I hate the Braves. WIth every single fiber of my being I hate them.
Why? Primarily because I am a Mets fan. An inherent concept of all sports is that rivalries will develop. Teams that jockey against one another for the top spot will naturally develop a sense of animosity towards one another. For example, I attend the University of Alabama, and as Alabama students, we hate Auburn. In light of this past season, that hatred towards Auburn has intensified accross campus. Why? Because they beat us, and because they are now a greater threat to us in the future. The rivalry has deepened because they're good.
We all have teams we love to hate. For me, that team is The Atlanta Braves.
It's kinda funny actually, because growing up I hated the Phillies. I went to a game at Citizens bank with my Mom when I was 13 and I almost got us killed by screaming "Phillies Suck" at the top of my lungs the entire game(if you know anything about Phillies fans you'd understand).
I hated the Phillies because they were at that time, the division rivals of my precious New York Mets. In 2007 the Phillies went to the playoffs with a record of 89-73. The Mets finished that year with a record of 88-74. They did not play in October. You can see how not making the playoffs falling only ONE GAME behind your rival would fuel a little bit of hate.
2008 was a similar story with the Phillies at 92-70 and the Mets at 89-73.
In '09, the Phillies were still on top.
I spent that period of my life hating them HATING them because they were an imminent threat.
During that time, the Braves were never relevant. In '08 the Braves finished second to last in the NL east, behind the Florida Marlins. THE MARLINS. They were 72-90 that year, and I paid them little attention.
2010 was when the trouble started. The Braves finished second that year, with a record of 91-71, and clinched a wildcard spot behind the 97-65 Phillies.
In 2011, they were in second place yet again. At this point they were barely on my radar as I was still despising the Phillies and their 102-60 '11 record, but they were beginning to make a come up.
In 2012, the Phillies collapsed, finishing at exactly .500 on the year, and the Braves were in second place.
I needed a new nemisis, and the Braves were my choice. Not only were they surpassing my Mets and consistently making the playoffs, but they were just so easy to hate.
One of my favorite activities became screaming "LARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY" at the top of my lungs whenever Chipper Jones stepped into the batter's box.(in case you didn't know, Larry is Chipper's given name).
In 2012, I started school at the University of Alabama(a mere 3.5 hrs from ATL). So naturally, I decided to attend a game at Turner Field.
In a lovely twist of fate, I saw that Larry would play his last regular season home game against the Mets. So I was there. I screamed Larry the entire time, and I even made him a sign.
Why? Primarily because I am a Mets fan. An inherent concept of all sports is that rivalries will develop. Teams that jockey against one another for the top spot will naturally develop a sense of animosity towards one another. For example, I attend the University of Alabama, and as Alabama students, we hate Auburn. In light of this past season, that hatred towards Auburn has intensified accross campus. Why? Because they beat us, and because they are now a greater threat to us in the future. The rivalry has deepened because they're good.
We all have teams we love to hate. For me, that team is The Atlanta Braves.
It's kinda funny actually, because growing up I hated the Phillies. I went to a game at Citizens bank with my Mom when I was 13 and I almost got us killed by screaming "Phillies Suck" at the top of my lungs the entire game(if you know anything about Phillies fans you'd understand).
I hated the Phillies because they were at that time, the division rivals of my precious New York Mets. In 2007 the Phillies went to the playoffs with a record of 89-73. The Mets finished that year with a record of 88-74. They did not play in October. You can see how not making the playoffs falling only ONE GAME behind your rival would fuel a little bit of hate.
2008 was a similar story with the Phillies at 92-70 and the Mets at 89-73.
In '09, the Phillies were still on top.
I spent that period of my life hating them HATING them because they were an imminent threat.
During that time, the Braves were never relevant. In '08 the Braves finished second to last in the NL east, behind the Florida Marlins. THE MARLINS. They were 72-90 that year, and I paid them little attention.
2010 was when the trouble started. The Braves finished second that year, with a record of 91-71, and clinched a wildcard spot behind the 97-65 Phillies.
In 2011, they were in second place yet again. At this point they were barely on my radar as I was still despising the Phillies and their 102-60 '11 record, but they were beginning to make a come up.
