1985 Atlanta Braves season
Encyclopedia
The Atlanta Braves
season was the 115th season in franchise history. The Braves failed to qualify for the postseason for the third consecutive season.
The Braves started the season 4-1 but lost three consecutive games to the Reds at home to fall to 4-4. A 9-5 win over the Astros on Friday April 19 gave the Braves a 5-4 record, good enough for second place, 1/2 game out. However, the Braves would not be above the .500 mark again. They lost three straight games to drop into fifth place with a 5-7 mark. Later, the Braves beat the Reds twice, 8-4 and 17-9 to even their record at 10-10, and to climb within a game of first place. This was on May 1, and the Braves led the National League in runs scored.
This changed quickly however. The Braves not only lost eight of their next ten games (May 3-May 14), they were also shut out four consecutive games May 8 through May 12. They were held to only one run in each of the two games that followed, one of which was a win. The 12-18 Braves were in last place, six games out. Atlanta improved to 16-19 and 4 1/2 games out of first following a 3-0 win over Chicago on May 19. The Braves then lost three straight to the Cardinals, the beginning of an 4-11 stretch that lowered their record to 20-30 on June 7. Atlanta was 10 1/2 games behind at that point and the Braves' situation was becoming precarious. They won their next three games by impressive margins, 7-3 and 10-3 over Los Angeles and 7-0 over San Francisco. By June 28 Atlanta was 33-38 and only 9 1/2 games of first place. They were mired in fifth place however.
The Braves lost nine of their next 11 games and were 35-47 on July 10, in fifth place and 12 games out. The swept the Philadelphia Phillies in four games just before the All-Star Break. Atlanta was 39-47 at the half, in fifth place and 9 1/2 out.
The Braves were 49-59 on August 11, in fifth place and 15 games out. It was basically over for the Braves, with no real chance at first place. Atlanta lost six in a row and were 16 games below the .500 mark, the first time since 1979. After a 6-3 win over San Diego halted the losing streak the Braves lost six straight again. At this point the Braves were 50-71 and 22 games out of first. Their manager Eddie Haas was replaced by Bobby Wine and the Braves won their first five games under the new manager. However, they fizzled out with an 11-25 finish that dropped them to 66-96 and 29 games out of first place. Thanks to the San Francisco Giants' sorry performance the Braves avoided last place and finished in fifth place, a position they had held for all but one day since May 15.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
season was the 115th season in franchise history. The Braves failed to qualify for the postseason for the third consecutive season.
Offseason
- December 5, 1984: Brian FisherBrian Fisher (baseball)Brian Kevin Fisher is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played during seven seasons at the major league level for the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros, and Seattle Mariners. He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 2nd round of the amateur draft...
was traded by the Braves to the New York YankeesNew York YankeesThe New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
for Rick CeroneRick CeroneRichard Aldo Cerone from Seton Hall University is a former Major League Baseball player from 1975 to 1992 for the Cleveland Indians, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, and Montreal Expos...
. - December 7, 1984: Bruce SutterBruce SutterHoward Bruce Sutter is a former Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. He was arguably the first pitcher to make effective use of the splitter....
was signed as a free agent by the Braves.
Regular season
The Braves had a new manager in Eddie Haas and a new relief ace in Bruce Sutter. They also had slugger Bob Horner in the lineup and Dale Murphy was back as well.The Braves started the season 4-1 but lost three consecutive games to the Reds at home to fall to 4-4. A 9-5 win over the Astros on Friday April 19 gave the Braves a 5-4 record, good enough for second place, 1/2 game out. However, the Braves would not be above the .500 mark again. They lost three straight games to drop into fifth place with a 5-7 mark. Later, the Braves beat the Reds twice, 8-4 and 17-9 to even their record at 10-10, and to climb within a game of first place. This was on May 1, and the Braves led the National League in runs scored.
