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Sporting News, The, Nov 6, 1995 by Steve Marantz

Dynasty. Break up the Braves. OK, maybe we're premature. They just won their first World Series since 1957.

But if we can agree that dynasties need not win four or five consecutive World Series, as did the Yankees of the 1930s and 1950s, or even three, as did the A's of the 1970s, then we have a case. The definition of dynasty is no more graven upon Babe Ruth's Hau of Fame plaque than upon the icy equanimity of Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine. A dynasty is judged by the standards of its era. If it walks and talks like a dynasty, then it probably is, unless of course it's George Steinbrenner.

Fact is, the Braves have yet to accomplish as much as the Blue Jays of'85-93, Yankees of '76-81, Reds of '70-76 or Orioles of '66-71. All won at least two World Series and, except for the Blue Jays, four pennants. But the point is not that the Braves are the best team of the last 30 years; it's that they are catching up with those teams.

At minimum, the Braves are a dynasty-in-waiting. In five years they have won a World Series, three National League pennants and a division crown. In 1994, they were headed for no less than a wild card before the players went on strike.

They have equaled the A's of '88-92 - a division crown, three pennants and a World Series - but there is little chance they will suffer the same decline. The A's were leveled by weak starting pitching, a farm system of modest yield and a lack of financial will and wherewithal. None of those pitfalls awaits the Braves. No, the Braves are the 18-wheeler of baseball, built for the long haul. "This club is the team of the '90s," Braves President Stan Kasten says, "and the '90s are only half over."

Manager Bobby Cox, guardedly optimistic, notes that the organization's best prospects are at the lower minor league levels, among them Andruw Jones, a five-tool phenom from Curacao who batted .277 with 25 homers, 100 RBIs and 56 steals this season at Class-a Macon (South Atlantic). By the time they arrive, the current youth - Javier Lopez, Ryan Klesko, Chipper Jones - will be grizzled. "We have enough youth on this club to carry it for about the next four years," Cox says. "The nucleus is good."

Maddux, Glavine and John Smoltz are in their primes, as are Dave Justice, Fred McGriff, Mark Lemke and Marquis Grissom. The core - if it remains intact - has a lot of mileage left in it.

Nothing is guaranteed, however. The Blue Jays present a cautionary tale. After their six-game conquest of the Phillies in the '93 Series, there was reason to think they would continue on top. Like the Braves, they are well-capitalized and strong organizationally. But their dominant closer, Duane Ward, went down with a bad shoulder. Two bright young starters, Pat Hentgen and especially Juan Guzman, fell off. Veterans Joe Carter, Paul Molitor and John Olerud declined, and a couple of touted prospects faded to deliver. "There's a certain unpredictability - it's a very fragile sport." Indians General Manager John Hart says. "You lose a Duane Ward, it kills you."

It could happen. Closer Mark Wohlers, he of the triple-digit heat and irrepressible enthusiasm, could go down. Any of the starters - Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz, Steve Avery, Kent Mercker - could come up lame. Things happen. But so far they haven't happened to the Braves. Part of it is due to method, part to luck.

Glavine pondered a repeat after closing out the Indians in Game 6 with a one-hitter that inscribed him in World Series legend. "I know the difficulty getting back to the World Series after losing," he says. "I can't imagine it will be much more difficult getting back from the winning side. It takes a lot of luck to get back here. I guess at this point in time the way baseball is ... the question is how many (players) are coming back? I guess we'll answer that in February."

By next spring the Braves could be different. First baseman and cleanup hitter Fred McGriff is a free agent; the club may choose to let him go so that Klesko can inherit first base. Klesko certainly did nothing but raise their confidence in him last week, homering in each game at Cleveland. But after Game 6, Owner Ted Turner was overheard saying to McGriff, half in jest. "We'll dig up all the money we can and put it in a pile." Avery and Mercker might leave if the club, anticipating prospect Jason Schmidt, forgoes arbitration. Any combination of reserve outfielders Mike Devereaux, Luis Polonia and Dwight Smith, or backup catcher Charlie O'Brien, might be jettisoned.

Any or all personnel changes will be scripted by John Schuerholz, one of a few general managers to build a World Series winner in two cities (also Kansas City, 1985). Schuerholz advocates a "pro-active" approach and, in fact, his midseason acquisitions of Polonia, Devereaux and Alejandro Pena probably pushed the Braves over the top. But Schuerholz cites attitude - a future imponderable - as a factor in finally winning a World Series. "The hunger was there," he says. " ... this team was not going to be denied. After coming so close in '91 and '92 they would not be denied."