In 2012, the Phillies collapsed, finishing at exactly .500 on the year, and the Braves were in second place.
I needed a new nemisis, and the Braves were my choice. Not only were they surpassing my Mets and consistently making the playoffs, but they were just so easy to hate.
One of my favorite activities became screaming "LARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY" at the top of my lungs whenever Chipper Jones stepped into the batter's box.(in case you didn't know, Larry is Chipper's given name).
In 2012, I started school at the University of Alabama(a mere 3.5 hrs from ATL). So naturally, I decided to attend a game at Turner Field.
In a lovely twist of fate, I saw that Larry would play his last regular season home game against the Mets. So I was there. I screamed Larry the entire time, and I even made him a sign.
(Larry named his son "Shea" after claiming that Shea was his favorite park to hit in because he always had success there. Hence the word play on "SHEAme". The mets radio broadcasters even took note of it :))
Why was I messing with him? because he was by far the Braves best player, a man destined for the Hall of Fame. So.... jealousy stepped in and drove my hatred. Just as I had hated the Phillies for consistently winning, I hated Larry for being a legend. Sitting there at Turner field watching my Mets lose to them in person only deepened my distate.
The Mets only went 74-88 that year in a preverbial joke of a season, and the Braves made the playoffs, so it stung a little more than usual.
While at Turner, I also got to personally experience the most horrid phenomenon in the world.
The Braves have an annoying practice known as the "chop". This is how the chop plays out:
whilst singing a song that sounds vaguely like Dory when she speaks whale (OOOOOOHooooohoooooOHHHOOOOHH), the fans ritualistically chop their arms as if wielding the braves' iconic axe.
It is one of the most horrible things I've witnessed, and it makes my skin crawl. Far worse than the absolute dread that filled my heart upon seeing the Phillies Phanatic. Absolutely dreadful.
Also Turner field has weird chicken sandwiches, so theres that.
The 2012 postseason ended badly for the Braves, and Chipper, who made an error in the last game he ever played. Which ironically was the first ever 1 game wildcard playoff, against the Cards.
One thing that a Braves hater can take solace in is the fact that despite their relative greatness, they have a tendency to choke miserably in the postseason, as they did in '12. But still, they made it.
My boys didn't. I was bitter.
In the offseason of 2012 the Braves acquired B.J. Upton AND Justin Upton(both good players), and their outfield became a band of brothers. It also led to fun graphics like this:
Why was I messing with him? because he was by far the Braves best player, a man destined for the Hall of Fame. So.... jealousy stepped in and drove my hatred. Just as I had hated the Phillies for consistently winning, I hated Larry for being a legend. Sitting there at Turner field watching my Mets lose to them in person only deepened my distate.
The Mets only went 74-88 that year in a preverbial joke of a season, and the Braves made the playoffs, so it stung a little more than usual.
While at Turner, I also got to personally experience the most horrid phenomenon in the world.
The Braves have an annoying practice known as the "chop". This is how the chop plays out:
whilst singing a song that sounds vaguely like Dory when she speaks whale (OOOOOOHooooohoooooOHHHOOOOHH), the fans ritualistically chop their arms as if wielding the braves' iconic axe.
It is one of the most horrible things I've witnessed, and it makes my skin crawl. Far worse than the absolute dread that filled my heart upon seeing the Phillies Phanatic. Absolutely dreadful.
Also Turner field has weird chicken sandwiches, so theres that.
The 2012 postseason ended badly for the Braves, and Chipper, who made an error in the last game he ever played. Which ironically was the first ever 1 game wildcard playoff, against the Cards.
One thing that a Braves hater can take solace in is the fact that despite their relative greatness, they have a tendency to choke miserably in the postseason, as they did in '12. But still, they made it.
My boys didn't. I was bitter.
In the offseason of 2012 the Braves acquired B.J. Upton AND Justin Upton(both good players), and their outfield became a band of brothers. It also led to fun graphics like this:
The fact that they got both Uptons was just annoying, and with the Uptons in tow they went on to have a stellar '13 season, in which they clinched the NL east.
(they did choke again in the postseason though, so we're good).
But still, the Braves had been performing well, and my jealously of their persistent entrance (at the very least) into the playoffs made me jealous.
