The End of 2015: Where the Atlanta Braves Stand
Aug 30, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez (33) reacts in the dugout against the New York Yankees during the ninth inning at Turner Field. The Yankees defeated the Braves 20-6. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
It Was the Best of… no, it was Pretty Much Just the Worst of Years
After 2015, the Atlanta Braves franchise has played 20,862 games; winning 10,370 and losing 10,339 since 1876. In case you’re curious, only the Phillies have lost more (10,650), even though the braves had a 7-year head start. The Giants, Cubs, Dodgers, and Cardinals have all won more… that despite the Braves having more opportunities than all of them except the Cubs – the only team to have more games played (by 32).
1,905 baseball players have donned the tomahawk uniform for the Braves – 51 of them Hall of Famers (more than any club besides the Giants (57)). Yes, this bests the Yankees (40) and Dodgers (48).
Three times in their history have the Braves won the World Series: Boston (1914), Milwaukee (1957), and Atlanta (1957) – one time in each of their home cities with 23 playoff appearances overall. Most of these were accumulated between 1991 and 2005, of course.
The Braves have indeed been a pitching club from the very beginning, having the 4th-best franchise ERA ever (3.64). The team has been a division winner 17 times with 17 pennants.
That didn’t happen in 2015.
The 2015 edition of the Braves stumbled to a 67-95 record… worst for the franchise since 1990’s 65-97 record. That 1990 team was the last of a series of bad ones during the latter 1980’s that won 66, 72, 69, 54, 63, and 65 games from 1985-90. The worst stretch during these Atlanta years was actually in the 1970’s. From 1972-1979, the team won 70,76,88,67,70,61,69,66 games – with that lone 88-win club the bright spot – the same year Hank Aaron bested Babe Ruth‘s home run record.
But this 2015 club teased us – it made us think that maybe the rebuild would not be so bad. We seemed to be just a couple of players away from actually making a run. Part of that, of course, was because the NL East turned out to be so bad. Miami flopped, the Mets were meh, the vaunted Nationals never could get anything going, and the Phillies were… the Phillies. The division was there for the taking. Ultimately, the Mets made the moves to take it.
Instead, Atlanta headed in a different direction. And that has now set us up for a different future.
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