had 55 saves, the National League record at the time. The Braves won 101 games that season. Smoltz saved more than half of the Braves’ wins. Smoltz carried the team on his back that year. He didn’t win the MVP award but should have.
Now for the bad news. After many surgeries, stints on the disabled list, and minor league rehab assignments, Smoltz returned to the mound recently against the Florida Marlins. He looked horrible. Two runs in one inning equaled a blown save. Fortunately for Smoltz, the Braves eked out a win in extra innings. Now, he admits he doesn’t have his devastating split finger fastball, because his bad shoulder has lowered his arm angle.
What he won’t say is that physically, he arm can’t take it anymore. He’s got the rest of the tools. He’s still competitive and wants to play, but his body has other plans. He should relax play some golf. He should definitely think about coaching one day. But this will be his last season. And last Monday was certainly one of his last appearances.
None of that, though, diminishes Smoltz’s legacy and his inevitable trip to Cooperstown. He is a classy guy and he got the job done. Pro athletes everywhere should take a lesson from Smoltz: let your playing do the talking for you.