Braves Untold

Julio Franco defied age and reason to have a productive five-year run for the Braves from 2001-05. The Braves signed him as a 42-year old to fill in at first base in 2001 where he hit .300 in 25 games down the stretch. The next season he continued to hit powerfully, finishing at .284 in 125 games. He hit .294 as a 44-year-old, .309 at 45, and .275 at 46. He hardly ever pulled the ball, waiting for outside pitches where he could keep his hands inside the ball and drop that giant barrel to spray line drives to the opposite field gap. After two years with the Mets he returned in 2007 at 48 and hit .250 in 40 at bats, still as fit as ever.

• Julio Franco defied baseball age standards to have an impressive five-year run with the Braves.
• The Braves signed the first baseman as a 42-year-old. He immediately drew the attention of fans as he hit .300 in 25 games!
• He continued to keep up the momentum and at 43 years-old finished the season at .284 in 125 games.

Felix Millan was as good of a defender at second base as anyone in team history. The Puerto Rican native won Gold Gloves in 1969 and 1972, and led the NL in fielding and assists among second basemen in 1969. That year he became the first Brave ever to play all 162 games in a season. Felix the Cat made the All-Star team each year from 1969-71 and played regularly through 1972. In 1971, he was the hardest player in the National League to strikeout, fanning only once every 26.2 at bats.

Andres Galarraga was a big, power-hitting first baseman who was also surprisingly nimble around the bag and had wonderfully soft hands that handled throws in the dirt with ease. The Venezuelan hero answered to “El Gato Grande” and maintained his quickness into his 40s. The Big Cat was a legend in his home country of Venezuela, idolized by teammates and opponents from his homeland. He was a gentle giant, always sporting a giant smile outside the lines. After a monster 1998 season with the Braves, Galarraga developed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in his back. He missed the entire 1999 season while he underwent chemotherapy. The team wore his number 14 on their hats in his honor. He overcame the disease and worked his way back for the 2000 season. In the first game of the season he hit a towering home run to left field to complete his comeback and ultimately made the All-Star Game in his home park. He was an inspirational team leader and community pillar.

Bobby Cox referred to Rafael Belliard as Pacman, saying he gobbled up everything hit his way. He was part of the strategy of backing up the Braves talented young pitchers with reliable defenders and he served that purpose brilliantly, boasting the surest hands in the business. Belliard, despite his tiny 5’6 and 160-pound frame, carved out a 17-year career in the majors and even popped two career home runs, going a record 1,869 at bats between them. He was a member of the 1995 World Series Championship team.

Vinny Castilla made his Major League debut as a Brave in 1991, then was selected in the expansion draft by the Colorado Rockies in 1992. After hitting 40 or more home runs three straight years there, Vinny returned to the Braves in 2002 and was the every-day third baseman for two seasons where he led the league in fielding percentage. Castilla hit 34 home runs between 2002-03 and helped produce the best offensive Braves team of their 14-consecutive division title run. Vinny is the all-time leading home run hitter for Mexican born players with 320 for his career. He managed the Mexican team in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, and was inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020.