Another regular season has come and gone in the MLB with another postseason beginning, and anticipation is starting to rise as to who will claim the 2014 World Series title. As analysts start speculating about the Washington Nationals looking to earn their first ever World Series championship hot off the heels of Jordan Zimmerman’s no-hitter, one team is again absent from the conversation.
While many will tune in to the early-stage games this week, bright-eyed and eager, I personally will be keeping my distance from the pageantry and excitement.
Welcome to the life of an Atlanta Braves fan, where followers are forced to watch their team self-destruct, always after the promise of a record-setting season. While the Braves did set a record, it was not a good one. The team suffered its first losing season since 2008 after finishing next-to-last in runs in the Major League.
Perhaps I’m just bitter, portraying the team as worse than some of the records show. The Braves allowed fewer runs scored than any team in the NL East and won a fair amount of games at home. However, the offense fell far flat of expectations, and the cyclical nature of the Braves season has left a sour taste in the mouths of many.
After beginning the season in a dominant fashion, garnering speculation and hype around the team, hopes were raised, albeit prematurely. Few words can be used to describe the end of the season other than “skid,” as the team continued to slip farther and farther out of playoff contention they once aimed for.
Less than 24 hours after being eliminated from the post season, the franchise fired general manager Frank Wren. It was the first time a manager or general manager has been fired since 1990, and many are calling for manager Fredi Gonzales to follow suit. But no amount of rearranging is enough to combat the Atlanta curse.
Each year, it seems that more Atlanta teams across the board take their fans on an emotional roller coaster, showing promise before falling just short of the post season, or perhaps worse, in the first round, depriving the city of a championship title it’s so desperately seeking.
The city found itself atop Forbes’ list of Most Miserable Sports Cities this year, with the publication calling the Braves “perennial bridesmaids.” When combined with the other Atlanta franchises, the group is 1-5 in championship rounds. The Atlanta curse is real, and until it’s broken, I plan to keep my distance from postseasons.
