Top 10 Best Atlanta Braves Players of All Time

As the oldest continuously operating sports team in the United States, it goes without saying that the Atlanta Braves have had many talented baseball players on its roster throughout the years. From the franchise’s origins in Boston to its move to Milwaukee and subsequent arrival in Atlanta, the team has had a second-best total of 54 Hall of Famers. Listed below are the ten greatest Atlanta Braves players of all time.

Who Are the Best Atlanta Braves Baseball Players of All Time?

1. Hank Aaron
2. Warren Spahn
3. Eddie Matthews
4. Greg Maddux
5. Chipper Jones
6. Phil Niekro
7. Kid Nichols
8. John Smoltz
9. Tom Glavine
10. Dale Murphy

1. Hank Aaron

• 1957 NL MVP
• 755 Career Home Runs
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (1982)

Hank Aaron was one of the greatest hitters the sport has ever seen and is the best Atlanta Brave player of all time. The six-foot slugger worked his way up through the Negro Leagues before joining the Boston Braves in 1952, beginning one of the most dominant MLB careers in baseball history. Aaron ranks first on the Braves’ all-time home runs, RBIs, ABs, games, and total bases lists. 

Aaron’s iconic number 44 jersey was retired by the organization in 1977. Aaron was elected into the MLB Hall of Fame in 1982, being included on an incredible 97.8% of ballots. At the time, the percentage was second only to Ty Cobb’s 98.2% in 1936. Although remembered mostly for breaking Babe Ruth’s home run record, Aaron was also a pioneer for the sport and the advancement of other black professional athletes.

2. Warren Spahn

• 1957 Cy Young Winner
• 14-time MLB All-Star
• Inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame (1973)

Warren Spahn is yet another classic Atlanta Braves juggernaut that broke multiple records. Joining the Boston Braves in 1942, Spahn only played in four games before serving in the U.S. Army. He spent the next three years overseas with the 9th Armored Division, where he saw service in Europe at the Battle of the Bulge before returning to the organization in 1946. Spahn picked up right where he left off, earning eight wins in 1946, followed by 21 wins and an All-Star appearance in 1947. 

For the next two decades, Spahn was one of the greatest and certainly the most consistent pitchers in the league, earning 12 top-15 finishes in the MVP race. In 1957, at 36 years old, Spahn won the World Series on a talented Milwaukee Braves team that featured both Hank Aaron and Eddie Matthews. Spahn also won the Cy Young that year, an impressive feat at that age. Spahn continued playing for the Braves until he was 43 years old and still leads the team in career wins, innings pitched, and shutouts.

3. Eddie Matthews

• Nine-time All-Star
• 493 Career Home Runs
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (1978)

Eddie Matthews was a crucial part of the talented Braves team of the 1950s that won a World Series with Hank Aaron and Warren Spahn. Before that, however, it was clear that Matthews was going to be a star on the diamond. While watching Matthews play in the minor leagues, Detroit Tigers legend Ty Cobb remarked: “I’ve only known three or four perfect swings in my time. This lad has one of them.” Matthews proved Cobb right in the big leagues, where he led the National League twice in home runs in 1953 and 1959. 

Matthews is second in the all-time Braves record book with 1,388 RBIs. He also has the honor of being the only player to play for the Braves while they were in Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta. Matthews’ number was retired by the Braves in 1968, and he was elected to the Hall of Fame ten years later in 1978.

4. Greg Maddux

• Four-time Cy Young Winner
• Eight-time All-Star
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (2014)

The top arm of the 1990s Braves pitching rotation that featured John Smoltz and Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux was one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball during his prime. Although he spent a decade with the Cubs, it was during his 11 seasons with the Braves that he really played his best ball. Not only was Maddux a terrific pitcher (as evidenced by his impressive total of four Cy Young awards), but he was also an excellent fielder on the mound.

From 1990-2008, Maddux won the National League Gold Glove award at his position in all but one of those years. His 1995 season was one of the greatest pitching seasons in history, achieving a 19-2 record and finishing third place in MVP voting. His performance on the mound was instrumental in the team’s World Series victory over the Cleveland Indians that year, and he went on to play eight more seasons in Atlanta afterward.

5. Chipper Jones

• 1999 NL MVP
• Eight-time All-Star
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (2018)

A fan favorite, Chipper Jones spent just about two decades of his life and all of his baseball career with the Atlanta Braves. Jones was one of the greatest switch hitters of all time and often drew comparisons to Yankees legend and fellow switch hitter Mickey Mantle. A teammate of Mantle once remarked that Chipper “ran like Mickey, had that same gait, the way his shoulders were when he ran, and of course, he hit for power both ways like Mick.” 

