House That Hank Built
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4 more Atlanta Braves trades gone wrong

By Josh Mathews

PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 07: Hector Olivera #28 of the Atlanta Braves fields a ground ball in the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on September 7, 2015 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Braves won 7-2. (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 07: Hector Olivera #28 of the Atlanta Braves fields a ground ball in the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on September 7, 2015 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Braves won 7-2. (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images) /
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Atlanta Braves
2 Jul 1997: Outfielder Kenny Lofton of the Atlanta Braves looks on during an interleague game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York City, New York. The Braves won the game 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Al Bello /Allsport /

March 25, 1997:  Kenny Lofton

Kenny Lofton traded by the Cleveland Indians with Alan Embree to the Atlanta Braves for Marquis Grissom and David Justice.

What we got: 

Kenny Lofton was perhaps one of the most electrifying players in the league due to his contact hitting and speed. Lofton had made three consecutive All-Star games with the Indians, then made it with the Atlanta Braves as well in 1997.

What the Braves weren’t counting on is hampering groin injury. The centerfielder hit .333, but saw his lowest stolen base output (27) when he had stole no fewer than 54 bases in the five years prior, leading the league each season.

He was also caught stealing a league-leading 20 times. The Atlanta Braves let him walk after the season and he returned to Cleveland on a 4 year, 30 million dollar deal that offseason.

Alan Embree was effective during the 1997 season for the Atlanta Braves. The lefty made 66 appearances to the tune of a 2.54 ERA. In 1998, he had a 4.34 ERA over 20 appearances and was traded for another reliever – Russ Springer – that year.

What we gave up: 

David Justice was a World Series hero for his solo home run in game 6 that gave Tom Glavine all he needed to bring a title home to Atlanta.

However, after his 40 home run season in 1993 and a good first half in 1994, he never produced at quite the same rate.

After a shoulder injury required surgery in 1996, causing him to miss most of the season, he was dealt.

In the second half of his career, Justice basically doubled the numbers that he put up with the Atlanta Braves. He hit 160 home runs and drove in 522 runs with a Tomahawk across his chest, and finished his career with 305 home runs and 1,017 RBI.

Marquis Grissom is famed in Braves history for catching the final out in the World Series win.

In 1996, he had a career year, hitting .308 with 10 triples, 24 home runs, 74 RBI and 28 stolen bases.

After the trade, Grissom was very consistent. He produced seasons around his career average until his age 37 season. Grissom was typically good for a .275 batting average, somewhere around 15-18 homers and 65-70 RBI to go with 20 or more steals.

Analysis:

The Atlanta Braves gave up plenty of production in this deal. My guess is that since ‘Lofton for Grissom’ wasn’t a level trade straight up, they asked for Justice too. Since Justice probably wasn’t a sure thing after shoulder surgery, they agreed, and also got Embree.

I can only hope this was the logic involved. For whatever reason, the Braves have had a penchant for trading good players for players that were also good, but the front office seemingly had no intentions of resigning them.

Of course, Andruw Jones saved the day here. He manned center field for the Bravos for 12 years, hitting 368 home runs and winning 10 gold gloves.

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