Each MLB team’s best season ever

Atlanta Braves: 1995

In their long history that dates back to the 1800s, the Atlanta Braves have one three World Series titles — one for each city they have played in. The Boston Braves won the title in 1914, the Milwaukee Braves were the last team standing in 1957 and the Atlanta iteration of the franchise took it home in 1995.

Of those three World Series titles, let’s consider the 1995 team as the nomination for the best season in Braves history because it marked the culmination of years of near misses for the Hall of Fame trio of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. This was one of Maddux’s best seasons, as he went 19-2 with a 1.63 ERA with 10 complete games and three shutouts. The right-hander won his fourth NL Cy Young in a row. Glavine and Smoltz combined for a 28-14 record.

Offensively, the Braves were a hit-or-miss team with a ton of power to go around. They were ninth in the NL in runs scored, but were second in home runs and fourth in slugging percentage. But with a pitching staff that featured three Hall of Famers, the Braves didn’t need to score six runs a night. All-Star Fred McGriff paced the team with 27 home runs and 91 RBI in the strike-shortened season. If there’s one player in MLB history hurt most by the strike, it’s McGriff, who finished seven home runs short of 500.

The 1995 season was also notable for the Braves because it was the first full season for Chipper Jones, who should be joining Maddux, Glavine and Smoltz in the Hall of Fame this summer. Jones hit 23 home runs and drove in 86 to finish second in the Rookie of the Year vote.

The Braves took down the Cleveland Indians in a World Series where every game but one was decided by one run. To the players and fans alike, this championship had to feel the the seal being finally cracked after years of getting close to winning it all, but the Braves never won another World Series with their 1990s core, running into the Yankees dynasty.