House That Hank Built
Fansided

Atlanta Braves history: top five franchise first basemen

By Fred Owens

ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 07: Freddie Freeman #5 of the Atlanta Braves reacts after hitting a solo home run in the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during Game Three of the National League Division Series at SunTrust Park on October 7, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 07: Freddie Freeman #5 of the Atlanta Braves reacts after hitting a solo home run in the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during Game Three of the National League Division Series at SunTrust Park on October 7, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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Atlanta Braves
From 1993 through 1997, Fred McGriff provided consistent run production for the Atlanta Braves. Mandatory Credit: Rick Stewart /

Number three – Crime Dog

On July 18, 1993, Atlanta Braves GM John Schuerholz picked the pocket of the San Diego Padres when he sent Vince Moore, Donnie Elliott, and Melvin Nieves and brought Fred McGriff to Atlanta.

Moore never played higher than AA and left affiliated ball in 1996,  Elliot appeared in 30 games for the Padres during 1994 and one appearance in 1995. Nieves had a short, forgettable Major League career as a bench player.

The pressbox caught fire the night McGriff arrived; so did the Braves rallying from five runs down to beat the Cardinals 8-5. They went on to go 51-18 over the rest of the season and finished 104-58 winning the NL West by one game over the Giants.

McGriff smack 19 homers, and 18 doubles drove in 55 runs and batted .310/.392/.612/1.004 with a 165 ERA+ in that stretch worth a .431 wOBA,162 wRC+, and 3.1 fWAR

The Braves lost the NLCS  to the Phillies in six games, but that wasn’t McGriff’s fault as he batted .435/.519/.696/.1.214 with a homer and four RBI.

McGriff played every game in 1995, and his postseason numbers were as good as it gets.

BA OBP SLG OPS
1995 NLDS .333 .400 .667 1.067
1995 NLCS .438 .526 .688 1.214
1995 WS .261 .346 .609 .955
Total .333 .415 .649 1.065

He repeated his postseason heroics in 1996 and left the Braves as a free agent following the 1997 season after batting .293/.369/.516/.885, with a 128 OPS+ with 12 rWAR and  13.3 fWAR

His Atlanta Braves plus stat line (AVG+OBP+SLG+) reads 108/108/122 with 129 wRC+ and a .380 wOBA.

Somehow McGriff isn’t yet in the Hall of Fame, and that’s just silly.

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