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The Quiet End of an Era

In 1991, the Atlanta Braves had an unforgettable season, at least for a kid who became a teenager during the final September stretch of that year. I had always cheered for the Braves, no matter how bad they were. To be honest, I didn't fully grasp just how bad they had been. In 1990, they had the worst record in all of baseball at 65-97, so very few people held hope for a World Series appearance, let alone championship, for the 1991 campaign. But several things happened in 1990 that allowed for the string of titles the Braves accumulated over the next fifteen years. They signed Terry Pendleton in the offseason. Chipper Jones was the first player drafted in 1990. Bobby Cox returned to the dugout as manager. And a pitcher by the name of Steve Avery made his first major league appearance. Let's take a look at some of the highlights as remembered by a fan.

1991 April started as so many previous seasons had: a sub .500 8-10 record. However, this was followed by an excellent May that saw them go 17-9, but by the All-Star Break they were 9 games out of first and a game under .500. Then something happened. A torrid second half saw them go 55-28 and battle the Los Angeles Dodgers for the Western Division Title (that's right, the Braves used to be in the Western Division, back when there were only two per league). The race that wasn't decided until the next to last day of the season. During that stretch the Braves completed the first combined no-hitter when Kent Mercker, Mark Wohlers, and Alejandro Pena all held the San Diego Padres hitless. On October 5, John Smoltz, the only player present for all 14 division titles, pitched a complete game, winning 5-2. The out that clinched the first division title came when Andujar Cedeno lifted a fly ball to right that landed in the glove of David Justice. My favorite player at the time, Ron Gant, hit a homerun in that game. Of all the titles, 1991 was probably the most exciting. Tom Glavine won the Cy Young, Terry Pendleton won the NL MVP and batting title, and Bobby Cox was manager of the year. Steve Avery gave an MVP performance in the Braves 7 game series triumph over the Pittsburgh Pirates to win the NL Pennant. In the best World Series I've ever seen, the Minnesota Twins won game 7, the best World Series game I've ever seen, 1-0 in ten innings. The loss did nothing to tarnish the remarkable season the Braves had that year.

1992 If 1991 was the most exciting division title won, then 1992 was the most exciting pennant won. Despite starting the season at 20-27, in last place and 7 games out, they still found a way to win, foreshadowing the years to come. They went 78-37 the rest of the season, pulling away to win the division by 8 games. For me, the most exciting moment in Braves history would occur in Game 7 of the NLCS against the Pirates. In that home game, the Braves were down 2-0 going into the bottom of the 9th. Terry Pendleton doubled to start the inning, followed by an error that allowed David Justice to reach first and Pendleton to go to third. After Sid Bream walked, Ron Gant lined a sacrifice fly to left allowing Pendleton to score. Damon Berryhill walked, then Brian Hunter popped out to the short for the second out. I remember watching this game with my Dad. My mom had already gone to bed and I was sitting on the couch. I think I held my breath for Francisco Cabrera's entire at bat. After running the count to 2 balls, 1 strike, he lined the fourth pitch to left field, where it fell in front of a charging Barry Bonds. Justice easily scored, but as to whether Bream could score from second on two bad knees brought about the penultimate moment in the division title run. Watching him round third, I jumped up, urging him, willing him to beat Bonds' throw to the plate. The ball arrived before Bream did, but the throw was slightly off target, up the first baseline, allowing Bream just enough time and space to slide under the tag. And of course in all the excitement and commotion, I managed to wake my Mom, who was happy to see that they had won the game. While the season ended with a 4 games to 2 loss in the World Series to the Blue Jays, nothing can diminish the memory of that Game 7.

