Atlanta Braves Clippings Friday, April 2, 2020 Braves.Com
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Atlanta Braves Clippings Friday, April 2, 2020 Braves.com MLB Network to air epic Game 7 of 1992 NLCS By Mark Bowman ATLANTA -- As MLB Network highlights the Braves’ impressive run through the 1990s, Atlanta fans will have a chance to relive the drama they felt the night that Sid Slid. "Where were you when Sid Slid?" has become a question many Braves fans ask when reminiscing about Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series. That classic game, which concluded with a dramatic ninth-inning comeback against the Pirates, will be shown on MLB Network on Friday at 9 a.m. ET, 2:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. "We all rushed on the field afterward," former President Jimmy Carter told MLB.com’s Alyson Footer in 2013. "It was the most exciting moment of my experience with sports.” That’s right. Carter was among those who rushed the field after Sid Bream slid across the plate to cap the three-run ninth inning that gave the Braves a 3-2 win over the Pirates in this thrilling Game 7 matchup. Barry Bonds’ errant throw to the plate concluded an inning that cemented Francisco Cabrera’s name in Atlanta lore. “It was one of the most exciting plays in the history of our franchise for sure and maybe in all of baseball,” Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox said in "Atlanta Rules, the Story of the ’90s Braves," an MLB Network documentary that will also air Friday at 8 a.m. ET, noon and 7 p.m. This documentary focuses on the tremendous success the Braves achieved while making five trips to the World Series during the 1990s. Hall of Famers Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Chipper Jones all played prominent parts during what was the greatest decade in the franchise’s history. "I remember asking Glavine what would it be like to play somewhere else and win," Smoltz said. "Then the 1991 season happened, and we were as confident of a team as you'll ever see, thinking we could do it for three or four years easy. Then 10 years happen, and then from that point forward, no one thought it could continue. When you get to 14 [consecutive division titles], it just doesn't seem real." Along with reairing the game and this documentary, MLB Network will also show MLB’s 20 Greatest Games: Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS at 1 p.m. ET and 5:30 p.m. This show features Bream, Mark Lemke and former Pirates outfielder Andy Van Slyke discussing their memories of the classic with Bob Costas and Tom Verducci. Atlanta Journal-Constitution Ahead of Braves’ would-be home opener, Brian Snitker talks current landscape By Gabriel Burns, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Friday will hit even harder than Thursday of last week. The Braves were scheduled to play their first game at the newly named Truist Park on Friday. They would be coming off their opening road trip, a seven-game swing in Phoenix and San Diego that would have begun on that Thursday. They would’ve left California after the 12:40 p.m. (Pacific time) Wednesday series finale, arriving in Atlanta with a Thursday off day to ready themselves for the home opener. “It’s going to be weird,” manager Brian Snitker said. “I was thinking (Wednesday) night how nice this would’ve been to have gotten home (Thursday) and be with the family. And what a nice, beautiful day it is heading into a really cool weekend. It would’ve been neat. I probably would’ve went to the ballpark today at some point just to get moved in a little bit for a couple hours before getting ready for opening day.” Atlanta was sunny in the mid-60s on Thursday. Friday would be another lovely day for baseball, sporting a mid-to-low 70s temperature and clear skies. Perfect for Georgia’s favorite professional sports franchise to launch its most promising season in years. Instead, Friday we’ll be under the governor’s shelter-in-place decree. The coronavirus pandemic has swept the world, creating issues far beyond the cancellation of sports. The United States is trying to stop the spread, a task that – best case – won’t be completed for months, according to numerous health professionals. Snitker, like almost everyone else, is sidelined at home during this uncertain time. He’s kept busy with small projects around the house. He’s done yard work. He still enjoys his routine walks around the neighborhood. He and his wife, Ronnie, moved into their home just over three years ago and have taken this time to unearth some stashed boxes. He and his son, Troy, who’s a hitting coach with the Astros and staying with the family in Atlanta, have gone fishing a couple of times. But that void – baseball, which was set to begin March 26 – can’t be filled. And those digital calendar updates some of you receive regarding Braves game times? Snitker is aware. “Every night, it seems like my wife gets a little blurb on her computer, ‘Oh, man. You guys are playing in 15 minutes,’” he said. “It’s been different. It’s different for everybody. I’ve been telling people, you walk the neighborhood and run into neighbors, it’s as weird for them as it is for us. Teachers, their systems are on go, and they don’t have any kids. People who are in companies that are laying people off. We’re just a small, small piece of the whole thing.” Snitker stressed sports are among the smallest concerns in this ever-changing crisis. Still, there’s no getting around how strange it is for a baseball lifer to be sitting idle in early April. Snitker has been in the Braves organization for over 40 years. Baseball has been at the epicenter of his life, as a child and an adult. He sympathized with players, knowing many of them are directionless without their greatest passion. He recalled the disappointed vibe in the room when he met with his team for the final time before they departed Florida. “I don’t want to make it bigger than what it is because there’s a lot of people who are feeling bad,” Snitker said. “But you had a bunch of guys, it was almost like they were running into each other ’cause they didn’t know what to do. I felt bad because they’re sitting there looking at each other like, ‘God, what do we do now?’ Some of the minor league guys, if they lived across the country, a couple of them had their families and had to drive back. They need to work, they need to get paid. Even some of the single guys, I mean, they play baseball. That’s what they do. They’re like lost souls. I felt bad for them cause all they want to do is play baseball. This time of year, when the systems are on go, that’s a hard adjustment to make. I feel bad for the guys, everybody. “You have to deal with it. It can’t get you because if you let it get you, it will. We’re in it for the long haul pretty much.” The Braves played their last game March 12, in Lakeland. MLB suspended operations that afternoon. The team initially planned to remain in Florida for workouts but would take the weekend off while the spring training facilities underwent a deep cleaning. After conversations with the Players Association, players were granted the freedom to return home. The idea of any group workouts was vanquished. Snitker last addressed his team on that Saturday morning. Players began clearing out. Snitker and Ronnie left on the ensuing Tuesday. “I get home (from Florida) and reality sets in in my neighborhood,” he said. “I feel bad for everybody around here who has business and are having to lay people off. Or maybe they’re one of the people who’ve gotten laid off. I talked to a buddy of mine (Wednesday) from Louisiana, and his company has had to lay off a number of people because in an oil industry, the prices are what they are and they can’t take on jobs. It’s tough, man. Our situation is bad, but there’s a lot of people doing a lot worse than we are.” Snitker touched base with his players Wednesday via text. He heard back from everyone, saying each player is doing well and trying to stay in shape. Some have even ordered home gyms. Snitker added he thinks the fathers are gaining further appreciation for their wives and for teachers. The Braves’ training staff has stayed in constant communication with each player. Pitching coach Rick Kranitz and bullpen coach Marty Reed have developed a throwing program for the pitchers, so when they throw, they’re texting with that pair. Kranitz and Reed wanted to provide guidelines and track the pitchers’ work. With players and coaches separated, each sheltered at the place they deem home, that’s the most structure fathomable. “They’re dealing with it,” Snitker said. “They have to. They’re wired to deal with situations like this. None of them like it, but it’s what we’re doing right now. It was good to hear from everybody. There’s really nothing (I can say) other than be safe, take care of your family. But it’s good to reach out, and it was cool to hear from everybody and what they’re doing.” Snitker won’t speculate if or when the season could return or how baseball would formulate its unconventional schedule.