Atlanta Braves Opening Day countdown: 43, quartet

Cito

Before he became a Hall of Fame caliber manager, Cito Gaston was an outfielder for many seasons that even made an All-Star team in 1970.

Originally signed by the Milwaukee Braves, Gaston got a taste of the majors in 1967 with Atlanta, but the Braves left him exposed that offseason in the expansion draft. He was selected by the San Diego Padres, and that would turn out to be a significant benefit to Gaston.

He would play six seasons with San Diego. He struggled to stay healthy in San Diego, but over 6 seasons, he had some very good seasons when he was healthy, including by far his best season in 1970, when he made the National League All-Star team. He finished the 1970 season with a .318/.364/.543 line, 29 home runs, and 93 RBI.

After a disastrous 1974 season, Gaston had fallen out of favor as a starting outfielder in San Diego, and the Atlanta Braves acquired the outfielder in trade. He would spend the majority of the next four seasons with the Braves as the team’s primary backup outfielder and pinch-hitter.

In total, Gaston’s Braves career encompassed 258 games and 550 plate appearances. Over that time, he hit .250/.300/.364 with 14 home runs.

Of course, Gaston would come back to bite his former team, as Gaston’s Toronto Blue Jays would win the first of back-to-back World Series championships in 1992 over the Atlanta Braves. Gaston finished his managerial career, all with the Blue Jays, with 894 wins in 12 seasons, despite never winning 100 games in any season.