5 Greatest Braves Shortstops of All Time

The Braves have developed and won with some excellent shortstops over the years, though the position hasn't been as stacked with talent as, say, its greatest outfielders.

Still, fans from Arkansas to South Carolina have a take on who their favorite infield captain was growing up. Here's our attempt at ranking the top five shortstops to don a Braves uniform.

5. Rabbit Maranville (1912-1920; 1929-1933; 1935)

Maranville edges out hometown favorite and 2021 World Series winner Dansby Swanson on this list, and it's not hard to see why.

For a franchise so steeped in history, Maranville is a must-mention for his Hall of Fame career and 40.5 career WAR over a 13-year career with the Braves, predominantly played in Boston.

While Maranville finished top three in MVP voting in his first two full seasons, he's mostly known for his glove, still serving as the MLB leader in career assists by any player at any position. Over the course of his career, Maranville led NL shortstops in putouts six times.

4. Jeff Blauser (1987-1997)

Blauser was a centerpiece of the 1990s Braves dynasty, moving around the infield before cementing his place at shortstop in 1993.

Blauser could be argued to be the best offensive shortstop in franchise history, if not for the No. 3 player on this list.

While his production slowed in 1995 and defense suffered, with 23 errors in 1996, Blauser's 1993 and 1997 seasons still raise good memories for older Braves fans.

In 1993, he made the All-Star team, batted .300, and scored 110 runs, and in 1997 came back from a rough 1996 season wrecked by injuries only to bat over .300, hit 17 home runs, drive in 70 runs, and post a 130 OPS+.

3. Andrelton Simmons (2012-2015)

It's not a bad argument to say that had Simmons, in the middle of a seven-year, $58 million deal signed with Atlanta prior to 2014, not been traded in the 2015 offseason to the Angels, he could easily be the No. 1 shortstop on this list.

Point is, Simmons was without a doubt the best defensive shortstop in Braves history. He finished 2013 with the highest Defensive Runs Saved of any player in a single year, and received both the Gold Glove and Fielding Bible Award that year, repeating in the same fashion the year after.

Simmons' career nosedived after he left Atlanta, but his unreal glove overshadowed a very solid bat. He led all NL rookies in batting average and on-base percentage in his 2012 rookie season, and the short-lived nature of his career in Atlanta will still go down in the history books.