Glavine Release Officially Ends Era

It was the call heard around the world, but none louder than in the heart of Braves country. First reported late Wednesday afternoon, the choice of the Atlanta Braves to release future Hall-Of-Fame pitcher Tom Glavine in the midst of a rehab assignment was a shocker across baseball. Glavine himself was caught off guard, as he had thrown 11 consecutive scoreless inning in his last two starts at Triple-A. The Braves for their part, tried to soften the blow to the fans by acquiring Nate McClouth in a trade with Pittsburgh just hours later.

However, regardless of their decision to cut the legend and how they presented it, what it really means is that the Braves and their fans have officially seen end of an era. This is now the first time in 20 years that they won't have one of the big three, Glavine, Maddux, or Smoltz, on the roster.

Sure, teams need to move onward toward the future. However, there is something to say about remembering that they team is built on the past and this trio represents perhaps the greatest period of time in Braves history. The strength of those 1990's Braves teams were shouldered, literally, by these gentlemen, who could collectively be known as one of the greatest trio of starters that any team has ever had.

That being said, let's look back at their regular season accomplishments while in a Braves uniform:

- Glavine (17 Seasons) - 244-147, 22 Shut-outs, 2091 K's, and an ERA of 3.41.
- Maddux (11 Seasons) - 194-88, 21 Shut-outs, 1828 K's, and an ERA of 2.63.
- Smoltz (20 Seasons) - 210-147, 16 Shut-outs, 3011 K's, and an ERA of 3.26.

Combined between them, they won a staggering 648 games for the Braves, while striking out 6930 batters. Smoltz also contributed 154 saves in four seasons as their closer. Sure, these three were also aided and abetted by other faces along the way, but they were the heart of that staff. And that doesn't even count the 6 Cy Young's won between the three of them; Maddux (3), Glavine (1), and Smoltz (1). Madduz also owns 11 Gold Gloves while with Atlanta.

Now keep in mind, these are just their regular season stats. During their tenures with the club, the Braves made the postseason 14 times during 15 seasons, with the only year they missed it being the strike-shortened 1994 season where there was no postseason. Those appearances resulted in three trips to the World Series, where the Braves won their one and only championship since their move from Milwaukee. Again, these three were tremendous for the team in the playoffs:

Glavine (10 postseasons) - 12-15, 66 K's, and an ERA of 3.31 -WS MVP 1995.
Maddux (9 postseasons) - 11-13, 67 K's, and an ERA of 3.67.
Smoltz (13 postseasons) - 15-4, 1 Shut-out, 89 K's, and an ERA of 2.83.

So as necessary as the move seemed to be for Altanta, it represents a true changing of the guard for baseball. In this day and age of high-priced free agency, it is highly unlikely that we will ever see a trio like this step on the same mound together again.

Thanks for the memories gentlemen!

Sources:

Tom Glavine, Baseball-Reference.com
Greg Maddux, Baseball-Reference.com
John Smoltz, Baseball-Reference.com
Atlanta Braves Team History, Baseball-Reference.com