Braves Mt. Rushmore: Center Field
A position group that’s almost exactly the opposite of Left Field - in terms of star power & production - Center Field is STACKED.
It contains the best defensive center fielder in MLB history, the final out of the 1995 World Series Championship, the Braves only Multi-MVP Award winner, and perhaps a surprise player to some.
Dale Murphy
Murphy is the Braves franchise’s only multi-MVP winner; taking home the award in 1982 & 1983. Also on his mantle are: seven All-Star selections (1980, 1982-1987), five Gold Gloves (1982-1986), four Silver Sluggers (1982-1985), the 1988 Roberto Clemente Award, two NL HR titles (1984 & 1985), two NL RBI titles (1982 & 1983); his No. 3 is retired by the Braves & he’s a member of the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame.
I could stop right there because frankly, that excerpt is more than enough to land him on this list.
But I also want to tell you about his raw athletic ability, the stuff that doesn’t show up on Awards list & stat lines.
He started out his Braves career as a catcher before moving to First Base; before ultimately landing in the outfield where he dominated a league of the world’s finest baseball players. Let me say that again: he was talented enough as a catcher to make it to the Major League, also talented enough to play 1st as a Major Leaguer…his THIRD position was his best position. The range of abilities, IQ, & mechanics it takes to be an MLB-caliber player at one position - let alone THREE - is a level most people on Earth will never truly grasp.
And oh yeah…
PUT MURPH IN THE HALL OF FAME.
Andruw Jones
The Braves have had extreme luck employing players from the tiny island of Curaçao. Ozzie Albies currently carries that flag, but before him was Andruw Rudolf Jones.
Andruw was, besides my favorite baseball player, growing up, the best defensive Center Fielder in the history of Major League Baseball. In a world where that is true, it is reasonable to assume he’s the best defensive Center Fielder to ever walk this Earth.
From 1996-2007, Braves Country was spoiled by what they were blessed to enjoy in the outfield of Turner Field.
During his Braves tenure, Andruw racked up five All-Star selections (2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006), ten consecutive Gold Gloves (1998-2007), the 2005 Silver Slugger Award, the 2005 NL Hank Aaron Award, the 2005 MLB HR title, the 2005 NL RBI title, & is a member of the Braves Hall of Fame.
He is also the youngest player ever to hit a home run in the postseason, and just the second player ever to homer in his first two World Series at-bats (1996 World Series).
Again…
PUT ANDRUW IN THE HALL OF FAME.
Marquis Grissom
Grissom May have only spent 1995 & 1996 with the Braves, but he made the most of his time here.
If you watched the 1995 World Series then you know where this is going. To secure the first World title since their move to Atlanta, Marquis Grissom ran down a fly ball off the bat of Carlos Baerga & put the series away (pictured at the top of this article). He’ll forever hold a special place in the heart of 90’s Braves fans.
He was the only Braves player on that roster who was born & raised in Atlanta. One of his children, Marquis Grissom Jr., plays baseball in Atlanta now…on Georgia Tech’s baseball team. He’s a right-handed pitcher for the Yellow Jackets.
Marquis still remains involved in his Atlanta community: one year after he retired, Grissom founded the Marquis Grissom Baseball Association; a nonprofit which helps underprivileged youths in the Atlanta area play baseball.
Ender Inciarte
This is where some people may have reservations on agreeing with my entire list, and that’s fine, but there’s no way I was leaving Ender off this list. Much of the debate among Braves fans concerning Ender are centered around his final year-ish at the plate.
Now a member of the New York Yankees organization (as of this week), he spent 2016-2021 with the Braves. He was traded by the Diamondbacks alongside Dansby Swanson for Shelby Miller & Gabe Speier. First off, what a lopsided trade.
That trade gave us our World Series shortstop and Ender: a 2017 All-Star selection, three-time Gold Glover (2016-2018), and the 2018 Fielding Bible Award winner (Award for the best defensive player at each position).
Ender is a historically-significant Truist Park player. He recorded the first defensive out, first hit, & the first home run in SunTrust Park’s history (now Truist Park).
Also slightly less historically significant, Ender’s jersey with the inaugural SunTrust Park patch on the sleeve was my first professional baseball jersey I ever owned.
2019 started Ender’s run of terrible luck when he began getting injured. It all started with torso & hamstring issues and he didn’t fully return to form the rest of his time in Atlanta. When he did come back it was obvious to the fanbase how much playing for the Braves meant to him & how much he was enduring to be on the field for the good of the team.
Ender will always be one of my favorites, no matter what uniform he wears.