The 1966 Atlanta Braves season was the first for the franchise in Atlanta, and 96th overall, following their relocation from Milwaukee, where the team had played the previous 13 seasons. The Braves finished their inaugural year in Atlanta in fifth place in the National League with a record of 85–77, ten games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves played their first season of home games at Atlanta Stadium. The home attendance for the season was 1,539,801, sixth in the ten-team

Offseason November 29, 1965: Jesse Gonder was drafted from the Braves by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1965 rule 5 draft.Jesse Gonder at Baseball Reference January 29, 1966: Tom Seaver was drafted by the Braves in the secondary phase of the 1966 Major League Baseball draft, but the pick was voided.Tom Seaver at Baseball Reference

Regular season July 3, 1966: Tony Cloninger became the first National League player—and, as of 2022, the only pitcher—to hit two grand slams in one game.Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p. 259, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, September 11, 1966: Rookie pitcher Pat Jarvis of the Braves became the first of 5,714 strikeout victims of Nolan Ryan's career.Baseball's Top 100: The Game's Greatest Records, p. 32, Kerry Banks, 2010, Greystone Books, Vancouver, BC,

Opening day The Atlanta Braves' first-ever game was played at home, at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, on Tuesday, April 12, 1966, against the Pittsburgh Pirates before 50,671 fans.Retrosheet box score: 1966-4-12 Braves' starting pitcher Cloninger, a 24-game winner in Milwaukee in 1965, pitched a 13-inning complete game but absorbed a hard-luck, With the game tied at one in the top of the 13th, future hall of famer Willie Stargell hit a two-out, two-run home run to put Pittsburgh ahead 3–1. Atlanta catcher Joe Torre hit his second solo homer of the game to narrow the deficit to one run, but the Pirates held on to win. Earlier, in the fifth inning, Torre had hit the first homer in Atlanta's major league history.

Starting lineup 29 Felipe Alou CF41 Eddie Mathews     3B44 Hank Aaron RF43 Rico Carty LF15 Joe Torre C19 Denis Menke SS  9 Lee Thomas    1B  2 Frank Bolling 2B40 Tony Cloninger P

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Front-office and managerial turnover The Braves' first year in Atlanta featured an unusual amount of management churn in both the front office and dugout. On June 28, it was announced that Paul Richards, a veteran former MLB manager and general manager, would join the team as a roving troubleshooter in its farm system.The Associated Press, June 26, 1966 The Braves were then a disappointing 34–42 (.447) and in eighth place in the ten-team National League. Braves president and GM John McHale remarked that Richards, 57, was poised to assume greater responsibilities within the Atlanta organization if called upon, leading to speculation that he would replace embattled field manager Bobby Bragan. More than a quarter-century earlier, in 1938, Richards had begun his management career as the successful player-manager of the minor league Atlanta Crackers.

On August 9, with the Braves still mired in the second division at , games behind and in fourth-year skipper Bragan was dismissed and replaced by bench coach like Richards a former teammate of McHale's with the Detroit Tigers. Hitchcock's hiring would pull the Braves out of their tailspin, and they won 33 of 51 games (.647), advancing to fifth place. But Richards was indeed destined to rise within the Atlanta organization. On August 31, he was named director of player personnel at both the Major and minor-league levels, effectively becoming general manager of baseball operations without the formal title, which McHale temporarily retained.United Press International August 31, 1966 Four months later, McHale resigned from the Braves to join the office of Commissioner of Baseball William Eckert, and on January 11, 1967, Richards was formally named Braves' general manager. He would serve in the post through June 1, 1972.Baseball America Executive Database

National transactions April 4, 1966: Marty Keough was purchased by the Braves from the Cincinnati Reds.Marty Keough at Baseball Reference April 5, 1966: Frank Thomas was placed on waivers by the Braves.Frank Thomas is place on waivers April 28, 1966: Billy Cowan was traded by the Braves to the Chicago Cubs for future Braves manager Bobby Cox and cash.Bobby Cox at Baseball Reference May 29, 1966: Marty Keough was traded by the Braves to the Chicago Cubs for John Herrnstein. Arnold Earley was also purchased.Cubs, Atlanta trade again June 7, 1966: Al Santorini was drafted by the Braves in the 1st round (11th pick) of the 1966 Major League Baseball draft.Al Santorini at Baseball-Reference

Roster 1966 Atlanta Braves Roster Pitchers Catchers

Infielders Outfielders Manager

Coaches

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI C 148 546 172 .315 36 101 1B 154 666 218 .327 31 74 2B 144 455 120 .264 0 43 SS 138 454 114 .251 15 60 3B 134 452 113 .250 16 53 LF 151 521 170 .326 15 76 CF 118 417 110 .264 23 66 RF 158 603 168 .279 44 127

Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI 75 227 48 .211 1 18 76 191 37 .194 8 24 78 126 33 .262 4 10 39 126 25 .198 6 15 71 110 24 .218 2 7 37 91 25 .275 0 5 42 71 18 .254 0 6 31 44 4 .091 0 2 17 18 4 .222 0 1 17 17 1 .059 0 1 12 16 1 .063 0 0 6 11 3 .273 0 3 6 9 0 .000 0 0 3 9 1 .111 0 1 4 3 0 .000 0 0

Pitching

Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 39 257.2 14 11 4.12 178 32 215.2 14 8 3.30 105 27 171.0 11 8 3.74 139 16 67.2 3 7 5.32 34 10 62.1 6 2 2.31 41 9 29.2 0 4 7.89 19 2 8.1 1 1 2.16 6 1 7.0 1 0 2.57 6

Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 20 81.0 7 5 3.22 50 14 48.1 2 3 3.91 22 11 45.1 3 3 4.37 27

Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO 73 8 7 11 2.37 67 47 5 4 7 4.23 41 38 4 4 4 3.86 42 28 4 3 2 4.11 17 24 2 3 6 2.40 20 22 0 2 0 3.10 23 22 0 1 4 4.08 33 14 0 0 0 3.42 11 3 0 1 0 13.50 1 1 0 0 0 0.00 2

Farm system

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Austin

Notes

References

1966 Atlanta Braves season at Baseball Reference