#1 DALE MURPHY

AND THE #1

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

IS....DALE MURPHY

ATLANTA BRAVES 1976-1990

An easy choice for the Braves player of the decade and my all-time favorite Brave. Two-time MVP, multi-gold glove winner, 398 Home Runs and two many big hits to recount all of them here.

September 8, 1982 The Dodgers at the Braves with the Dodgers 1/2 game ahead in the standings. A wild affair in which neither L. A. starter Bob Welch or Phil Niekro has very much. Dale Murphy clubs a three-run homer to tie the game at 5. The game continues to be a slugfest and goes into extra inning tied at 11. In the bottom of 11th, Murphy comes up with Claudell Washington on second and singles in the winning run off of Steve Howe.

If there was a rally to be had by the Braves during the 80's, Murphy was usually the man behind it.

A glass of milk I drink in your honor!

1980 TOPPS

1981 DONRUSS

1982 TOPPS

1983 TOPPS

1984 DONRUSS

1985 TOPPS

1986 FLEER

 1987 FLEER

1988 TOPPS

1989 UPPER DECK

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I have gone through the two decades I've wanted to for this blog and it has brought back a lot of memories. So I guess I'm done, right? Maybe. I did find one of the things I liked best about going through the players was going through the more obscure ones. This made me curious about those years before I followed the Braves...those pre-history years of the late 60's when the team was new and I cared more about playing in mud than watching baseball.

So I'm considering taking a look at these players next year. I'll just have to think on it.

And I realize with the nature of blogs, I may only be talking to myself, but so be it.

And if I do decide to do the 60's, I might even find out
who these guys are!

#2 CHRIS CHAMBLISS

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

#2 CHRIS CHAMBLISS

ATLANTA BRAVES 1980-1986

Chambliss 1981 O-Pee-Chee

After spending the 70's in the American League, 1st baseman Chris Chambliss came over to the Braves in 1980 and was a good player for several years. He never killed you with his numbers, but a sure handed fielder, clutch hitter and team leader. He had his best Brave year in 1982, when he hit 20 homers and knocked in 86 for the division winners. 

Chris's only grand slam of the 1982 season was a shot off Joe Beckwith and the Dodgers in the first inning of that game giving the Braves a 4-0 lead. Those were the Braves only runs of that game, which turned into an ugly 9-4 loss, part of the bad streak the Braves had where they lost 19 of 21 and saw there record go from 61-37 to 63-56. The team went from being 9 games up to 4 games behind during that slide. Somehow the team righted itself and came back to when the division and Chambliss was a big part of that.

His final major league homer was on August 13, 1986, a game-winning three run bottom of the ninth shot off Goose Gossage of the Padres.

1987 Chambliss after his last season
with the Braves

#3 CLAUDELL WASHINGTON

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

#3 CLAUDELL WASHINGTON
ATLANTA BRAVES 1981-1986

I wasn't expecting Claudell to rate so highly on this list when I started it, but he really was a very consistent player and leader for the team during the early 80's. Some power, good speed, pretty good average hitter and good fielder. He was also the only Brave to hit over .300 during the Braves NCLS in 1982 against the Cardinals. I think he also knocked in a run in the real first game of that series that was washed away by rain and washed away to history (Unfairly).

Thanks to baseball reference.com I was able to track down the game I went to where the Braves played the Cubs and Claudell homered for the only run of that game. The game was played on April 30, 1982. His homer was off Doug Bird of the Cubs and Steve Bedrosian and Gene Garber combined for the shutout. The game lasted only two hours and put the Braves at 16-5 for the season and kept them in first place. Just as importantly, I was able to leave the stadium at a decent enough hour to go by the local pub for a frothy pitcher of fine ale! 

Cheers, Claudell!

Claudell 1983 Fleer

#4 BOB HORNER

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

#4 BOB HORNER

ATLANTA BRAVES 1978-1986

1983

I really didn't know where to rate Horner on this list. #4 may be a little high, but at the start of the decade, he would have been my favorite to be at the top of the list at the end of the decade.

