Beast of NL East, again
Braves claim 7th straight division title as Glavine notches win No. 19
Posted: Tuesday September 15, 1998 12:56 AM
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Old hat: Dennis Martinez (right) and Danny Bautista celebrate the Braves 7th straight divisional crown AP |
ATLANTA (AP) -- A champagne bottle doesn't stand a chance in the Atlanta Braves
clubhouse.
Already the only team to win six straight division titles, the Braves
made it seven in a row Monday night with a 4-2 victory over the Philadelphia
Phillies, clinching the NL East.
The celebration on the field wasn't much different than any other
victory. While fireworks lit the sky above Turner Field and the scoreboard
flashed "1998 East Division Champions," the Braves lined up between first
and second for their customary handshakes.
Inside the clubhouse, though, the champagne flowed freely, championship
shirts and hats were passed around and everyone paused for a moment to
recognize another remarkable season. Now the focus shifts to the primary
goal: winning a second World Series in the 1990s.
"I never get tired of celebrating," manager Bobby Cox said, grasping a
bottle of bubbly. "We play a lot of games all year long. By golly, we're
going to celebrate."
Division titles have become so routine in Atlanta that the clincher drew
only 33,367, the second-smallest crowd at Turner Field since May 28.
"I don't blame 'em," Cox said. "Certainly, it's not that easy, even
though the people expect it. There could easily be a letdown, but there
never is around here."
Tom
Glavine, who became the NL's first 19-game winner, and John Smoltz are
the only players remaining from Atlanta's first division winner of the
decade in 1991.
But while most of the names have changed, the Braves remain on top an
amazing stretch of consistency in the free-agent era. Just look at the
Phillies, who beat the Braves in the 1993 NL championship series but
haven't been a contender since then.
"It's another notch in the belt, so to speak," said Glavine, who fought
thought control problems to move within a victory of his fourth 20-win
season. "We're doing something that nobody in the history of baseball has
ever done. ... It's a tremendous accomplishment."
Chipper
Jones homered over the center-field wall leading off the sixth after Michael
Tucker hit his first homer in over a month to tie the game 2-2 in the
fifth.
Glavine (19-6) allowed eight hits and three walks in six innings, but
only the two runs. Dennis
Martinez, John Rocker and Kerry Ligtenberg pitched one scoreless inning
apiece, with Ligtenberg earning his 28th save.
"I couldn't really imagine this," said Rocker, a rookie left-hander who
was called up in May. "I want to stay here and soak it in. ... I don't know
what my career holds and I don't know how many more times I'll get to do
this. But it's really been special."
Glavine (above), who picked up his 19th win in the clincher, and John Smoltz are the only players remaining from Atlanta's first division winner of the decade in 1991 AP | |
The most impressive performance of the whole night was turned in by
Glavine, who stoically conducted a television interview with Braves
broadcaster Don Sutton while teammates sprayed him with champagne, doused
him with beer and cracked eggs over his head.
"You stayed composed through that?" Jones marveled. "Wow!"
The Braves won three consecutive NL West titles before switching to the
East in 1994. That season was halted by a strike, which may have helped
extend Atlanta's streak; Montreal led the division by six games when play
stopped August 12.
Since the strike ended the following spring, Atlanta has cruised to four
more division titles. The closest margin over the last three years was
eight games, and the second-place New York Mets trailed by
12 prior to Monday's play.
The Braves became only the seventh franchise among the four major sports
to win seven straight division titles. The NBA's Boston Celtics (1957-65)
and Los Angeles Lakers (1982-90) lead with nine in a row.
Atlanta won another division title in spite of its worst slump in two
years, a 2-8 skid through the middle of last week that cost the Braves, for
now, the best overall record in the National League.
After the Phillies went ahead in the first on Rico Brogna's
RBI double off the center-field wall, the Braves evened it in the fourth on
doubles by Jones and Ryan Klesko.
Philadelphia reclaimed the lead in the fifth on Wendell
Magee's run-scoring single, but Tucker's 13th homer -- his first since
August 9 -- tied the score again.
Jones hit his 33rd homer in the sixth, then added his second double of
the night in the eighth. On that hit, Walt Weiss scored
all the way from first when Magee bobbled the ball in the left-field corner
for an error.
Curt
Schilling (14-14) took the loss despite giving up only six hits and
striking out 12 his 15th game with double-figure strikeouts. Andres
Galarraga was the victim four times.
"He pitched his heart out," manager Terry Francona said. "But he always
does."
The Phillies, 26 games behind the Braves in the East, weren't even aware
of their role in the historic night.
"Oh, I didn't know that," Francona said in a much quieter clubhouse.
Notes: The Braves have 204 homers, three away from the franchise
record set in 1966, the team's first year in Atlanta. ... Schilling needs
16 strikeouts for his second straight 300 season. In 1997, he set the NL
record for right-handers with 319. ... Greg Maddux, who
left Sunday's game because of a muscle strain under his right arm, said
he'll make his next start Friday at Arizona. ... In 10 of Schilling's 14
losses, the Phillies have scored two runs or less. ... Scott Rolen hit
his 40th double.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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