The Atlanta Braves have had many legends over the years, and these legends often become synonymous with a single uniform, whether it be Hank Aaron's 715 homer and the royal and red pullover jerseys, or Chipper Jones and the red tomahawk.
However, the Braves have had many jerseys throughout the years, from full rebrands to iterations of alternate jerseys. Sometimes, these uniform changes just happen to coincide with a legend's first or final season with the team.
Here are six times where Atlanta Braves icons happened to wear a jersey from the wrong era for one season.
Atlanta Braves pitchers wearing the wrong jersey
Tom Glavine and John Smoltz in the navy away alternates (2008)
For nearly their entire Braves career, the Braves had no alternate away jersey. So for twenty years, every start that Tom Glavine and John Smoltz made on the road were in the team's grey jerseys and red brimmed hats.
In 2008, Tom Glavine re-signed with the Braves, and the team introduced their all navy cap and all navy jerseys. This year would be both Glavine and Smoltz's final season in a Braves uniform.
Smoltz only appeared in three games on the road that season, wearing the navy jersey in two of those games, while Glavine appeared in seven road games, wearing the navy alternate in only a handful of games (I could only verify two of the seven games).
Phil Nierko and the current triple piping, red tomahawk home white (1987)
The knuckleball legend pitched 740 games and over 4600 innings for the Braves franchise, but Phil Niekro only wore what has now become the iconic Braves jersey for three innings.
When Niekro first debuted with the Milwaukee Braves in 1964, the tomahawks had already been phased out for two seasons. When the Braves moved to Atlanta, they kept the jerseys they were wearing for a few seasons, before switching to the navy pinstripes, and then eventually to the royal and red feather pullovers that became synonymous with Hank Aaron.
Niekro would go on to wear the various other takes of the Braves royal and red schemes, but left the team after 1983.
In 1987, the Braves introduced the current set, which is more or less what the team wears now (with a few changes)
After an unsuccessful few weeks with the Blue Jays, Niekro was released, and a few weeks after that, the Braves signed him to have his farewell game, where he wore the red tomahawk for the only time in game.
Here's a bonus shot of him in the team's navy batting practice jersey.