This changed quickly however. The Braves not only lost eight of their next ten games (May 3-May 14), they were also shut out four consecutive games May 8 through May 12. They were held to only one run in each of the two games that followed, one of which was a win. The 12-18 Braves were in last place, six games out. Atlanta improved to 16-19 and 4 1/2 games out of first following a 3-0 win over Chicago on May 19. The Braves then lost three straight to the Cardinals, the beginning of an 4-11 stretch that lowered their record to 20-30 on June 7. Atlanta was 10 1/2 games behind at that point and the Braves' situation was becoming precarious. They won their next three games by impressive margins, 7-3 and 10-3 over Los Angeles and 7-0 over San Francisco. By June 28 Atlanta was 33-38 and only 9 1/2 games of first place. They were mired in fifth place however.
The Braves lost nine of their next 11 games and were 35-47 on July 10, in fifth place and 12 games out. The swept the Philadelphia Phillies in four games just before the All-Star Break. Atlanta was 39-47 at the half, in fifth place and 9 1/2 out.
The Braves were 49-59 on August 11, in fifth place and 15 games out. It was basically over for the Braves, with no real chance at first place. Atlanta lost six in a row and were 16 games below the .500 mark, the first time since 1979. After a 6-3 win over San Diego halted the losing streak the Braves lost six straight again. At this point the Braves were 50-71 and 22 games out of first. Their manager Eddie Haas was replaced by Bobby Wine and the Braves won their first five games under the new manager. However, they fizzled out with an 11-25 finish that dropped them to 66-96 and 29 games out of first place. Thanks to the San Francisco Giants' sorry performance the Braves avoided last place and finished in fifth place, a position they had held for all but one day since May 15.
Notable transactions
- April 17, 1985: Alex TreviñoAlex TreviñoAlejandro Treviño Castro is a Mexican retired professional baseball catcher. Trevino played 13 seasons in the Major Leagues beginning with the New York Mets for four seasons , followed by the Cincinnati Reds for two full seasons before splitting the 1984 season between the Reds and the Atlanta...
was traded by the Braves to the San Francisco GiantsSan Francisco GiantsThe San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
for John RabbJohn RabbJohn Andrew Rabb is a former Major League Baseball catcher. He played parts of five seasons in the majors between until .-Sources:...
. - June 3, 1985: Al MartinAl MartinAlbert Lee Martin is a former professional baseball left fielder. He played twelve seasons in Major League Baseball, mostly for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He also played one season in the Korea Baseball Organization.- Early life :Martin graduated from John A...
was drafted by the Braves in the 8th round of the 1985 Major League Baseball Draft1985 Major League Baseball Draft-First round selections:The following are the first round picks in the 1985 Major League Baseball draft.-Background:Six of the first eight draft picks from the June regular phase had at least one full year of major league experience prior to the start of the 1987 season. Included in that list were...
.
Roster
| 1985 Atlanta Braves | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers | Catchers Infielders |
Outfielders | Manager Coaches |
||||||
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | 96 | 282 | 61 | .216 | 3 | 25 | |
| 1B | 130 | 483 | 129 | .267 | 27 | 89 | |
| 2B | 142 | 439 | 102 | .232 | 5 | 39 | |
| 3B | 134 | 412 | 112 | .272 | 3 | 35 | |
| SS | 138 | 568 | 141 | .248 | 5 | 58 | |
| LF | 138 | 492 | 130 | .264 | 17 | 72 | |
| CF | 162 | 616 | 185 | .300 | 37 | 111 | |
| RF | 122 | 398 | 110 | .276 | 15 | 43 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting Average; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 87 | 19 | .218 | 1 | 5 | |
| 26 | 71 | 17 | .239 | 2 | 12 | |
| 3 | 2 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | |
Starting pitchers
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|
Other pitchers
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|
Relief pitchers
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 58 | 7 | 7 | 23 | 4.48 | 52 | |
Awards and honors
- Steve BedrosianSteve BedrosianStephen Wayne Bedrosian, is an American former baseball player. Nicknamed "Bedrock", he played from 1981 to 1995 with the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants and Minnesota Twins...
, Major League record, Most Starts in a Season without completing a game (37)