Atlanta Braves

Baseball is a game of superstitions.

It is the only game where teams are damned with century-long curses—curse of the Bambino, Billy Goat Curse, etc.—and failures can be blamed on something that happened two generations ago.

Batters are some of the primary examples of superstitious acts.

We all know about Nomar Garciaparra's rituals when he comes to the plate, and I think it's safe to assume that Wade Boggs was the most habitual man on the planet. 

As the Atlanta Braves began the 2009 season with a significantly different look than in 2008, I decided to follow suit by changing my Braves apparel.

I decided that I would buy a new Atlanta cap to herald the beginning of a new era for the franchise, and because my massive head had outgrown the last cap.

After living through the worst season of baseball in his young life, Jeff Francoeur decided that he would dedicate this past offseason to changing his approach at the plate. Only 12 games into this young season, he leads the Braves in at-bats and is hitting .333 with a team-high 10 RBI.

How does a player that put up such an abysmal line (11 HR, 71 RBI, 111 SO, and a .239 AVG) just one year ago turn around to become the best offensive player on the team?

For Francoeur, the answer was only 800 miles away, via Texas hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo.

This series may describe the Atlanta Braves organization as well as any other metaphor could. After being shut down, scoring zero runs, for two games, the Braves put up 11 on the Pittsburgh Pirates to prevent the sweep on Sunday afternoon.

With an off season loaded with one “swing and a miss” after another, the Braves came back to seize some victory in that battle as well.

The Atlanta Braves top position prospect is outfielder Jason Heyward. At 6’4” and 220 pounds, I wouldn’t be too quick to call him a “kid” to his face. However, his birth certificate gives me the justification to do so. This “kid” is only 19 years old.

Who, among us die-hard Braves fans, was not excited when it was announced that Chipper Jones’ contract had been extended another three years?

Who, among us, was not thrilled with the fact that Chipper would be a lifetime Brave? Especially considering the circumstances in which John Smoltz left Atlanta for the hated Red Sox three months ago.

Following their worst season since Bobby Cox became the manager in 1990, all signs point to the Atlanta Braves returning to their typical spot near the top of the National League East in 2009.

Derek Lowe lived up to every dollar the Braves spent on him this offseason.

After seeing guys like CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett sign huge contracts with the Yankees, Lowe seemed to many as only the third or fourth best option in the starting pitcher market this offseason.

The Braves, desperate to find starting pitching help, signed the starter to a four-year deal.  Braves' GM Frank Wren looked pretty smart on opening day, did he not?

Derek Lowe’s debut for the Braves was one to remember.

Lowe threw eight innings of shut out ball in Philadelphia’s Citizen Bank Ballpark. He only gave up two hits and struck out four Phillies batters. He was the highlight on defense for Atlanta.

Hitting was a completely different story. In the first, catcher Brian McCann hit a two-run home run off of starter Brett Myers to give the Braves an early 2-0 lead.

Chipper Jones is one of the most cherished players to ever don the Braves uniform, but is he the greatest pure hitter to ever play the game? If you take a look at his career stats and compare them to other third basemen and switch hitters who have played, there might be an argument to suggest that he is at the top of the list.

Chipper Jones was drafted No. 1 in the 1990 MLB draft by the Atlanta Braves. He was a member of the 1995 World Series champions and finished second to Hideo Nomo in the rookie of the year balloting.