Horner continued the 80's much like he did in the late 70's with a 35 homer year in 1980.  He slacked off to 15 home runs in 1981, but in that strike shortened season, it seemed like everyone had an off year. He was a big part of the Braves division winning 1982 season, hitting 32 home runs. But then problems with injuries really started to come around. He played in only 104 games in 1983 and missed almost all of the 1984 season. He did have 27 homer seasons in 1985 and 1986, but went to play in Japan the season after that.

Always a streaky hitter, Bob's most memorable game from the 80's was his four home run game against the Expos on July 6, 1986. It was not a sign of things to come and Bob's major league career was for the most part all over at the end of that season.

Bob batting during his 4-homer game in 1986

I never really knew what to make of this
1980 Braves Illustrated cover.
Is Bobby Cox supposed to be the
Wicked Witch and Bob Horner
supposed to be Dorothy?

#5 PHIL NIEKRO

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

#5 PHIL NIEKRO

ATLANTA BRAVES 1966-1983, 1987

1983 TOPPS Phil Niekro

Phil Niekro was the one player who was with the Braves while I was growing up that just seemed to always be on the team. And most of those teams weren't very good. The 80's started up like the 70's with Phil leading the league in losses for the fourth straight year in 1980. He only won seven games during the strike shortened 1981 season. Then in 1982, he put together one of his best seasons, going 17-4 and leading the league in winning percentage at the age of forty-three. His 1980's highlight is easy for me. During the stretch run to the division title in 1982, Niekro pitched against the Padres on October 1, 1982 during the final series of the season. He pitched brilliantly, throwing a three-hit shutout. But the best part is when he came to bat in the eight leading 1-0 and the willy veteran slugged a mighty two-run homer off of Eric Show sealing the victory. I still remember being at the neighborhood pub and everyone standing and cheering after Phil's shot.

Phil was released (prematurely) after the next season only to come back and be an all-star in the American league and notch his 300th victory as a member of the evil Yankees. 

Phil came back to the Braves for a farewell pitching appearance in 1987.

He went into the Hall of Fame as a Brave in 1997.

1988 Score card commemorates
Phil's last major league appearance
from 1987.

#6 RICK MAHLER

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

#6 RICK MAHLER

ATLANTA BRAVES 1979-1988, 1991

Rick Mahler, 1983

Not that it's saying much, but Rick Mahler was the best overall starting pitcher for the Braves during the decade. I didn't look it up, but his 79 wins for the decade has got to be the gold standard for that era.

His best year was probably 1985 when he won 17 games. He led the league in losses the following year with 18. 

Rick may have pitched his best career game on opening night of the 1982 season, a two-hit shutout against the Padres. He followed that up with a five-hit shutout against Houston on April 11. Those were the only two shutouts for Rick from that season.

Rick also pitched shutouts for the Braves on opening day in 1985 and 1987. The three career opening day shutouts was a National League record.

I remember Rick as being a pretty good hitter, but when I looked it up, his only career home run came against the Dodgers on June 23, 1982. That home run came off future Braves closer Alejandro Pena.

He did play in a World Series as a member of the Reds in 1990.

Rick played briefly for the Braves in 1991, winning his final major league game on July 29, 1991 against the Pirates.

Rick died in 2005 at the age of 51.

Rick Mahler, 1987

#7 GENE GARBER

FAVORITE BRAVES PLAYERS OF THE 1980'S

#7 GENE GARBER

ATLANTA BRAVES 1978-1987

Gene Garber, 1983
Coming off his career year in '82

Gene Garber spent ten seasons of his long career as a Brave, which included 557 games in relief. The sidearm specialist had his best season in 1982 with thirty saves and eight wins. Gene got his thirtieth and final save of that season in game 161 against San Diego on October 2, 1982. It was the Braves final win of the season and enough to beat out the Dodgers by a game. 

Gene Garber, 60's rookie
proving he didn't always
have the beard