Atlanta Braves: The 2018 Atlanta Braves feel different
The 2018 Atlanta Braves have made it back to the postseason. The feeling is different than with old Braves playoff teams, though.
I am 29 years old and have been an Atlanta Braves fan for as long as I can remember. If you are around this age, then, like me, you grew up spoiled with winning.
The National League East felt like something of a birthright, you knew that you would watch the Braves on TBS all spring and summer and that in October playoffs were coming. I personally just got so used to it that it made me as a fan complacent.
I felt there was no need to watch because the playoffs were coming. Something changed as each postseason got tougher to watch, though.
I remember as a kid in the early 2000’s losing to the St Louis Cardinals, then the Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, and those Houston Astros. The frustration just built, and I look back and think the players even felt the burden.
The Atlanta Braves missed our window, then it was time for the Phillies who had their run. Lately, it has been the Washington Nationals who still have not won a playoff series and will not win one this year (had to throw a cheap shot).
These last few years have been brutal, losing fan favorites, watching loss after loss and at times it felt like it may not be worth it. We heard about all of these prospects, but with Dansby Swanson not being the superstar that some mistakenly thought he would be, it felt like maybe it was not worth it.
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Maybe we should have kept Justin Upton and Craig Kimbrel, and fans watching Alex Wood blossom for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Andrelton Simmons become an all-around player for the Angels felt like a punch to the gut. The vaunted farm system took a hit from MLB and this year felt over before it even started.
NO ONE gave this team a chance. I only bet $5 on them to win the National League East at 25/1 odds, and now I wish I had bet more.
What I love most about this team vs. those past years is that this team has energy, swagger, and they genuinely seem to enjoy each other. I loved Chipper Jones, Tom Glavine, Javy Lopez, and Andruw Jones, but when you see how this team rallies, pumps their chest, and pimps their home runs you feel they have that “it” factor.
Next. 2018 Braves minors review: Outfield. dark
Let’s enjoy this, Atlanta Braves fans. This team is nothing like the past. but the East title is back home that is only step one. This time let’s not just accept going to the playoffs; lets win the whole thing a few times!