Catcher: Javy Lopez
Lopez was a power hitting catcher who played for some great Braves teams. He beat out Joe Girardi as soon as Girardi sold out and became the coach for the Evil Empire a few years ago.
First Base: Fred McGriff*
"The Crime Dog." See Sunday's post for more details on McGriff.
Second Base: Ryne Sandberg
As soon as I knew that my Dad's favorite player was Ryne Sandberg, I made a concentrated effort to attain every Ryno baseball card that I could possibly find. Here is the crown jewel of my collection:
Shortstop: Jeff Blauser*
There were not a lot of quality choices for shortstop. Blauser was never spectacular and didn't have the hype of Shawon Dunston. However, he was a solid ball player who always seemed to play hard.
Third Base: Chipper Jones
The 90's version of Chipper was durable, dependent, and powerful. He even had decent speed! He had 25 stolen bases in 1999 when he won the National League MVP award.
Left Field: Ryan Klesko
Klesko hit the ball as hard as anyone that I had ever seen play. When he came up in 1994 with the Braves, I loved how he was swinging for the fences every time he stepped to the plate. He hit some home runs that looked like bottle rockets that shot out of the ballpark in less than 3 seconds. He helped his case in the 1995 World Series when he hit a home run in three consecutive games against the Cleveland Indians.
Center Field: Otis Nixon
This was a close battle between Nixon and Marquis Grissom. I gave the edge to Nixon due to his ability to bunt for hits and his ability to look like he was 70 years old by the time he was 30.
Right Field: Andre Dawson
"The Hawk" peaked before the 1990's, but I still had to include him on my list. Dawson did everything you could ask for from a ballplayer. He had 438 career home runs, he stole over 300 bases, was an 8 time gold glove winner, had a cannon for an arm, and always played the game hard. Ryne Sandberg had this to say about Dawson as he (Sandberg) was being inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005:
"No player in baseball history worked harder, suffered more or did it better than Andre Dawson. He's the best I've ever seen. I watched him win an MVP for a last-place team in 1987 [with the Cubs], and it was the most unbelievable thing I've ever seen in baseball. He did it the right way, the natural way, and he did it in the field and on the bases and in every way, and I hope he will stand up here someday."
This Sunday Andre Dawson will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Technically he will be wearing a Montreal Expos hat, but The Hawk will always be a Cub to me. I'm pretty sure that Ryne Sandberg thinks so too.
Starting Pitcher: Greg Maddux*
Maddux is my favorite baseball player of all time. I could easily devote a whole post to his ability to play the game of baseball. Actually, I'm pretty sure that I will at some point in the future, so I will just post a picture for the time being.
Relief Pitcher: John Rocker
Before you criticize this pick, take a look at John Rocker the baseball player. He sprinted to the mound from the bullpen every time his number was called. He never gave up an earned run in the postseason (20.2 IP). In 1999 he struck out 104 batters in 72 innings. The guy could flat out bring it. It really is unfortunate for everyone that Rocker lost it and really only produced for a couple of seasons.
*These players received bonus points for playing for both the Cubs and the Braves at some point in their career.
In 1998 we took a family vacation to Wrigley Field to see the Cubs play the Braves. Kerry Wood had struck out 20 Astros in a game at Wrigley earlier in the month and Sammy Sosa was about to hit 20 home runs in the month of June, so it was a great time to see a game in Chicago.
It was my first trip to Wrigley and it couldn't have been more perfect. It was a beautiful day, I caught a ball in batting practice, and Kerry Wood struck out 13 over 7 innings. Tom Glavine had a solid outing for the Braves, but the Cubs won the game on a walk off home run in the bottom of the 11th inning. Here is the box score from the game:
Braves vs. Cubs- May 29, 1998
My sports memory isn't as sharp as I wish it was for this game. I blame it on the fact that I was 13 years old and seeing my two favorite teams play against each other was just too much for me to handle. I guess that I will just have to go see the Cubs and Braves play again sometime.
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