Fathead Blog

By Steven Haar

It’s the middle of August and the Atlanta Braves are 12 games out of first in their division. 14.5 game back from the lead for the wild card. The season is looking like a disappointment for fans. The Braves were once a dominating force in the division. Year after year the team took the pennant. However, as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. The Braves have been “rebuilding” now since the end of their 14-year division champion streak. At the start of the season, there was some hope that this year’s team could reach the pinnacle of their division again.  So what has happened to bring the team to their current position?

Injuries. Fans have been hearing about them all season long.  The pitching roster is missing all the big names that gave fan’s hope at the beginning of the season. Smoltz, Hudson and Glavine are all on the IR. Fan-favorite Chipper Jones has also been on and off the IR this year, much like years past. The injury bug is one the Braves can’t seem to shake. The rash of injuries to star players may just be attributed to the aging roster. Smoltz and Glavine are both over 40, Jones and Hudson in their mid 30’s. Meanwhile the young stars, McCann and Francoeur have yet to see the IR this season.

Even though the Braves have not reclaimed the division banner in the last few seasons, they still draw legions of loyal fans to every game.   “America’s Team,” as they were once called, averages over 31,000 fans a game. The Braves fill the stands with tommahawk choppin’ fans night in and night out. Fans who come to see the hometown favorite Francoeur belt another homer or to cheer as long time manager Bobby Cox storms out of the dugout to argue a call and be ejected from another game.

No matter what, we the fans are here to stay.  Still, it would be nice if the Braves got back on track and rebuilt their rock solid franchise that we all remember from the ’90s!