MESA, ARIZ. ? After spending much of last summer fending off rumors he was pondering retirement, Greg Maddux made a preemptive strike at the start of spring training, declaring this to be his “free-agent” year.

That doesn’t mean Maddux will return in 2007, but it should end speculation the end of his Cubs contract means it’s the end of the line.

Maddux turns 40 in April, but playing past 40 no longer is considered a novelty.

“We’ll see,” Maddux said. “I enjoy coming to the ballpark every day. It’s a good life. Mentally, I don’t want to give it up.”

Maddux also doesn’t care to commit himself to returning. He simply wants to perform well enough that it would be a viable option.

“It’s easy to say I’d love to have a good year and play next year,” he said. “I’d love to do that, no question. I’m going to do what I can to have a good year and I’d love to have a shot at postseason in Chicago.

“When it comes time to decide on next year, I’ll decide. But it’s not time yet. There’s too much in front of me right now to worry about the following year.”

Chicago Cubs pitcher Greg Maddux fields a ball during spring training. Maddux, shown Tuesday in Mesa, Ariz., is contemplating whether to return or retire after the 2006 season.

Maddux was thrown into an awkward position in August when Cubs manager Dusty Baker brought up the subject of Maddux’s retirement at a news conference.

Baker was talking about the future of the pitching staff and said he couldn’t be sure of the rotation because he wasn’t sure if Maddux was going to stick around for his option year.

That sent a media swarm to Maddux’s locker, where he repeatedly said he wanted to return but would make up his mind over the winter.

Maddux’s subpar 2005 season may have had something to do with the rumors. For the first time since going 6-14 his rookie season, he finished below .500 at 13-15, and his 4.24 earned-run average also was his highest since 1987.

But in seven losses after June 1, the Cubs scored no more than one run for Maddux while he was in the game. He probably could have won at least 16 or 17 if the Cubs gave him support.

“If I got lucky maybe,” he said. “But it’s not about being lucky, it’s about being good.

“I had my chances last year. Starting pitchers can blow a save too, and I blew a couple. I don’t look at, ‘Oh, we didn’t score.’ I look at the games I didn’t hold a lead. It kind of goes both ways. Had I pitched better at times last year, I might have got there.”

Winning a fifth Cy Young Award is not on Maddux’s agenda, but he does believe he can win from 15 to 20 games and throw more than 200 innings, which likely would lead to another year or two, possibly in Chicago. He reported to camp in better shape thanks to an offseason program he declined to describe and said he felt good both physically and mentally.

Turning 40 sometimes is a difficult milestone, a time to reevaluate where you have been and where you are headed. Maddux will tackle that milestone April 14, but he doesn’t appear to be in the midst of a midlife crisis.

If there’s one thing he has learned over 20 years in baseball, it’s to believe the advice he got from veterans when he first donned a major-league uniform.

“It’s true – when they say time flies, they’re not kidding,” he said. “You hear people come in, and the older coaches or older players say, ‘Cherish the time you have now, because it flies.’ They were right.”