If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this one from 1991 may be worth a million.
In the history of Atlanta sports, few photographs can match the one captured by AJC photographer Frank Niemeir, who at the perfect moment, caught what was the beginning of the city’s greatest sports run — Braves catcher Greg Olson jumping into the arms of pitcher John Smoltz after the final out of the final regular-season game, a 5-2 victory against Houston.
But what many forget is that when this photo was taken on that October Saturday, the Braves had not won the division. That took place an hour later when, with more than 50,000 in the stands at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium and the Braves players assembled on the field, the big screen in center field flashed that San Francisco had beaten Los Angeles, giving the Braves the first of 14 consecutive division titles.
The photo has lived many lives since then. It graced the cover the 1991 book, “Miracle Season,” and has been signed countless times by Smoltz and Olson. When Smoltz was inducted into the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame a few months ago, a fan asked him to sign the photo. “If I only had a dollar for every time I have signed that photo,” he said.
He also once said, “Greg was a really big guy, but when he jumped in my arms he felt like a feather on that day.”
Smoltz lives in Atlanta and continues to announce some Braves games for Fox. Olson, a real estate agent, lives in Eden Prairie, Minn., and managed an independent baseball team for a while after leaving the majors.
He was asked by a reporter from SB Nation at a fantasy camp a few years ago if he thought Smoltz could catch him now.
“After I retired we made a $100 bet,” he said. “He said that I was going to gain at least 20 pounds over the next four years. I said, I’ll take that bet. Well, I’m still the same weight as when I retired in 1993. And John’s still in good physical shape, so yes, I think he could do it.”