1993 The 1993 division race with the San Francisco Giants (who signed Barry Bonds in the offseason from the Pirates) was nearly as exciting as the unexpected 1991 race with the Dodgers. It was the first year for Greg Maddux as a Brave, and he continued his Cy Young winning ways. The Braves started the season respectably and had a 50-39 first half record. However, this placed them 9 games behind the Giants and 10 back on July 22. But July 20 will always be memorable as that was the first game in a Braves uniform for Fred McGriff and his swing with its sweeping over the head follow-through. A pregame fire in the press box added to the excitement. McGriff hit a homerun in his first game, leading the Braves back from a 5-0 deficit. McGriff's arrival coincided with an incredible 54-19 second half that allowed the Braves to overtake the Giants, clinching the division with Tom Glavine's 5-3 win over the Colorado Rockies. The Giants won 103 games that season, but the Braves won 104 in the last real division race in major league baseball. Now, teams have the wild card to fall back on, but in 1993 the Braves and Giants had to play with everything they had. Every single game in August, September, and October had a play-off atmosphere. It may be because of that the season ended with a loss to the Phillies in the NLCS, but nothing can ever replace the excitement and confidence I felt after they swept the Giants in San Francisco that August, trimming the Giants lead from to 7.5 to 4.5 games.

1994 The first season in the newly aligned Eastern Divison, The Braves started off well, but the Expos eventually caught them, leaving the Braves 6 games out before the strike ended the season. However, as in 1993, I believe the Braves would have put together another run that would have allowed them to win the division. Kent Mercker threw a no-hitter against the Dodgers in a season highlight. Greg Maddux won his second Cy Young with the Braves and third overall after posting a phenomenal 1.56 ERA with 10 complete games and 202.0 innings pitched, all league leading totals. But the 1994 strike did leave a sour taste in my mouth, as it did a lot of other fans.

1995 The year of the World Series championship was when the Braves began a run of dominance rarely seen and maintained. However, that dominance did not begin until after another slow start, 23-20 and 5 games back in third place. They would finish the shortened season at 90-54, winning the division by 21 games. The postseason posed little challenge to the Braves, as they dispatched the Rockies 3-1 in the division series, swept the Reds 4-0 in the NLCS, but did need six games to defeat Cleveland. The World Series win was fun and exciting, but after the strike something seemed to be missing. Greg Maddux once again dominated the league, winning his fourth Cy Young award. A fellow by the name of Chipper Jones also had an outstanding rookie season, winning Rookie of the Year honors. A trademark of the 1995 team was last at bat wins, accumulating 25 victories coming in that manner.

1996 Expectations were high, and anything short of a second World Series title would seem like a failure. Perhaps that was too much expectation to put on a team in a city that had just won its first World Series, but the Braves seemed capable of living up to it. They won the division by 8 games, John Smoltz won 24 games and the Cy Young, and Andruw Jones made his debut in August, hitting his first homer in his second game. The playoffs were more challenging after sweeping the Dodgers in the division series. They had to overcome a 3-1 deficit to the St. Louis Cardinals to make it to the World Series. In taking the final three games of the NLCS, the Braves outscored the Cardinals 32-1. The Braves then dominated the first two games of the World Series against the Yankees, winning 12-1 and 4-0, respectively. In Game 1, Andruw Jones homered in his first two World Series at bats, becoming the second player to do so (Gene Tenace, 1972). However, after those first two games they just couldn't get it going again, losing the next four. Of the four World Series losses during the division title run, this was probably the most disappointing.

1997 The Braves won 101 games and the division by 9 over the Florida Marlins, winner of the wild card and eventually the World Series. The Braves had no problems getting past the Astros, sweeping them in the division series, but the NLCS against the Marlins proved different. In a controversial Game 5, umpire Eric Gregg seemed to have two different strike zones, giving Livan Hernandez a much wider zone than Greg Maddux. Overall the 1997 season was typical of the late 90's teams: dominate in the regular season, but unable to get a good roll of the dice in the crap shoot that is now the Major League playoff system.

1998 Yet another dominate season in which two teams joined the league (Milwaukee Brewers moved from the AL and Arizona Diamondbacks as an expansion team). The Braves won 106 games, overshadowed by the Yankess 114. The division was won by a healthy 18 game margin, never in doubt. They swept the Cubs in the division series before a disappointing 6 game loss to the Padres in the NLCS. I remember driving down Atlanta Highway near the Alps Road intersection in Athens, GA when I heard the that Tony Baustita had just made an error in Game 6. In fact, the entire series was filled with errors for the Braves, who committed 8 in the six games. Tom Glavine won the Cy Young award again and Andres Galarragga, the "Big Cat", who will always be a fan favorite, played his first season with the team. Ozzie Guillen, who quickly charmed the Atlanta fans (including myself), signed with the Braves in May.

