The 1979 Atlanta Braves season was the 109th season for the franchise and their 14th in Atlanta.

Offseason January 9, 1979: Brook Jacoby was drafted by the Braves in the 7th round of the 1979 Major League Baseball draft.Brook Jacoby at Baseball-Reference February 22, 1979: Mike Davey was purchased from the Braves by the Seattle Mariners.Mike Davey at Baseball-Reference March 31, 1979: Dave Campbell was traded by the Braves to the Montreal Expos for Pepe Frías.Dave Campbell at Baseball-Reference

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Death of GM Bill Lucas On May 5, 1979, the Braves were staggered by the sudden death, at 43, of the club's general manager, Bill Lucas. The first African-American general manager in Major League Baseball, and the highest-ranking black executive in the game at the time of his death, he had been stricken at home May 2 with a massive cerebral hemorrhage, after watching a Braves' road-game victory on television.The Associated Press, May 8, 1979

Lucas had been the Braves' top baseball operations official since September 17, 1976, and on his watch the team introduced players who would be integral parts of its early 1980s contending teams—such as Dale Murphy, Bob Horner and Glenn Hubbard. During Lucas' term, the club had also hired Bobby Cox for his first term (1978–81) as manager. Lucas had been a player and executive with the Braves since 1957; his sister, Barbara, also was the former wife of Hall of Famer and Braves' legend Henry Aaron.Bryant, Howard, The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron. New York: Random House, 2010, page 446

Lucas was succeeded May 16 by John Mullen, 54, a vice president with the Houston Astros since 1967 but previously a longtime member of the Braves' management team in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. Mullen would serve as the Braves' general manager until his replacement, by Cox, in October 1985.Baseball America Executive Database

Notable transactions April 3, 1979: Buzz Capra was released by the Braves.Buzz Capra at Baseball-Reference June 5, 1979: 1979 Major League Baseball draft Paul Runge was drafted by the Braves in the 9th round.Paul Runge at Baseball-Reference Brett Butler was drafted by the Braves in the 23rd round. Player signed June 11, 1979.Brett Butler at Baseball-Reference

Roster 1979 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 Bruce Benedict 76 204 46 .225 0 15 1B 104 384 106 .276 21 57 2B 97 325 75 .231 3 29 3B 121 487 153 .314 33 98 SS 140 475 123 .259 1 44 LF Jeff Burroughs 116 397 89 .224 11 47 CF Rowland Office 124 277 69 .249 2 37 RF 156 631 192 .304 27 90

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 Jerry Royster 154 601 164 .273 3 51 Barry Bonnell 127 375 97 .259 12 45 Joe Nolan 89 230 57 .248 4 21 Mike Lum 111 217 54 .249 6 27 Darrel Chaney 63 117 19 .162 0 10 27 113 35 .310 0 5 Charlie Spikes 66 93 26 .280 3 21 Biff Pocoroba 28 38 12 .316 0 4 Larry Whisenton 13 37 9 .243 0 1 Bob Beall 17 15 2 .133 0 1 Mike Macha 6 13 2 .154 0 1 8 10 1 .100 0 0 Jim Wessinger 10 7 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 44 342.0 21 20 3.39 208 31 186.0 7 14 4.21 96 Rick Matula 28 171.1 8 10 4.15 67 20 107.1 6 9 5.28 64 Larry McWilliams 13 66.1 3 2 5.56 32 3 12.2 0 2 6.39 1

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 Mickey Mahler 26 100.0 5 11 5.85 71 6 24.1 1 1 2.96 15

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 68 6 16 25 4.33 56 Craig Skok 44 1 3 2 3.98 30 40 3 2 0 3.24 22 Joey McLaughlin 37 5 3 5 2.48 40 Bo McLaughlin 37 1 1 0 4.89 45 21 1 0 2 0.95 11 Rick Mahler 15 0 0 0 6.14 12 Frank LaCorte 6 0 0 0 7.56 6 4 0 0 0 13.50 3

Farm system

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Greenwood

Awards and honors

League leaders Phil Niekro, National League leader, LossesGreat Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p. 348, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York,

Notes

References

1979 Atlanta Braves season at Baseball Reference Atlanta Braves on Baseball Almanac