The story of the 2021 Atlanta Braves is a true Cinderella story. Coming off a strong performance in last year’s playoffs (they lost to the LA Dodgers in the NLCS in 7 games) their hopes were high. Flash forward to May 1, 2021: the Braves are 12-15 sitting in 4th place in the NL East. Here is a timeline of the Braves monumental downfall and incredible run through the playoffs to their first world championship in 26 years:

May 29: Braves all star outfielder Marcell Ozuna is convicted of assault charges. He is suspended by the MLB and is released by the Braves within 3 days.

June 26: All star starting pitcher Mike Soroka re-injures his achilles tendon. He would undergo season ending surgery shortly thereafter.

July 1: The Braves have fallen to 3rd place in the NL East at 39-41. They are still under .500 win/loss ratio. At this point the NL East is highly competitive between the Philadelphia Phillies, the New York Mets, and the Braves

July 10: Arguably the one of the worst days in Atlanta sports history. Superstar outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. tears his ACL. At this point, the Braves are ruined by injuries and it’s not looking good.

July 13: The Braves hit their lowest low. They only have a 0.3 percent chance of winning the World Series. Fun fact: If you placed a $1,000 bet on the Braves to win the World Series, it would have paid out at 25.6 million dollars. 

July 15: The Braves acquire Joc Pederson. This is where their season begins to turn around (Incredible foreshadowing)

July 30: Still in 3rd place in the NL East the Braves are now 51-54. As the trade deadline approached, they added: Jorge Soler (OF, DH), Eddie Rosario (OF), Adam Duvall (OF), along with relief pitcher Richard Rodriguez.

August 31: The Braves are now 70-62 and slingshot themselves into 1st place in the NL East. Led by veterans Freddie Freeman (Former MVP) and Austin Riley (a.k.a Austin Powers), as well as pitchers Charlie Morton and Max Fried. 

October 8: The Atlanta Braves have made the playoffs as the 3rd seed. They made the playoffs as an 88-win team. They were statistical underdogs in every single series. They would lose game one of the NLDS (National League Divisional Series) to the Milwaukee Brewers on this day

October 12: The Braves win the NLDS in 4 of 5 games. They defeated the 95-win Brewers in seemingly easy fashion after dropping the first game. “Joctober” is born. 

October 16: The Braves now faced the 4th seed Los Angeles Dodgers. A team who was 102-60 and was loaded with superstars like Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Max Muncy, Cory Seager, and Cody Bellinger to name a few. The Braves would win the first 2 games of the NLCS (Championship Series) in LA, but drop 2 of the next 3. 

October 21: Atlanta leads the series 3-2. The whole city sits on the edge of their seat.

October 23: Atlanta defeats the Dodgers in six games. The Dodgers were arguably the best team overall, in the playoffs. The city infamous for choking in sports events had made it to the World Series once again. The Braves would face the Houston Astros. 

Sidenote: In 2017 the Astros were incredible, well over 100 wins they were one of the best teams in a long time. Many accused the organization of stealing catchers’ signs ( so the batter would know what pitch was coming). The team was fully investigated by the league in 2019 and evidence of cheating was clear in reviews of games. This forced the resignation of many members of the Astros front office, as well as suspension of those involved. Unfortunately, the Astros would not be stripped of their recent World Series title. So if I refer to the Astros as the TRASHTROS that is why. 

October 26: Atlanta wins game one of the World Series by a score of 6-2.

November 2: The Atlanta Braves beat the Houston Trashstros in 6 games, not 7. They would celebrate their victory in Houston, winning on the road. 

Recap: The Atlanta Braves flight to the 2021 World Series was one of the greatest ever undertaken in the history of baseball. Well deserving players like Freddie Freeman and Jorge Soler got their first ring, others like Joc Pederson got his second ring in two years (He was just in the right place at the right time; he was 1-16 batting in the World Series). As an Atlanta fan, I’ve got to say victory tastes sweet. Personally, I thought I might never live to see an Atlanta team win a major sports championship. I can’t wait to see who the Braves are able to keep on their roster. With many players returning from injury they should have strong showing. 

PS: Shoutout Aaron Causey, that guy is one of the most committed Atlanta fans out there. Mad respect to him. “ATLANTA IS A CITY OF CHAMPIONS!! #ChopOn” -Aaron