For those who like to reminisce and maybe hope for better times for the Braves, the Richmond Times-Dispatch looked back Friday on the season 30 years ago when future Hall of Famers Tom Glavine and John Smoltz both featured in the Richmond Braves starting rotation.
The prospects who would eventually become key cogs in a dynasty that won a World Series and 14 consecutive division titles weren’t putting up the kinds of numbers you’d expect to see from pitchers who would dominate at the Major League level.
Glavine had a respectable 3.35 ERA in 22 starts at Richmond, but only amassed a 6-12 record before getting called up Aug. 17. That was five days after the Braves acquired Smoltz in a trade with the Tigers for Doyle Alexander.
Smoltz finished that 1987 season with an ERA near 6.00, but he bounced back the next year at 10-5 with a 2.79 ERA before joining Glavine in Atlanta.
