We should all have friends so loyal – and the Atlanta Braves have enjoyed the company of a couple such players since the mid-1990’s. Chipper Jones was the 1st of these – and led the Atlanta Braves as their middle-of-the-order ‘constant’ for nearly 2 decades.
However, nothing lasts forever, so when he hung up the spikes after the 2012 campaign, a void was left. There were some relatively new kids around, but Brian McCann became unaffordable after 2013 and Jason Heyward chose another path after 2014.
That same year, though, Freddie Freeman was offered a contract that was the largest single deal in franchise history: 8 years and $135 million.