1999 The 1999 season was characterized by overcoming adversity. Andres Galarragga was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma and Kerry Ligtenberg was lost to a ligament tear in the elbow of his throwing arm. Pitchers Odalis Perez and Rudy Seanez were lost in the summer, as wall as fan favorite Javy Lopez. Despite all this, Chipper Jones led the team to 103 wins in a season in which he won the MVP award. Although the Braves won the division with a healthy 6.5 game margin, the race with the Mets was closer than the final results show. Chipper Jones would simply not let the Braves lose to the Mets. In games against the Mets, it seemed as though Chipper was always getting a key hit. My most vivid memory of the 1999 season came in Game 3 of the division series with the Astros. After splitting the first two in Atlanta, the pivotal game three was played in Houston. In the bottom of the tenth inning, the score was tied 3-3 when the Astros managed to load the bases with nobody out. In such circumstances, it is almost a forgone conclusion that somebody will score and the game will be over. After a ground out, the play that very well may have won the series for the Braves occurred. With the Braves playing the infield in, Tony Eusebio slapped a pitch up the middle that shortstop Walt Weiss somehow, someway, managed to grab and throw home. After the final out was recorded via a strikeout, the Astros seemed to play flat, never able to overcome the disappointment of being unable to score the winning run. The Mets tried to make the NLCS interesting, winning 2 after the Braves took a 3-0 lead. Game 5 ended on Robin Ventura's "grand slam single" in the bottom of the fifteenth, one of the best games I've seen even if the Braves did lose. Game 6 was just as exciting, once again going into extra innings. It looked like the Mets were going to force a game 7 after scoring in the top of the tenth, but the Braves battled back with a run of their own. The bottom of the 11th brought about more drama. Gerald Williams doubled, then Bret Boone bunted him to third, followed by intential walks to Chipper Jones and Brian Jordan. The drama ended on a rather anti-climatic ball four to Andruw Jones from Kenny Rogers, forcing Gerald Willims home with the winning run. A four game loss to the Yankees was disappointing, but given the drama of the 1999 season as a whole, it goes down as one of my favorites.

2000 Once again the Mets chased the Braves in a tight division race, but the Braves managed to clinch the division with five games left in the season, meaning the final margin of 1 game makes the race look tighter than it truly was. It was another season of overcoming injury, as John Smoltz went down in spring training with a torn ligament. However, solid play from Chipper Jones, Rookie of the Year Rafael Furcal, Andruw Jones, Greg Maddux, and Tom Glavine as well as the return of Andres Galarraga allowed the division title run to continue. All seemed to be going well for the Braves until a disappointing final game loss to the Rockies. The Braves went into the top of the ninth with a 5-3 lead, but gave up 7 unearned runs to end the season with a loss. The loss seemed to carry over to the division series, where the Braves were swept by the Cardinals.

2001 Another tough season of injuries and a battle for the Division title with the Phillies and Mets made for greater appreciation of the Braves tenth consecutive division title. The 88 wins was the fewest they had during the division title run. John Smoltz was hampered by arm problems again, but returned in late July as a reliever, recording his first save on August 17. He recorded 10 saves in 11 chances, a predictor of his dominance as a closer for the next two seasons. Rafael Furcal went down for the season with an injury in July. His loss exacerbated an already anemic offense, with the only real production coming from Chipper Jones. This division title was won by the pitching, and served as an example that the Braves always seemed to find a way to win. Despite their shortcomings, they swept the Astros in the division series before losing in five games to the eventual World Series Champion Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2001 I was supposed to attend a Braves game for my birthday, but the September 11 attacks postponed the game I was going to see. The game I was originally going to see would have had very important playoff implications, but by the time the make-up game was played the Braves had already clinched the division the previous game. It was still fun, though, as they beat the Marlins 7-3 on Oct. 6 with a lineup of rookies and backups, none of whom have played for the Braves this year.

