Atlanta Braves Players Are A Big Part of All-Star Game History

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The Atlanta Braves are sending a franchise record eight players to the 93rd All-Star game in Seattle, putting them in a tie for the National League Record. Since the leagues created the All-Star Game in 1933, 116 Atlanta Braves Franchise players combined for 254 All-Star selections.

Atlanta Braves Legend Henry Aaron

Ronald Acuña Jr, Ozzie Albies, and Austin Riley lead the current roster with two ASG selections. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Henry Aaron holds the franchise record; 20 of his 21 selections came as a Brave.

Aaron also holds the Major League record for appearances with 25 and starts in right field with 14. He’d have six more in right, except for some guy named Roberto Clemente, who won the vote seven times. Aaron also started a game in center, left, and at first base. His 17 starts are second only to Willie Mays (18.)

Berger and Murphy

Willie Mays holds the record for starts in center field (18), Andre Dawson is in second place with five starts in center, while Braves Dale Murphy and Wally Berger share third place with Stan Musial at three each.

Berger was the best NL center fielder in the early 30s and the only Brave to start the first All-Star Game in 1933. Berger would go on to start in 1934 and 1935 and was selected but didn’t play in 1936.

After two seasons when Dale Murphy won NL MVP honors by Dawson started in center in the ASG, Murphy grabbed the 1884 center field job and held it through 1986.

Braves Pitching

Altogether, 30 pitchers earned 54 selections to the All-Star team as a Brave. Fred Frankhouse earned his first and only All-Star nod in 1934, becoming the first Boston Braves pitcher to earn the honor.

Hall of Famer Warren Spahn holds the Major League record with 17 All-Star selections as a pitcher, four ahead of Mariano Rivera and five more than Tom Seaver.

Spahn and Greg Maddux each made three starts, the most in Atlanta Braves history. They are with Max Scherzer for third in NL history, behind Don Drysdale and Robin Roberts, with five starts each.

Pitching Notables

Tom Glavine made two starts in his eight ASG selections, Maddux’ was selected six times, and John Smoltz made one start in his five selections.

Craig Kimbrel made for appearances as a Braves, Phil Niekro appeared three times, while Al Javery, Johnny Sain, and Julio Teheran earned two selections each.

Atlanta Braves catcher Del Crandall started eight All-Star Games, good for second all-time in the National League. / Transcendental Graphics/GettyImages

Braves Catchers

Del Crandall was the first Brave to start an All-Star game in 1955. After a two-year break, Crandall started the 1958 ASG and both ASGs in 1959, 1960, and 1962. His eight starts put him third on the list behind Johnny Bench and Mike Piazza, who share the lead with 10 each.

Brian McCann earned seven ASG nods, became the second Braves to win the All-Star Game MVP at the 2010 game, and started the game in 2011.

Javy López earned three selections but never started a game, and somehow, Johnny Estrada was the only Atlanta Braves on the 2004 All-Star squad.

Around the Horn

Freddie Freeman holds the Braves record for All-Star game selections with three. Joe Adcock and Fred McGriff were selected twice, and McGriff won the first All-Star Game MVP in 1994 when his pinch-hit two-run home tied the game in the bottom of the ninth.

Ozzie Albies is the franchise leader at second base, followed by Frank Bolling with two and nine others with one.

Eddie Mathews’ seven ASG starts is a franchise record and tie him with Mike Schmidt for most starts at third for the NL.

Chipper Jones’ five starts are second among Braves, but Austin Riley is coming up in his read view mirror. Jones is tied for third in the NL with David Wright, one start behind Ken Boyer.

Johnny Logan was selected for four All-Star Games but played at the same time as Ernie Banks and didn’t start any of the games.

Jeff Blauser and Rafael Furcal earned two selections at shortstop, but only Blauser made a start.

Braves on Other All-Time Lists

In 1961, Warren Spahn became the fourth pitcher to throw three All-Star Game innings with a 0.00 WHIP.

Jim Bunning was the first in 1957, Billy Odell duplicated Bunning’s feat in 1958, and Don Drysdale followed suit in 1959. Bunning repeated the feat in the second 1961.

Lew (Lou) Burdette was the third pitcher to throw four scoreless innings in an All-Star Game (1957), behind Spud Chandler (1942) and Johnny Antonelli the second in 1956.

That’s a Wrap

I wondered why Boston Braves right fielder Randy Moore didn’t get a nod in 1933, then I saw that Chuck Klein was on his way to winning the NL triple-crown.

It’s harder to understand why Andruw Jones earned only four All-Star selections and never started a game. But that’s all water under the bridge; this year, the Atlanta Braves for 25% of the squad, it’s time for the NL to get off its gluteus maximus and win the game!

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