Who's on the Atlanta Braves Mount Rushmore?
The Braves franchise has had a lot of great players. From the former home run king to some of the greatest pitchers to ever take the mound. In its 152-year history, the 46 Hall-of-Famers have played for the franchise.
Some, like Bruce Sutter or Gaylord Perry, only had brief stints with the team en route to Cooperstown, but others played their entire career with the team.
Of every player to ever put on a Braves uniform, which four would be represented on the Braves Mount Rushmore? Is it the greatest Braves of all time? Is it simply the Braves who had the biggest influence on the team? Our list weighs both.
Honorable Mentions
Freddie Freeman
In an alternate universe, where the 2021-2022 offseason played out differently, the Braves' former 1B would easily find himself on the Braves' Mount Rushmore in a year or two. Instead, his incredible 12-year stint with the team leaves him behind other Braves' greats.
Andruw Jones
The only Brave in franchise history to eclipse 50 homers in a season (although this sentence will probably be inaccurate in about forty days), Jones was much better known for his glove. Unfortunately, the 10-time Gold Glove winner's career had a drastic downturn after he left Atlanta, and his time with the Braves did not last nearly as long as some other great Braves.
Tom Glavine
The 17-year Brave is a tough omit from the four-headed monument. Not only did he pitch eight-shutout innings on the Braves World Series clincher in 1995, he also won two Cy Young Awards and was a 10-time All-Star. His greatest flaw is simply the greatness and influence of other Braves.
John Smoltz
It's tough to omit the Braves' all-time strikeout leader, but, like his former rotation mate, there are other Braves who simply had greater success, greater, influence, or both. Smoltz spent 20 seasons with the Braves.
Phil Niekro
Niekro's playing career with the Braves was so extensive, that he not only played two seasons with the Milwaukee Braves, he was also teammates with Tom Glavine, who wasn't even alive when the Braves moved to Atlanta. The knuckleballer's longevity was his calling card. Despite only making five All-Star Games and never winning a Cy Young, he has the 11th-highest bWAR among pitchers in MLB history.
Eddie Mathews
Eddie Mathews is likely the best 3B in Braves history. In 15 seasons, he hit 493 homers and put up 94 bWAR with the Braves. He's also the only player in history to play for the team in Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta. Despite this, a different Braves' 3B is on the team's Mount Rushmore.
Greg Maddux
Maddux is often in the discussion for the greatest pitcher of all time but he doesn't quite make the cut for the Braves' Mount Rushmore. Despite the bulk of his dominant years with the Braves, Maddux played less than half his career with Atlanta.