Remembering the 1993 Atlanta Braves race to the playoffs
The Last Week
Timing is everything. Atlanta had an off-day on the 27th of September and then lost the opener of a series against Houston the next day. That, combined with Giant wins on both dates brought the two teams back together in a tie for first place after the 28th.
Five games remained on the regular season schedule. Atlanta had 2 more against Houston before hosting the Rockies; the Giants had one more against the same Colorado squad before having to travel to Dodger stadium for four games.
In the end, it’s hard to suggest which opponent had the upper hand. On the 29th, the Giants fell to the Rockies while Atlanta beat Houston… giving the Braves a temporary 1-game lead.
That was reversed on the 30th when Atlanta lost the final game against Houston 10-8 when a 3-run 9th inning comeback fell short. In Los Angeles, the Giants held on for a 3-1 victory that was helped out by 3 Dodger errors and 2 unearned runs.
3 games left… Braves and Giants all tied at 101 wins apiece.
October 1st and 2nd saw close wins for the Giants, leading to the possibility of a 4-game road sweep over their arch-rivals. Back in Atlanta, the Braves were taking care of business against an expansion Rockies team that was simply over-matched by the Braves in 7-4 and 10-1 outcomes.
Game 162 might have had more drama for two division leaders with 103 wins going in, but two factors were at work:
- The Giants-Dodgers game started just after the Braves-Rockies game ended.
- The Dodgers were having none of this drama thing.
The Braves jumped out to a 4-0 lead early and cruised to a 5-3 win with contributions from all over the lineup as Tom Glavine won his 22nd game of the year. It was a season sweep of the Rockies: Atlanta won all 13 games against them that year…. but none more important than this last one.
That win allowed the team to relax and watch the contest out West … which quickly turned to the Georgian’s favor.
The Dodgers scored twice in the third inning, once in the 4th, and when San Fran managed to post a tally in the 5th, LA responded with 3 more in the bottom of that frame. It was 6-1 and Kevin Gross was shutting down their fellow Californians.
The Dodgers continued to add runs until the final read 12-1. That loss, coupled with the Braves victory, gave Atlanta the division title and sent the second-best team in baseball home — without a playoff berth.
Fast-forward to 2022
The Braves have put themselves into a precarious position, though it’s not entirely without remedy. To win the NL East, they almost certainly must sweep the Mets this weekend.
Any other scenario requires help from the Nationals early next week.
If they pull this off, Atlanta would end the weekend with 100 wins and create a very similar scenario to that from 1993… except that both they and the Mets will be playing on after the regular season ends.
Nonetheless, it would be another epic comeback — in this case a deficit of 10.5 games — being overcome to win a division.
The trick is that this time, there is no margin for error whatsoever. This offense must get itself ready to score against some of the toughest pitching in the National League… and that could even include Sandy Alacantara next week.
Next. Just put him anywhere in the lineup. dark
Let’s all watch together and see if more history can be made this weekend.