Braves To Retire 47 For Glavine

Written by: Bill Ivie on 11th May 2010

Braves To Retire 47 For Glavine | read this item

A storied career that started with being drafted in 1984 and cullminated amongst scrutiny of a great player being released from the team he wanted to retire with, Tom Glavine will take his first steps towards immortialization with the Atlanta Braves this August. On August 6, 2010, prior to a game with the visiting San Francisco Giants, the Braves will induct Tom Glavine into the team’s hall of fame and retire the iconic number 47 for the ages. It will become just the seventh number retired by the organization, following Dale Murphy (3), Warren Spahn (21), Greg Maddux (31), Phil Neikro (35), Eddie Matthews (41), and Hank Aaron (44).

Glavine was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in 1984. A left handed, eighteen year old kid who loved hockey and baseball alike, he would begin his climb towards greatness in the minor leagues prior to making his debut in 1987. He was the fifth youngest player in baseball in 1987 at the tender age of twenty one. In 1988, with a team that was struggling mightly to win, he would post an atrocious seven win/seventeen loss season. Fans that were concerned about a struggling team were equally concerned about a young lefty that was supposed to help them recover.

Things began to turn around quickly for the Braves, and Tom Glavine was one of the main reasons why. In 1991 the Braves made an amazing surge from last place the prior year to first place by the end of the season. A large part of that sudden success was Tom Glavine, who rattled off his first of three consecutive twenty win seasons, posting a twenty win/eleven loss season and winning his first Cy Young Award. His hitting prowess would be rewarded with a Silver Slugger Award for the first time in his career. He would lead the league in wins in 1991, the first of five times that he would achieve that feat, all in a Braves uniform.

The next two seasons would see more of the same from Glavine. He would reach twenty wins, the all star game, and finish in the top three of Cy Young voting each year from 1991-1993, leading the league all three years. By 1994 he would win his 100th game of his career and start becoming the pitcher that the Braves could rely on every year. In 1995, the team would win a world championship, and Tom Glavine would take home World Series Most Valuable Player honors as well as close the door on the Cleveland Indians in the decisive game six contest. The Braves won the world championship on the back of a 1-0 decision dominated by Glavine. Consistent and competitive, he would stay uninjured and dominate through the 90′s. His twenty win form would return in 1998 with a twenty win/six loss record, winning him his second, and final, Cy Young Award of his career. He would finish the 90′s with 187 wins, six all star appearances, and four Silver Sluggers under his belt. The fourth Silver Slugger Award, the final in his career, was won in 1998. Only Mike Hampton has more Silver Sluggers as a pitcher with five.

The new decade would see the same old Tom Glavine. He would lead the league in 2000, 2001, and 2002 in games started. During a time when players were hurt and “Tommy John” surgery was commonplace for pitchers, Tom Glavine took the mound every fifth day and dominated like few others. The year 2000 would see him win his 200th game and begin to take his place in history as a dominate left handed pitcher. He would go to the All Star Game two more times by 2002, totaling eight times for his career now. It was the winter of 2002 that would change Glavine’s career.

In a very public and drawn out negotiation process, Glavine wanted nothing more than to remain a Brave for the remainder of his career. In a position at this point that had him feeling that he needed four more seasons to win the 300th game of his career, his major contract demand was for that length of time. He stated publicily that he did not want to be looking for a club to win his 300th game with. In a move that surprised almost everyone in baseball, Glavine would leave the Braves and join the New York Mets for this quest.

Those four seasons would see Tom struggle a bit to find himself in the harsh environment of New York. He would eventually settle in and reach the all star game twice during that time frame. However, as the dust settled over the contract, Glavine would find himself doing exactly what he did not want to do, and would be searching for a team to achieve his 300th win with. At the end of 2006, he had achieved 290 wins, and the Mets would bring him back on a one year contract to achieve the milestone.

It was August 5, 2007 against the Chicago Cubs that Tom Glavine would move himself squarely into history’s path and win his 300th game, one of six left handers to achieve that accomplishment. The fall of 2007 would see the end of Glavine’s tenure with the Mets, having won sixty one games over five seasons.

By mid-November 2007, Glavine had reached an agreement to return to the place where it all started and joined the Atlanta Braves once again. When camp broke in the spring of 2008, Glavine would find himself on the opposite end of a familiar spectrum, as the third oldest player in baseball at the age of 42. After twenty one seasons in Major League Baseball, Glavine’s age and body finally succumbed, and he suffered the first major injury of his career. His elbow, and shoulder, would require surgery that would bring the season to a close.

He would reach an incintive laden deal to return to the Braves in 2009. He would rehab and work hard to overcome the injury that shelved him the year before and proclaim himself ready to return to the big leagues in June of 2009. In a move that was a surprise to him, fellow players, and pundits around the nation, the Braves gave Glavine his unconditional release on June 5, 2009. A Braves’s spokesman was quoted as saying, “If you want to retire, you can retire as a Brave.” Glavine requested his release and sought to catch on with another team.

The “other team” never materialized and Glavine’s last game was officially as a Brave. He would finish his career with 305 wins, 244 as a Brave, placing him fourth on the all time list for the team. He would finish with 2091 of his 2607 strikeouts in a Brave uniform, also ranking fourth all time for the franchise.

He was an iconic player for a franchise that currently employs him as a “Special Assistant to the General Manager”. He will remain a part of a historic organization that will fittingly honor him for his loyalty and amazing achievements. The Braves will induct him into their hall of fame in 2009, Cooperstown, most likely, in 2013.

Bill Ivie is the Content Editor for the Cardinals and Baseball Digest Classic sections here on BaseballDigest.com.
For updates on BaseballDigest.com coverage, follow Baseball Digest or Bill Ivie on Twitter.
You can find Bill on Twitter discussing the Cardinals during many of the Cardinal games.

Share on Tumblr

Topics: Atlanta Braves, Cy Young, Cy Young Award, Dale Murphy, Eddie Matthews, Greg Maddux, Hall of Fame, hank aaron, Number 47, Phil Neikro, S Hall, San Francisco Giants, Season Fans, Silver Slugger Award, Star Game, Storied Career, Sudden Success, tom glavine, Warren Spahn, Win Eleven