| 1966 Atlanta Braves | |
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| Major League affiliations | |
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| Location | |
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| Results | |
| Record | 85–77 (.525) |
| League place | 5th |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | William Bartholomay |
| General manager(s) | John McHale, Paul Richards |
| Manager(s) | Bobby Bragan, Billy Hitchcock |
| Local television | WSB-TV |
| Local radio | WSB (Larry Munson, Ernie Johnson, Milo Hamilton, Dizzy Dean) |
| Previous season Next season > | |
The 1966 Atlanta Braves season was the first for the franchise in Atlanta, following their relocation from Milwaukee, where the team had played the previous 13 seasons. The Braves finished their inaugural year in Atlanta in fifth place in the National League with a record of 85–77, ten games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves played their first season of home games at Atlanta Stadium.
Offseason[edit]
- November 29, 1965: Jesse Gonder was drafted from the Braves by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1965 rule 5 draft.[1]
- January 29, 1966: Tom Seaver was drafted by the Braves in the secondary phase of the 1966 Major League Baseball Draft, but the pick was voided.[2]
Regular season[edit]
- July 3, 1966: Tony Cloninger became the first National League player—and, as of 2010, the only pitcher—to hit two grand slams in one game.[3]
- September 11, 1966: Rookie pitcher Pat Jarvis of the Braves became the first of 5,714 strikeout victims of Nolan Ryan’s career.[4]
Season standings[edit]
| National League | W | L | GB | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 95 | 67 | -- | .586 |
| San Francisco Giants | 93 | 68 | 1.5 | .578 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 92 | 70 | 3 | .568 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 87 | 75 | 8 | .537 |
| Atlanta Braves | 85 | 77 | 10 | .525 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 83 | 79 | 12 | .512 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 76 | 84 | 18 | .475 |
| Houston Astros | 72 | 90 | 23 | .444 |
| New York Mets | 66 | 95 | 28.5 | .410 |
| Chicago Cubs | 59 | 103 | 36 | .364 |
Record vs. opponents[edit]
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1966 National League Records
Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] |
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| Team | ATL | CHC | CIN | HOU | LAD | NYM | PHI | PIT | SF | STL | |||||
| Atlanta | — | 7–11 | 10–8 | 14–4–1 | 7–11 | 14–4 | 11–7 | 7–11 | 8–10 | 7–11 | |||||
| Chicago | 11–7 | — | 6–12 | 5–13 | 8–10 | 8–10 | 5–13 | 6–12 | 6–12 | 4–14 | |||||
| Cincinnati | 8–10 | 12–6 | — | 4–14 | 6–12 | 10–7 | 10–8 | 8–10 | 7–10 | 11–7 | |||||
| Houston | 4–14–1 | 13–5 | 14–4 | — | 7–11 | 7–11 | 7–11 | 4–14 | 6–12 | 10–8 | |||||
| Los Angeles | 11–7 | 10–8 | 12–6 | 11–7 | — | 12–6 | 11–7 | 9–9 | 9–9 | 10–8 | |||||
| New York | 4–14 | 10–8 | 7–10 | 11–7 | 6–12 | — | 7–11 | 5–13 | 9–9 | 7–11 | |||||
| Philadelphia | 7-11 | 13–5 | 8–10 | 11–7 | 7–11 | 11–7 | — | 10–8 | 10–8 | 10–8 | |||||
| Pittsburgh | 11–7 | 12–6 | 10–8 | 14–4 | 9–9 | 13–5 | 8–10 | — | 7–11 | 8–10 | |||||
| San Francisco | 10–8 | 12–6 | 10–7 | 12–6 | 9–9 | 9–9 | 8–10 | 11–7 | — | 12–6 | |||||
| St. Louis | 11–7 | 14–4 | 7–11 | 8–10 | 8–10 | 11–7 | 8–10 | 10–8 | 6–12 | — | |||||
Front-office and managerial turnover[edit]
The Braves' first year in Atlanta featured an unusual amount of management churn in both the front office and dugout. On June 28, it was announced that Paul Richards, a veteran former MLB manager and general manager, would join the team as a roving troubleshooter in its farm system.[5] The Braves were then a disappointing 34–42 (.447) and in eighth place in the ten-team National League. Braves president and GM John McHale remarked that Richards, 57, was poised to assume greater responsibilities within the Atlanta organization if called upon,[5] leading to speculation that he would replace embattled field manager Bobby Bragan. More than a quarter-century earlier, in 1938, Richards had begun his management career as the successful player-manager of the minor league Atlanta Crackers.