2002 The 2002 team had hopes for being one of the strongest offensively in several years after the arrival of Gary Sheffield and Vinny Castilla, but the 2002 team actually scored fewer runs than the 2001 squad. Chipper Jones moved to left field to make room for Castilla at third. The pitching in 2002 was even better than 2001, allowing the Braves to win the division by 19 games, win 101 games, and clinch on September 9, the earliest they've done. John Smoltz saved 55 games, then a National League record, and the rest of the bullpen allowed the Braves to shorten games in 2002. The Braves flirted with a sub-3 team ERA for most of the season finishing at 3.13. However, it wasn't quite enough as the Braves lost to the Giants 3 games to 2 in the division series.

2003 The 2003 season was the first in which I was unable to watch most of the games after moving to Indiana for grad school. I simply didn't have the time I once had, but I still followed them closely. The biggest surprise in the offseason had been the trade of Kevin Millwood to the Phillies for Johnny Estrada, a move I questioned at the time. They also obtained Russ Ortiz in a trade with the Giants. The Braves once again won 101 games, winning the division by 10 over the Marlins. 2003 was also the first year that Tom Glavine played for the Mets, and a highlight of the season was watching the Chicago Cubs shell Glavine in his Mets debut on opening day. I had gone over to the student union with a labmate to watch the game. Unfortunately, those same Cubs would defeat the Braves 3-2 in the division series, ending another splendid season in which some thought the division run might be over after losing aces Millwood and Glavine.

2004 Pitching once again dominated for the Braves in 2004, winners of 96 games and a surprisingly healthy 10 game margin in the division title race over Phillies. The Braves had allowed fan favorite Javy Lopez sign with the Orioles as a free agent. Gary Sheffield left for the Yankees. Greg Maddux left for the Cubs. The loss of Vinny Castilla to the Rockies allowed Chipper Jones to begin making the transition back to third base, where he played most of the season. J.D. Drew played his only season with the Braves, providing much needed offense. Johnny Estrada proved that the trading away Kevin Millwood had not been such a bad deal after all, providing All-Star caliber play. Several young players, such as Charles Thomas and Nick Green, provided the spark the Braves needed after struggling the first part of the season. The season once again ended with a 3-2 loss in the division series, this time to the Astros.

2005 The year that was supposed to be the end of the run, even with John Smoltz returning to the rotation and the addition of Tim Hudson. However, once again the Braves proved too strong. The "Baby Braves" used 18 different rookies and a breakout season from Andruw Jones to win 90 games and their 14th consecutive division title. The Braves clinched the division with four games left, and only a four game losing streak coupled with the Phillies four game winning streak allowed the Phillies to make the final margin two games. But, for the second year in a row the Braves lost to the Astros in the division series, this time 3-1. However, the outstanding play of the rookies gave hope that the Braves might just be able to continue winning division titles.

2006 On a rainy September night, when most Braves' fans had likely already gone to sleep after the Braves were rained out completely, the Mets officially ended the streak of division titles with a win over the Marlins. The Mets have not clinched the division yet, but they have eliminated the Braves from contention. The 2006 team was unable to overcome unreliable pitching, especially from the bullpen, as well as injuries. The offense seemed unstoppable at times, scoring 10+ runs in five straight games, then again in three straight. Overall, their play hasn't been too bad, but a terrible 6-21 June with a 10 game losing streak ended any real hope of a fifteenth straight division title. While the wild card is still in view, realistically the Braves will miss the playoffs for the first time since 1991. Would I trade the streak of division titles for a few more World Series titles? Absolutely not. Every year the Braves started the season knowing they had a very good chance of winning the World Series. Each and every season was memorable in it's own way, and there's no way I would want to sacrifice those memories for a few more World Series titles. The Braves have been a model of consistency unmatched in professional sports. What a fun ride it as been. Here's to next season and the beginning of another run of dominance.

References
Baseball Reference
ESPN MLB Historical Standings
atlantabraves.com : History : Braves Timeline, 1987-Present
Wikipedia, "National League Championship Series"