Outfield Otis Nixon first came to the Atlanta Braves in a trade with Montreal only days before spring training ended in 1991.
The Braves, under new general manager John Schuerholz, were looking for needed veteran speed to add to a lineup that included new faces like third baseman Terry Pendleton, first baseman Sid Bream and shortstop Rafael Belliard.
Nixon had broken into the majors with the Yankees in 1983, who had taken him in the first round (third overall) of the 1979 amateur draft. He spent the new few seasons with the Cleveland Indians as a utility outfielder and pinch runner before playing in 126 games in 1989 with the Expos and then stealing 50 bases the next season in 119 games in Montreal.
When the Braves acquired Nixon on April 1, 1991, for catcher Jimmy Kremers and a player to be named later, Atlanta was sharing a spring training facility with Montreal and Nixon literally only had to move from the third-base clubhouse to the one on the first-base side to join his new team.
He quickly made an impact with Atlanta, joining Ron Gant, Lonnie Smith and Deion Sanders in the outfield and playing in 124 games, stealing a franchise record 72 bases and hitting .297. It included tying a major league record with six stolen bases in a game in Montreal.
On Sept. 16 of the 1991 season, the Braves announced Nixon had tested positive for cocaine and was suspended 60 games -- including the final 21 days of the regular season.
The news shocked Atlanta and the team.
It was Nixon’s second run in with drugs while playing baseball, his first coming in 1987 when he was arrested on drug charges with Cleveland’s Class AAA Buffalo team. He would plead guilty to a lesser charge and entered a 30-day drug rehabilitation program.
After his 1987 arrest Nixon underwent frequent drug testing, sometimes as often as two or three times a week, by the league. His next misstep under the league’s drug policy would mean a 60-day suspension.
In July 1991, Nixon failed a drug test.
Because had passed what amounted to hundreds of drug tests, however, the commissioner’s office took no action until the next failed test two months later.
The team rallied. Much like they did earlier in the season with injuries to Bream and David Justice, the Braves were able to fill the void left by Nixon, finishing off their amazing worst-to-first run and wining the National League West, the first of 14 straight division titles, and finished just one win away from capturing a World Series.
Nixon would continue to battle a drug habit as he returned after sitting out the first 39 games of the 1992 season, hitting .294 and stealing 41 bases. He made what perhaps still today is the greatest catch in Braves history, going up high over the wall at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium to snatch away what would have been an Andy Van Slyke home run on a hot July night in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Nixon notably made the final out of that season in the sixth game of the World Series against Toronto. With a runner at third and two outs, Nixon tried to reach first base on a bunt which he had done so many times during his Braves career but was barely thrown out at first base by Blue Jays reliever Mike Timlin. It is the only time in history the World Series has ended on a bunt.
Nixon played the 1993 season in Atlanta, helping the Braves take one of the most memorable division races when they won 104 games, finishing a game ahead of San Francisco. He was granted free agency after the season and he signed with the Boston Red Sox. He was traded to Texas after the 1994 season for Jose Canseco before making stops in Toronto, Los Angeles and Minnesota.
He then came back to the Braves as a free agent in 1999 and was used mostly as a pinch runner. Nixon made one final splash in the postseason at the age of 40 in Game 6 against the New York Mets in the National League Championship Series.
He came on to pinch run at first with the team trailing 8-7 in the eighth inning. He stole second, going to third on the errant throw and scored the tying run on a Brian Hunter single in a game the Braves won in 11 innings to take the league pennant 4-2 and advance to the World Series to play the New York Yankees.
Nixon retired after that season, playing in 1,709 games and stealing 620 bases. He played in 24 postseason games with the Braves, stealing 11 bases.
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