The 1977 Atlanta Braves season was the 107th season for the franchise and their 12th in Atlanta. The team finished in last place in the six-team

National League West The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed for the 1969 season when the National League expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a re ...

with a record of 61–101, 37 games behind the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

. The Braves hit a major league-leading seven grand slams. All Braves home and away games were broadcast on WTCG-TV which during the offseason, under its owner

Ted Turner Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he fo ...

, became the pioneer superstation in the United States and thus making the Braves the first MLB team to have its games telecast to millions of television viewers around the country aside from the national broadcasts on ABC and NBC which had been the case before the team's opening series of the season.

Offseason

* November 17, 1976:

Gary Matthews Gary Nathaniel Matthews Sr. (born July 5, 1950), nicknamed Sarge, is an American former professional baseball left fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from through for the San Francisco Giants, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phill ...

was signed by the Braves as a free agent. * December 9, 1976:

Carl Morton Carl Wendle Morton (January 18, 1944 – April 12, 1983) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Montreal Expos and the Atlanta Braves. Morton was named the ...

Adrian Devine Paul Adrian Devine (December 2, 1951June 27, 2020) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher in and from through for the Atlanta Braves and Texas Rangers. He batted and threw ...

Ken Henderson Kenneth Joseph Henderson (born June 15, 1946) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from through for the San Francisco Giants, Chicago White Sox, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers, ...

Dave May David LaFrance May (December 23, 1943 – October 20, 2012) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from through for the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rang ...

Roger Moret Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...

, and $250,000 were traded by the Braves to the Texas Rangers for Jeff Burroughs.

Regular season

Turner's one-day reign as manager

Midway through the season, with the Braves mired in a 16-game losing streak, owner

sent

Dave Bristol James David Bristol (born June 23, 1933) is an American former manager in Major League Baseball in the 1960s and 1970s. He managed the Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, and San Francisco Giants during this period. Success in th ...

on a 10-day "scouting trip" and took over as his own manager. This only lasted for one game (a 2–1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates) before National League president Chub Feeney ordered Turner to give up the reins, citing major league rules which forbid managers or players from owning stock in a team. After the Braves broke the skid under third-base coach

Vern Benson Vernon Adair Benson (September 19, 1924 – January 20, 2014) was an infielder/outfielder, coach, scout and interim manager in American Major League Baseball. During his playing career, he stood 5'11" (180 cm) tall, weighed 180 pounds (82&nbs ...

, Bristol—who had spent the time at his offseason home in

Andrews, North Carolina Andrews is a town in Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,781 at the 2010 census. History Cherokee era Indigenous peoples lived in the area for thousands of years before European encounter. By the late 16th ...

—was given his old job back for the remainder of the season.

Notable events

*September 15, 1977 -

Dale Murphy Dale Bryan Murphy (born March 12, 1956) is an American former professional baseball player. During an 18-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB) (–), he played as an outfielder, catcher, and first baseman for the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphi ...

hits two home runs in an 8–7 win over the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

, the first home runs of his major league career.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Opening Day starters

* Jeff Burroughs *

Vic Correll Victor Crosby Correll (born February 5, 1946) is a former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds in all or parts of eight seasons spanning 1972–1980. Listed at 5' 10", 185 lb., Cor ...

* Rod Gilbreath *

* Willie Montañez *

Rowland Office Rowland Johnie Office (born October 25, 1952) is a former outfielder for the Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos and New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1972 and 1983. Biography Born in Sacramento, California, Office played baseb ...

Pat Rockett Patrick Edward Rockett (born January 9, 1955) is an American former baseball shortstop who played for the Atlanta Braves between 1976 and 1978. Rockett was drafted by the Braves as the tenth pick of the 1973 amateur draft. He played his first gam ...

Jerry Royster Jeron Kennis Royster (born October 18, 1952) is an American former Major League Baseball player and coach. He was a third baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, and the New York Yankees. He was ...

* Dick Ruthven

Notable transactions

* April 30, 1977: Mike Marshall was purchased from the Braves by the Texas Rangers. * June 7, 1977: Larry Owen was drafted by the Braves in the 17th round of the

1977 Major League Baseball Draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1977 Major League Baseball draft. Other notable Selections ''*'' Did not sign Background The White Sox surprised some when they passed on right-handed pitcher Bill ...

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Farm system

Awards and honors

League leaders

Phil Niekro Philip Henry Niekro ( ; April 1, 1939 – December 26, 2020), nicknamed "Knucksie", was an American baseball pitcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball, 20 of them with the Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves. Niekro's 318 career victor ...

, National League leader, Losses''Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures'', 2008 Edition, p. 348, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York,

Notes

References

*
1977 Atlanta Braves season at Baseball ReferenceAtlanta Braves on Baseball Almanac
{{Atlanta Braves Atlanta Braves seasons Atlanta Braves season

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...