I'm ranking all 30 of the MLB teams in order of how much I like them at this moment in time. As with most countdowns, I'm starting with the worst (Cardinals) and I'll eventually end up with the best (Reds). The real question now is, where will the other MLB teams land in my countdown?
In my last 30 Teams in 30 Posts feature, I talked about the Chicago Cubs and placed them in the #25 slot. Today, we return with another team from my youth (the other "Super Station" team of the 90s).
#24: Atlanta Braves
When I decided to put an actual ranking of all 30 MLB teams down on paper, the exercise proved to be fairly difficult. In the end, if I couldn't immediately decide between two teams I went with the team that I would root for in a playoff game between the two. In the case of the Cubs and Braves, the Braves eeked by the Cubs thanks to my tie-breaking idea.
Truth be told, if you had asked me to rank the Braves about twenty years ago, they would have easily been in my bottom three.
Back when the Braves had all the pitching, I couldn't help but notice how it seemed like their pitchers also got ALL the calls. For much of the 90s, it sure felt like Atlanta pitchers got an extra two or three inches off the plate called strikes when no one else did. As a Reds fan who had very limited chances to see the Reds play on TV, watching my team get shafted by the umpire game in and game out was super frustrating to me!
Side note: If you remember the old TBS Braves games, take a few minutes to watch some of this game. I had instant flashbacks as soon as the game started (plus the end of the game is pretty fun)!
Time does heal wounds though and now the Braves are one of the teams that are slowly working their way back up my rankings. The current iteration of the team doesn't seem nearly as objectionable to me - and I'll definitely root for the Braves over the likes of the Nationals. That said, I still like the rest of the NL East better than Atlanta, though at least one of the remaining teams in the East is rapidly falling down my list so there's a chance if I revisit this exercise in a few years that the Braves might end up a bit higher in my rankings!
My list of favorite MLB teams (from worst to first):
#30: St. Louis Cardinals (post)
#29: New York Yankees (post)
#28: San Francisco Giants (post)
#27: Washington Nationals (post)
#26: Boston Red Sox (post)
#25: Chicago Cubs (post)
#24: Atlanta Braves
to be continued...
In my last 30 Teams in 30 Posts feature, I talked about the Chicago Cubs and placed them in the #25 slot. Today, we return with another team from my youth (the other "Super Station" team of the 90s).
#24: Atlanta Braves
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| Image source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFZsYRGDcE0 |
When I decided to put an actual ranking of all 30 MLB teams down on paper, the exercise proved to be fairly difficult. In the end, if I couldn't immediately decide between two teams I went with the team that I would root for in a playoff game between the two. In the case of the Cubs and Braves, the Braves eeked by the Cubs thanks to my tie-breaking idea.
Truth be told, if you had asked me to rank the Braves about twenty years ago, they would have easily been in my bottom three.
Back when the Braves had all the pitching, I couldn't help but notice how it seemed like their pitchers also got ALL the calls. For much of the 90s, it sure felt like Atlanta pitchers got an extra two or three inches off the plate called strikes when no one else did. As a Reds fan who had very limited chances to see the Reds play on TV, watching my team get shafted by the umpire game in and game out was super frustrating to me!
Side note: If you remember the old TBS Braves games, take a few minutes to watch some of this game. I had instant flashbacks as soon as the game started (plus the end of the game is pretty fun)!
Time does heal wounds though and now the Braves are one of the teams that are slowly working their way back up my rankings. The current iteration of the team doesn't seem nearly as objectionable to me - and I'll definitely root for the Braves over the likes of the Nationals. That said, I still like the rest of the NL East better than Atlanta, though at least one of the remaining teams in the East is rapidly falling down my list so there's a chance if I revisit this exercise in a few years that the Braves might end up a bit higher in my rankings!
My list of favorite MLB teams (from worst to first):
#30: St. Louis Cardinals (post)
#29: New York Yankees (post)
#28: San Francisco Giants (post)
#27: Washington Nationals (post)
#26: Boston Red Sox (post)
#25: Chicago Cubs (post)
#24: Atlanta Braves
to be continued...
I watched a lot of games on TBS when I was in college. It's the main reason I started collecting Maddux. And although I'd never claim to be a fan, I have no problem seeing them succeed.
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