Maddon began his professional career playing in Minor League Baseball as a catcher, signing with the California Angels organization as a free agent in 1975. Maddon never advanced higher than Class A, in which he played for four seasons. He began his career for the Quad Cities Angels in 1976, hitting .294 in 50 games and 163 at bats. He followed up with two seasons for the Salinas Angels and a final with the Santa Clara Padres. In his four seasons, he never had more than 180 at bats in a season, and the most home runs he ever hit was three for the Salinas Angels in 1977. Overall, he hit .267 with 5 home runs in 514 at bats.