You could make a case for the 2011 Braves, who started the year 8-12 and finished 7-13. In between they were consistently good. The 1980 Braves had a similar trajectory, losing 9 out of their first 10 games and 8 out of their last 11 but were a bit more schizophrenic, careening between terrific and terrible. That they managed to finish one game over .500 tells you just how streaky that team was.
Despite coming off yet another last-place finish, there was reason for optimism entering the ’80 season, Bobby’s third as Braves manager. Oft-maligned GM John Mullen had pulled off two shrewd deals, acquiring Doyle Alexander from Texas and Chris Chambliss from Toronto.