Jones was the franchise’s #1 overall pick in the 1990 MLB Draft and gave his team a return on its investment immediately after being called up to the pros. He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1995 and 18th in MVP voting. Jones won the NL MVP award in 1999 and continued to play at the top of his game until his retirement in 2012 at the age of 40. Jones’ number 10 jersey was retired by the Braves in 2013, and he was inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame five years later in 2018.

6. Phil Niekro

• Five-time All-Star
• Five-time Gold Glove Winner
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (1997)

Like Maddux, Phil Niekro was a terrific fielding pitcher, winning five Gold Glove awards throughout his career. However, the main thing that separated Niekro from Maddux and other pitchers in the MLB was his almost unhittable knuckleball. Phil’s father, Joe Niekro Sr., taught both of his sons how to throw the knuckleball in the backyard when they were boys, and it served Phil well in the big leagues.

By the time he called it a career in 1987, Phil “Knucksie” Niekro was first in Atlanta Braves history in career strikeouts and games played. Although he never won a National League Cy Young Award, Niekro finished top six in voting for the award in six separate seasons. Spending most of his 24-year career with the Braves, Niekro was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997.

7. Kid Nichols

• 532 Complete Games
• 330 Wins
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (1949)

By far the oldest Braves legend, Charles “Kid” Nichols played his first season of baseball in 1890, the same year that Cy Young began his career. Even though he played in the same era as Young, Nichols led all pitchers in wins from 1890-1901 with 329. Nichols led the then Boston Beaneaters to six National League pennants in eight years with the ball club. 

Nichols’ best season came in 1898 at 28 years old, when he posted a league-leading number of 31 wins, along with four saves. Nichols retired as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1906 but never replicated the same success he had when he was in Boston. He was the very first of so many star aces for the Braves organization.

8. John Smoltz

• 1996 Cy Young Winner
• Eight-time All-Star
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (2015)

John Smoltz was maybe the Braves’ best rookie and definitely one of its greatest overall players. In Smoltz’ very first start of his 1988 rookie season, he pitched for eight innings and allowed just four hits and one earned run. Not a bad debut for a 21-year-old rookie. Yet it was only a taste of things to come. In his second year in the big leagues, Smoltz was named an All-Star after a stellar season on the mound.

The Braves would have been lucky to have just Smoltz as their ace during the 1990s, but they ended up with one of the greatest pitching trios of all time with Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine in the rotation along with Smoltz. By the end of his career, Smoltz ended up with a tremendous amount of silverware, including the 1992 NLCS MVP award in the Braves’ series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Smoltz also still holds the Braves record for most career strikeouts with 3,011.

9. Tom Glavine

• Two-time Cy Young Winner
• 10-time All-Star
• Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame (2014)

Tom Glavine was a phenomenal pitcher for the Braves and rounded out a legendary trio of pitchers with his teammates Smoltz and Maddux. What his pitches lacked in speed,  he more than made up for in accuracy. Glavine was also known for having an excellent circle change and his ability to paint the corners of the plate. In 1991, Glavine had one of the best seasons of any Braves pitcher in history. He posted a league-leading 20 wins and nine complete games in 34 starts. 

On top of this, Glavine was named an All-Star, finished 11th in MVP voting, and won both the National League Cy Young and Silver Slugger awards. Glavine’s four Silver Sluggers are second-best in NL history, making him nearly as dangerous at the plate as he was on the mound. In 2008, Glavine finished his career as a member of the Braves at 42 years old. His number was retired by the organization two years later.

10. Dale Murphy

• Two-time NL MVP
• Seven-time NL All-Star
• Five-time Gold Glove

One of the best outfielders in Braves history, Dale Murphy is one of those players that just missed the cut for the Hall of Fame despite having an outstanding career. Murphy won back-to-back MVP awards in 1982 and 1983 and led the league in home runs from 1984-1985. Even more impressive was Murphy’s durability. In that four-year timespan, Murphy played in all 162 games in each of those seasons. 

Murphy also won the NL Silver Slugger in every single one of those years. Unfortunately for him, the peak of his career came just before the dominant 1990s decade of success for the Braves. Murphy’s last season with the Braves was in 1990, and the organization retired his jersey four years later.

Honorable Mentions

• Joe Adcock
• Wally Berger
• Tommy Bond
• John Clarkson
• Del Crandall
• Freddie Freeman
• Tommy Holmes
• Andruw Jones
• Johnny Logan
• Herman Long
• Rabbit Maranville
• Fred Tenney
• Joe Torre
• Jim Whitney
• Vic Willis

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