When the 2021 World Series Champions take the field tonight (Thursday) to open the 2022 baseball season against the Cincinnati Reds, Freddie Freeman will not be wearing an Atlanta Braves Uniform.
There is not much about Freddie’s move to the Los Angeles Dodgers that hasn’t been discussed, examined, and rehashed.
It happened. It’s over.
The Braves made an offer; Freeman wasn’t satisfied; he chose to play for the Dodgers; the Braves got a younger All-Star first baseman in Matt Olson for eight years. End of story. At least for now.
I am a Freddie Freeman fan. I wanted him to stay. I understand why it didn’t work out.
What surprises me is the fan reaction. You would think this kind of thing never happens.
It happens in professional sports, and in baseball in particular, every year.
But, just for those Braves fans who either have short memories or no long term knowledge of player longevity and the Braves, I will share a little info.
The list of players who were recognized as a Brave at one time in their career that didn’t finish with the Braves is pretty amazing.
While the Braves will open the 2022 season without Freddie Freeman after 12 years, you must remember that:
- The 1975 season saw Hank Aaron playing for the Brewers;
- In 1984 Phil Niekro was wearing the pinstripes of the Yankees (that still makes me gag);
- The 1976 season saw Dusty Baker (the next Hank Aaron) playing for the Dodgers;
– During the 1990 season Dale Murphy went from being a Brave to a member of the Phillies;
- Greg Maddux who started as a Cub, but was dominant as a Brave, became a Cub again in 2004;
- In 2009 John Smoltz was wearing a Boston Red Sox Uniform and in 2003 Tom Glavine became a New York Met.
I’m about to lay a trivia question on you that will be hard for even the longest diehard Atlanta Braves fan to answer correctly without doing a little research.
Since the Braves moved South from Milwaukee to Atlanta in 1966 there have only been three players who have been a member of the Braves for at least 10 years and never played a Major League game for another team.
One played for 19 years as a Brave and a Brave alone, another for 12 years, and a third for 10. Who are they?
Chipper Jones is obviously the one who played 19 years, but the other two are a little more surprising.
Here’s a hint: both were catchers.
Brian McCann? No.
Javy Lopez? No.
Greg Olson? No.
Here’s another hint: The one who played for 12 seasons later became an SEC basketball referee.
Give Up? It is none other than Bruuuuuuuuuucccee Benedict.
Some of you may have gotten that one, but this next one is going to be even tougher.
Here’s a Hint: He was a switch-hitter.
Here’s another Hint: You might hear his first name occasionally in the “Back To The Future” movies.
Give Up again? It’s the one and only Biff Pocoroba.
So you see, it’s really not that odd that a player doesn’t play his entire career for the same team.
The Braves have some wonderful young players with Austin Riley, Ronald Acuna, Jr., Ian Anderson, Ozzie Albies, Max Fried, and Dansby Swanson being among them.
If they play the remainder of their contracts out in Atlanta, Acuna and Albies will both reach the 12-year mark as a Brave. Both would be 32-years-old, the same age as Freddie Freeman.
Riley becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2026, Fried in 2025, Anderson in 2027, and Swanson at the end of this season.
And here’s the truth; I would love for all of them to finish their careers as Atlanta Braves.
And here’s the hardest truth; None of them likely will. It’s just not the way it is.
So, let’s enjoy our young Braves, let’s enjoy our new addition in Matt Olson, let’s celebrate the 2021 World Series Champions, and let’s go win some more rings!
Austin Bishop, AKA The Old Sports Dude, has been covering high school, college, amateur, and professional sports since 1975. He is currently pastor of Great Commission Assembly of God in Philadelphia, Miss. He may be contacted by email at starsportsboss@yahoo.com or by phone at 601-938-2471.
