Braves Fall Out of It? Not on His Watch

It has been said of John Schuerholz, and he says it of himself, that if you ask him for the time he’ll respond by explaining the precision with which his watch was assembled.

The Atlanta Braves’ general manager often displays that pride in craftsmanship when citing the components -- scouting, development, front-office savvy, the field and clubhouse leadership of Bobby Cox -- that have contributed to the longest title streak in the history of American professional sports.

The Braves have won 12 consecutive division titles, dominating the National League West when they were geographically out of place and the NL East in the current, more neighborly alignment.

As Schuerholz put it:

“We’ve not done it once or twice or five times or 10 times, but a dozen times going on a baker’s dozen. That’s where the remarkable element of this is. A lot of teams have done it two or three or four years in a row, but in an era of economic challenge and widespread player movement, to do it year after year is the thing that separates our run from any other.”

A baker’s dozen?

This was the year in which the Braves’ yeast wasn’t expected to rise in the East.

Some 12 months after Tom Glavine and Kevin Millwood -- two major components of a pitching staff that had been the foundation of Atlanta’s streak -- received their economically motivated pink slips, financially troubled Time Warner ordered deeper cuts.

So, Greg Maddux, a third brick in the pitching foundation, left as a free agent, and so did catcher Javier Lopez and right fielder Gary Sheffield, who had combined to hit 82 homers and drive in 241 runs last season.

Not since Sherman have there been more dire prognostications for Atlanta.

The forecasts were commensurate with a payroll reduction of about $17 million.

Now?

“Well,” Schuerholz said, “if you believe what you read, and I don’t anymore, I guess you can say we’ve risen from the dead.”

The Braves may not make it 13 in a row. Their roster is as much recycled as it is refreshed.

Yet they are again in the thick of a race that Schuerholz insists he expected from the start and expects to carry through September, pitting the Braves against Philadelphia, Florida and the New York Mets -- the four separated by three games coming up to August.

Said Schuerholz: “What the early doomsayers failed to either recognize or accept was that yes, we did lose several high-caliber and big-name players and we did make dramatic changes in our roster and payroll, but we still had a team capable of contending once the new blend took hold.

“I said at the time that it would take a brave and hearty soul to pick us to win again and anyone who did would probably be looked on as crazy, but what I also said, and what no one seemed to hear, is that with as many dramatic changes as we made in the off-season it was probably going to take a couple months for us to get this group jelling together.

“Well, it took a little longer than that because we had significant injuries to significant players on top of the changes, but for the little attention and appreciation we received coming into the season, and for the little we receive even now, there’s a lot more talent than what people seem to think.”

Schuerholz cited the fact that the Braves, through selection this year or previously, have All-Star players at catcher (Johnny Estrada), third base (Chipper Jones), shortstop (Rafael Furcal), second base (Marcus Giles), center field (Andruw Jones) and right field (J.D. Drew). Two starting pitchers -- Mike Hampton and Russ Ortiz -- have been All-Stars, and so has closer John Smoltz.

Of course, credentials are required to be renewed annually, and there are no guarantees.

Take the Jones boys, Andruw and Chipper. They struggled through much of the first half, which is one reason for liking the chances again of a team battling for a division lead despite the inconsistency of its two most renowned All-Stars.

Another reason: Giles, a 2003 All-Star, returned July 15 after sitting out two months because of a broken collarbone.

Although the rotation isn’t the dominant cornerstone on which the Braves built their streak, Ortiz (11-6) has been a reliable No. 1, the enigmatic Hampton has rebounded from a 1-7 start and defeated the rival Phillies twice in the last 10 days, the staff earned-run average is still under four and, said Schuerholz, “absent dominant talent, I’ll take a bunch of guys who have the tenacity and competitive spirit to give their best every day, as these guys do.”

The Braves have also prospered in several ways from that respected and multifaceted system. Left fielder Charles Thomas, second baseman Nick Green and first baseman Adam LaRoche, all rookies, have come off the farm to play major roles. Catcher Estrada, acquired in the Millwood trade, has picked up some of Lopez’s departed productivity, and right fielder Drew and left fielder Eli Marrero, who platoons with Thomas, have compensated for Sheffield’s absence as productive fallout of a five-player trade with St. Louis in December.

Schuerholz, in fact, said Drew may be the best all-around right fielder the Braves have had.

“He was the player we targeted even though people kept saying he’s injury-prone and never plays a full season,” Schuerholz said. “However, we felt that by coming home, playing in front of his family and friends in his free-agent year, he’d have a lot of motivation. With our payroll and roster changes, there were several instances when we had to think outside the box last winter.”

Of course, no one does a better job of responding to the revolving door and creating a successful environment than the patient Cox, who has deserved more than his one manager-of-the-year award.

The 2004 season, it seems, may qualify him for another. Like clockwork, the Braves are ticking again.