Guessing obscure Atlanta Braves players from the past: 2000s Edition
We wanted to create something along the lines of the popular game ‘Immaculate Grid’ related to Braves baseball only. Read the hints and see how many it takes to guess the player!
The daily trivia game ‘Immaculate Grid’ has been a fun and exciting challenge for baseball fans. We wanted to create something similar related to the Atlanta Braves. Welcome to House That Hank Built’s new series: Guess Who! (Braves Edition).
We will give you five hints at a random player that donned an Atlanta Braves jersey and see if you can guess from there! Have fun and no cheating!
Hint #1: This former Braves player had a 7 year MLB career. He spent six seasons with the Atlanta Braves and 1 season with the San Diego Padres.
Hint #2: This player was a one-time All-Star in 2003. He finished 18th in the National League’s Most Valuable Player voting in 2003 and 26th in 2005.
Any ideas on who this player might be? Click next for more hints.
Who could it be? Any Braves players come to mind yet?
Hint #3: This player had two seasons in which his batting average was above .300. In his 2003 all-star season, he hit .316. He followed this up with a .311 batting average the very next season in 2004.
Hint #4: This player had a brother who was a 2X All-Star across a 15-year career from 1995-2009. His brother spent 7 seasons with the San Diego Padres, 5 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and 4 seasons with the Cleveland Guardians organization.
Hint #5: It appeared that this player had a thing for the number two. He wore number 22 in his time with the Atlanta Braves, he played second base and typically hit second in the Braves batting order.
Answer: Marcus Giles
Marcus Giles was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 53rd round of the 1996 MLB draft. He is the younger brother of Brian Giles who was referenced in hint #4. Giles made his MLB debut on April 17th, 2001 at the age of 22.
Brian Giles was a great player for the Indians, Pirates, and Padres. Marcus didn't fall far from the talent tree as he was a great infielder for Atlanta. He completed 6 seasons with the Braves and was named an All-Star in one of those seasons (2003).
During those 6 years with Atlanta, he had a career slash line of .285/.361/.448 with a .805 OPS and 108 OPS+. He collected 717 hits including 72 home runs and 294 RBI. Marcus also stole a total of 60 bases and walked 274 times.
Giles was non-tendered by the Braves after the 2006 season and ended up playing for his hometown team, the Padres, in 2007 alongside Brian. His MLB career basically ended after an underwhelming season in San Diego where he batted .229 through 116 games and was released by the team.
He signed minor league deals with the Rockies (2008) and Phillies (2009) but couldn't find the success he had in Atlanta again.