Atlanta Braves
The Game June 10
Braves Season Chopped
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Well this pretty much sucks.
After leaving the game on May 17th, Braves Country’s worst fear was realized. Freddie Freeman would be missing significant time. In fact, he’d be out with a broken wrist for 10 weeks.
No Aces For Braves
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Before winning the first two of three against the Marlins in Miami over the weekend, the Braves were (not) enjoying a miserable six game losing streak. It was their second such victory-less run of the year, to go along with a five-gamer already in the books all before the second month of the season has seen its halfway point.
Unfortunately, the biggest culprit behind this crime of losing has been the pitching staff; a notable bruise given that three veterans were brought on board before the season began to avoid these kinds of slumps.
Tribute To Hank Aaron
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I sat at my favorite watering hole and was glued to the television, watching all of the opening day festivities associated with the Braves new home SunTrust Park. What a magnificent facility it is and the Braves opened the new park with a four game sweep of the San Diego.
As I was watching the ceremonies leading up to the game the event that touched me the most was when the Braves honored their retired numbers. 83 year-old Henry Aaron was introduced and I choked back tears because of what that man has meant to the city of Atlanta, the State of Georgia, and influence the man has had over generations of youth all across this great country of ours.
The Game April 15
The Game April 8
Braves SunTrust Park Preview
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
On Saturday March 25, the Braves opened up SunTrust Park to a few thousand fans to get a first look at the new stadium before the games start on the 31st with an exhibition game against the Yankees.
I was one of the happy few who was admitted. Stakes are high for the Braves with their brand-new complex – one that not only includes their new ballpark but also contains The Battery Atlanta, a mixed-use development of shopping, dining, office buildings and apartments.
Fair Weather Fans
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Atlanta is a terrible sports town. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Atlantans simply don’t show up for their pro teams unless they are winning, and consistently.
Partially it’s because the south belongs to college football, and partially it’s because of a lack of championships and probably some other things factor in as well. It’s the way of things here, and I doubt it will change any time soon.
So how is it that the NFC Championship, the final game at the Georgia Dome for the Atlanta Falcons, was packed full of loud, screaming southerners? Why were tickets for Suntrust Park’s debut game so hard to come by when they went on sale?
Fair weather fans.
The Falcons were good, and they were on their way to the Super Bowl. Suntrust Park is sparkly and new, and there is excitement abound for the Braves this year; but mark my words, if the Falcons can’t win football games at a high clip in their own brand new stadium, Mercedes Benz Stadium won’t be seeing sellouts in November.
If the Braves don’t stay competitive, then Suntrust Park will be just as vacant as Turner Field was in August last year; because those fair weather fans will stop caring and that’s okay.
Look, it can be frustrating for die hard fans to cope with the sudden attention their team gets from people that would otherwise fail to show up. Die harders experience the lows that fair weather fans will never know; because they don’t subject themselves to it. So, what right do they have to experience the highs?
I saw it and heard it all over Atlanta while the Falcons were in the playoffs: remarks about fans coming out of the woodwork just because the team was good. It was certainly true – but warranted. They WERE good!
As I am a die hard Braves fan, I find myself occasionally annoyed by fair weather fans too but if I take a step back I realize that not only are they not committing any egregious crimes, they are benefitting the team they’ve suddenly come out to support.
Think about it: if the Braves miraculously made it to the World Series this year, fair weather fans would show up in droves to the ballpark and sports bars to watch them play.
Irksome as they may seem (this has been MY TEAM for years!), would I truly rather they didn’t bother to pay attention? Do I want my team to take the field to a stadium half full of fans while they battle for a championship? Of course not.
A roaring crowd can tip the scales in some cases and I want my team to have that. They should take the field or court or gridiron to a packed house of supporters. It doesn’t matter if the fans have earned the right to celebrate – the team has earned the right to fans.