On August 8, with the Braves still mired in the second division at 52–59 and in seventh place, Bragan was finally dismissed as skipper, and replaced by bench coach Billy Hitchcock, like Richards a former teammate of McHale's with the Detroit Tigers. Hitchcock's hiring would pull Braves out of their tailspin, winning of 33 of 51 games (.647) and advancing to fifth place. But Richards was indeed destined to rise within the Atlanta organization. On August 31, he was named director of player personnel at both the Major and minor-league levels, effectively becoming general manager of baseball operations without the formal title, which McHale temporarily retained.[6] Four months latter, McHale resigned from the Braves to join the office of Commissioner of Baseball William Eckert, and on January 11, 1967, Richards was formally named Braves' general manager. He would serve in the post through June 1, 1972.[7]
National transactions[edit]
- April 4, 1966: Marty Keough was purchased by the Braves from the Cincinnati Reds.[8]
- April 5, 1966: Frank Thomas was released by the Braves.[9]
- April 28, 1966: Billy Cowan was traded by the Braves to the Chicago Cubs for future Braves manager Bobby Cox and cash.[10]
- May 29, 1966: Marty Keough and Arnold Earley were traded by the Braves to the Chicago Cubs for John Herrnstein.[11]
- June 7, 1966: Al Santorini was drafted by the Braves in the 1st round (11th pick) of the 1966 Major League Baseball Draft.[12]
Roster[edit]
| 1966 Atlanta Braves | |||||||||
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| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
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Manager
Coaches |
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Player stats[edit]
Batting[edit]
Starters by position[edit]
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 |
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Other batters[edit]
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Millán, FélixFélix Millán | 37 | 91 | 25 | .275 | 0 | 5 |
| Alomar, SandySandy Alomar | 31 | 44 | 4 | .091 | 0 | 2 |
| Herrnstein, JohnJohn Herrnstein | 17 | 18 | 4 | .222 | 0 | 1 |
| Keough, MartyMarty Keough | 17 | 17 | 1 | .059 | 0 | 1 |
Pitching[edit]
Starting pitchers[edit]
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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| Cloninger, TonyTony Cloninger | 39 | 257.2 | 14 | 11 | 4.12 | 178 |
| Blasingame, WadeWade Blasingame | 16 | 67.2 | 3 | 7 | 5.32 | 34 |
| Jarvis, PatPat Jarvis | 10 | 62.1 | 6 | 2 | 2.31 | 41 |
Other pitchers[edit]
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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| Fischer, HankHank Fischer | 14 | 48.1 | 2 | 3 | 3.91 | 22 |
Relief pitchers[edit]
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
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| Carroll, ClayClay Carroll | 73 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 2.37 | 67 |
| Olivo, Chi-ChiChi-Chi Olivo | 47 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 4.23 | 41 |
| Abernathy, TedTed Abernathy | 38 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3.86 | 42 |
Farm system[edit]
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Austin
Notes[edit]
- ^ Jesse Gonder page at Baseball Reference
- ^ Tom Seaver page at Baseball Reference
- ^ Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p. 259, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, NY, ISBN 978-0-451-22363-0
- ^ Baseball’s Top 100: The Game’s Greatest Records, p. 32, Kerry Banks, 2010, Greystone Books, Vancouver, BC, ISBN 978-1-55365-507-7
- ^ a b The Associated Press, June 26, 1966
- ^ United Press International August 31, 1966
- ^ Baseball America Executive Database
- ^ Marty Keough page at Baseball Reference
- ^ Frank Thomas page at Baseball Reference
- ^ Bobby Cox page at Baseball Reference
- ^ John Herrnstein page at Baseball Reference
- ^ Al Santorini page at Baseball-Reference
References[edit]
- Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (1997). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (2nd ed.). Durham, N.C.: Baseball America. ISBN 978-0-9637189-8-3.
- 1966 Atlanta Braves season at Baseball Reference
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