Atlanta Braves Throwback Thursday Special: the Hot Corner

Vinny Castilla

This is the third installment of our run through the fifty years of baseball in Atlanta (1966-2015) by going position by position to remember many of those who have played the game for our enjoyment as Braves fans.  For your review:

• First basemen
• Second basemen

Thus, this brings us round to the Hot Corner – third base.

In doing the research for these, I am still blown away by the sheer number of players that are required to keep a ballclub on the field.  For example, we will obviously think of Chipper Jones being the most prominent at the position from 1995 to 2012.  Our memories tend to fade in this era because that was the Era of Stability for third base… it’s the only name we need to remember, right?

You might be surprised that there are at least 28 players credited with having played some third base over those years alone.  In fact, on a year-by-year basis it’s typical to at least 3 names per season that are penciled in to play the position… and it matters not whether this was during the Jones year or not!  Here in 2015?  We already have four.

We won’t dig that deep here, but let’s review the most memorable third basemen of the Atlanta Braves.

Eddie Mathews as a Milwaukee Brave

1966.  Eddie Mathews

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It’s never a bad thing to start with a Hall of Famer. Mathews is the only player whose career spanned all three Braves cities over the franchises history as his first playing year was in Boston (1952), the majority of his career was spent in Milwaukee (1953-1965), and he got one year in Atlanta (1966) before bouncing around for a couple more seasons elsewhere.

Mathews was a nine-time All-Star, which actually beasts Chipper Jones by one.  What he missed was the MVP trophy, finishing second on two occasions:  1953 (to Roy Campanella) and 1959 (to Ernie Banks).  You could easily make the argument that Mathews was jobbed by the ‘Eastern bias card’ in 1953, as his numbers easily beat Campanella.

SI First Issue Cover. Aug 18 1954

Mathews’ lone Atlanta year was not spectacular, but still good – 2.7 WAR for the then 34-year-old.  16 homers, which brought him to 499 (or an eventual 512) for his career.  Yet that was half the production of the year before (5.4 WAR) and signaled that his inevitable performance decline was in progress.

In addition to his HOF career as a player, Mathews managed the Braves over roughly 2 season – split from 1972-74 – for a combined 149-161 record. In terms of fWAR alone, he ranks 3rd all-time behind Mike Schmidt and some guy called ‘A-Rod’.

Oh:  how big was Eddie Mathews?  That’s him hitting in Milwaukee on the cover of the very first issue of Sports Illustrated:  August 18, 1954.

1969-1975.  Darrell Evans

Evans enjoyed a long career in the majors covering 21 seasons from 1969-1989, including 107 games returning to the Braves for that last 1989 season.

He wasn’t spectacular, but was steady for a long time – and that added up.  Evans was the prototypical average-fielding big hitting 3B guy.  Over one two-year stretch, though, he was awesome:  9.7 and 6.8 WAR in 1973-74.  In 1973, he busted out with 41 homers as part of the trio of teammates to hit 40 in a single year.  He made the All-Star roster that year, and again in 1983 – over the gap of a full decade.

Evans got some consideration for MVP in those years, plus again in 1987 and 1989 as his home run prowess got another boost … starting at age 36 in 1983, peaking again with 40 homers in 1985.  Evans hit a total of 414 dingers in his career among 3 clubs:  the Braves, Giants, and Tigers.

Wanna know just how good Evans was? On that “all-time” chart that placed Mathews 3rd… Darrell Evan is 17th.  Miguel Cabrera will pass him this season, but then Miggy isn’t a 3B so much any more.  Evan is also 3 slots better than Tony Perez – who is in the Hall of Fame.

1978-85.  Bob Horner

The first superstar third-baseman of the Superstation era in Atlanta.  While Ted Turner started broadcasting Braves games on WTCG-17 in 1973, many changes were still to come.  In 1976, Turner bought the Braves outright (and the Hawks), and in 1978 re-christened his station as WTBS.  The satellite broadcasts via cable began in 1976, and suddenly a phenomenon was born.

This was now America’s Team, and names like Bob Horner, Dale Murphy, Phil Niekro, Glenn Hubbard, and Bruce Benedict became known across the country.

Horner’s career was relatively short: his glove often betrayed him (never mind his range) and once his big bat began to go, that left little reason to keep him on the roster.  Even the Braves ended up using him at first base more often than not over the 1985-86 season.  In fact, his memorable 4-homer outburst in 1986 came while he was on the other side of the diamond.

Jun 28, 2013; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves former third baseman Chipper Jones (10) talks to a reporter before his jersey retirement ceremony before a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

1995-2012.  Chipper Jones

We will certainly remember Chipper as THE Holder Of The Position for his entire career, but as with most of the other names we’re recalling here, such was not quite the case, as he volunteered to fill a hole in Left Field in 2002-03, plus various injuries sidelined him – more so in later years, of course.

Those absences from third allowed us to be introduced to players like Vinny Castilla, Mark DeRosa, Wilson Betemit, and Martin Prado.  Even Brooks Conrad.

The Braves selected Chipper #1 in 1990… first overall… and his Hall Of Fame career was clearly the correct choice (over Todd Van Poppel).  He is the 6th overall most productive third baseman of all time, and that looks even better when you factor in his prowess at switch-hitting.  468 homers ranks third all-time for the Braves franchise, behind Mathews and some guy named Aaron, though Chipper owns the distinction of hitting the most in Atlanta over the 50 years we are looking at.

Ever a character, ever willing to offer an opinion, Chipper Jones will have a very interesting speech to make in 2017.

AP Photo, http://www2.ljworld.com/photos/2003/sep/11/

The Cast of Characters

As suggested earlier, the Atlanta Braves have certainly had their share – and then some – of stop-gap or temporary third basemen.  Here are several more names of folks who have contributed significantly enough for a shout-out:

• 1967 Mike de la Hoz
• 1967-71 Clete Boyer
• 1976*-77,79 Jerry Royster
• 1985-88 Ken Oberkfell
• 1989  Ron Gant and Jeff Blauser
• 1990 Mark Lemke
• 2002-2003 Vinny Castilla
• 2004 Mark DeRosa
• 2005-06 Wilson Betemit
• 2006-2010, Martin Prado
• 2010 Brooks Conrad
• 2012-13 Juan Francisco
• 2013-2015 Chris Johnson

Catchers who also played some at third:  Earl Williams, Biff Pocoroba, Ted Simmons.

Thanks for walking down this list with me – it’s fun to do and to share as we continue to review 50 years of baseball in Atlanta.

Next: Too Much of a Good Thing?