Plus, not every die hard fan was raised to be a die hard fan. Everyone has to start somewhere. I, for one, am a die hard Braves fanatic not because my parents were, but because I watched John Smoltz strike out three batters out in 2003 to close out a win. They were good, and they hooked me.
What if the Giants had come back and won that game? Would I have come back to the Braves? I’d like to think so, but I’m not so sure. Good teams breed new fans. Just think about how many Georgian eyes were on the Super Bowl in February. If they had held on and won, how many of those eyes would have been converted into die harders?
So, next time your beloved team, wherever they are, starts winning don’t scorn those who haven’t suffered the losses with you. Instead, embrace them. Your team deserves them.
Freddie Freeman To Become Atlanta Brave Great
By: Drayton Hogarth
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
With Spring Training underway, and Opening Day just a few short weeks away, the Braves will yet again be led by Freddie Freeman.
Freeman will be entering his seventh season for the Atlanta club, when he began his rookie year he was supposed to be the complementary piece to “can’t miss franchise” player Jason Heyward.
Funny how things work out, Heyward was shipped out of Atlanta four seasons later, while Freeman has continued to blossom into a perennial all-star for the Braves. My question, is this the year that Freeman elevates his status into the upper echelon of Braves greats?
When one talks about Atlanta Braves history, the George Washington of the Braves Mount Rushmore is Hank Aaron. The true home run king of Major League Baseball will likely always maintain the top spot in the minds of Atlanta fans.
To many in the baseball world, 755 is still the magic number for home runs, and unless Freeman gets on a massive tear that will not be his avenue to being remembered as one of the greatest Braves of all time.
However, don’t let that fool you; Freeman is one of the best hitter’s currently in the game. As well, Freeman has a vast knowledge of the strike zone, which allows him to be selective at the plate so he is not the proverbial hit or miss batter.
Dale Murphy practically was the Atlanta Braves in the 1980’s. Murphy would lead a post season run in Atlanta roughly a decade before the string of division titles in the 1990’s and 2000’s.
The rest of the baseball world took notice as Murphy would win back to back MVP trophy’s in 1982 and 1983. After those seasons, overreactions by the Atlanta front office would stymie the Braves on field success, but Murphy never wavered from his commitment to Atlanta, his teammates, and more so from his faith.
Freeman seems to have some of that Dale Murphy personality in him. Teammates always talk about how Freeman is a leader, on and off the field, as well as being great in the clubhouse.
Freeman also has the kind of game, that will allow him to challenge for an MVP or two before his career is complete. A high batting average, good power, and coming up big in the clutch are all traits that lead to MVP consideration.
In fact, Freeman seemed to have been overlooked last year when you take a look at his .300 average, 32 home runs, and 91 RBI’s. Maybe if the team had started out with a better record, the media wouldn’t have immediately written him off.
When Chipper Jones finally arrived in Atlanta, he brought as much fan anticipation with him as any player ever. Chipper was kind of the Bryce Harper of his generation, minus the attitude and without being quite as cocky.
Chipper actually backed up his cockiness with 186 home runs over his first six years in the league, which is the same time frame as Freeman. One has to remember, Chipper had a lot more talent around him when he arrived in Atlanta than Freeman.
What has to excite Braves fans, last season once the Braves brought in Matt Kemp and others, that is when Freeman really elevated his game. Chipper was able to win an MVP, plus brought home that elusive World Series trophy.
Freeman, should he continue on his current path, will have an opportunity to put up similar numbers to Chipper Jones, both on the stat sheet and in the win column. If that is the case, then Freddie Freeman will be a lifetime Brave, and etch his name into the short list of all time greats in the hearts and minds of Braves Nation.
So there are many characteristics and similarities that indicate Freddie Freeman can become an all-time great Atlanta Brave.
It will take consistency, but most importantly it will take winning. Freeman has the most talented lineup around him coming into this season, if Freddie can lead the way, he already has many of the other traits needed to find himself on the short list of most popular Braves ever.
The Game Feb 25