This offseason('13) has done nothing to appease my jealousy.
The Braves made it a point to resign allllllll of their young talent (ie Freeman, Kimbrel, etc) to massive long-term deals.
This basically ensures their success as an organization for years to come, which is bad enough to begin with. But then.....
it happened.
2 days ago.
one of the worst things imaginable.
On Wednesday, March 12th 2014, the Braves signed Ervin Santana, arguably the best available pitcher, to a 1 year, 14.1 million dollar contract.
(Another reason to hate the Braves, they're wealthy, and they have that kind of money to throw around)
The Braves recently lost their Ace Kris Medlen who found out he'd be needing Tommy John surgery, so they immediately responded by signing Santana. This means that the Braves will more powerful and an even bigger threat to my Mets going into the 2014 season. So naturally, the deal deepens my hatred.
I mean, the Mets did for a time have Johan Santana....
It's kind of ironic because Ervin Santana's real name is actually...you guessed it....Johan Santana. He changed it because he wanted to stand out from our Johan. When interviewed, he said:
"I just came up with Ervin... Ervin Santana, that sounds good."
You know what this means. Who's up for a road trip to Turner on his day in the rotation so we can scream JOHANNNNN, whenever he pitches? It'll be a great flashback to the Chipper days :)
In all seriousness though, the Braves are an outstanding organization. Even Mets captian David Wright said in an interview with ESPN:
“They’re a very successful, winning franchise, and it seems like they make smart decisions. Today is no different."
I'm not saying the Braves aren't great. Because that would be stupid. They are a winning club with great potential. Which is simply bolstered by the Ervin move. And this is precisely why I hate them, because they are so great, because they make moves like that.
I'm jealous.
One of my favorite quotes is that "Jealously is just love and hate at the same time."(I heard it in a Drake song but it likely originated elsewhere).
Following the quote's logic, I love what the Braves are capable of, so I hate them.
I guess you could say when it comes to the Braves, I'm the Green Eyed Monster
(shout out to Fenway, haha)
(they did choke again in the postseason though, so we're good).
But still, the Braves had been performing well, and my jealously of their persistent entrance (at the very least) into the playoffs made me jealous.
This offseason('13) has done nothing to appease my jealousy.
The Braves made it a point to resign allllllll of their young talent (ie Freeman, Kimbrel, etc) to massive long-term deals.
This basically ensures their success as an organization for years to come, which is bad enough to begin with. But then.....
it happened.
2 days ago.
one of the worst things imaginable.
On Wednesday, March 12th 2014, the Braves signed Ervin Santana, arguably the best available pitcher, to a 1 year, 14.1 million dollar contract.
(Another reason to hate the Braves, they're wealthy, and they have that kind of money to throw around)
The Braves recently lost their Ace Kris Medlen who found out he'd be needing Tommy John surgery, so they immediately responded by signing Santana. This means that the Braves will more powerful and an even bigger threat to my Mets going into the 2014 season. So naturally, the deal deepens my hatred.
I mean, the Mets did for a time have Johan Santana....
It's kind of ironic because Ervin Santana's real name is actually...you guessed it....Johan Santana. He changed it because he wanted to stand out from our Johan. When interviewed, he said:
"I just came up with Ervin... Ervin Santana, that sounds good."
You know what this means. Who's up for a road trip to Turner on his day in the rotation so we can scream JOHANNNNN, whenever he pitches? It'll be a great flashback to the Chipper days :)
In all seriousness though, the Braves are an outstanding organization. Even Mets captian David Wright said in an interview with ESPN:
“They’re a very successful, winning franchise, and it seems like they make smart decisions. Today is no different."
I'm not saying the Braves aren't great. Because that would be stupid. They are a winning club with great potential. Which is simply bolstered by the Ervin move. And this is precisely why I hate them, because they are so great, because they make moves like that.
I'm jealous.
One of my favorite quotes is that "Jealously is just love and hate at the same time."(I heard it in a Drake song but it likely originated elsewhere).
Following the quote's logic, I love what the Braves are capable of, so I hate them.
I guess you could say when it comes to the Braves, I'm the Green Eyed Monster
(shout out to Fenway, haha)