They filled Atlanta Fulton County Stadium when Hank Aaron hit No. 715, which proved they knew where it was.
Then they left and didn’t come back.
Through most of the 1970s and ’80s, the Atlanta Braves were a civic burden, a disappointing nephew, the back side of the house that never got painted.
They had three winning seasons between 1974, the year Aaron passed Babe Ruth, and 1991. Fans were hard to persuade.
The only entertainment came from Phil Niekro, Dale Murphy and especially owner Ted Turner, who appointed himself manager for a night and once tried to get Andy Messersmith, who wore jersey No.