While I can’t exactly pinpoint when I became an Atlanta Braves fan, it must have been in 1970 or 1971. 

I didn’t really “discover” Major League Baseball, or sports in general for that matter, until the 1969 World Series. Sometime between then and the beginning the 1970 season, I must have learned Atlanta had a professional team. Because I was born in Atlanta, the Braves just automatically became my favorite.

Sometime between then and 1972, my great uncle Clyde came to visit us from Atlanta and told me stories about going to the Braves game with his daughter. I began pestering my parents to take me to a game. They began working out a deal with my “Uncle Johnny” (he was actually a cousin who was 17 years my elder) to take me to a game.

That happened on July 7, 1972. I’ve been hooked ever since. The Braves have played close to 8,000 games since that time and I dare say I have kept up with 95 percent of them in some form or fashion.

That’s 49 years of teams full of more baseball players than I can count, but I can call most of their names where you’ve heard of them or not, including the likes of Larvell “Sugar Bear” Blanks, Sonny Jackson, Mike McQueen, Pat Rockett, Brad Komminsk, Gil Garrido and Preston Hanna.

But none of the aforementioned made my list of Top 100 all-time favorite Braves.

Over the previous four columns, I have revealed numbers 100 through 4 on my list, and today I’m closing it out with the Top 3, who clearly stand above the rest in my mind.

•No. 3 is “The Hammer.” It is likely the first Brave I ever heard of was Hank Aaron. He is certainly the greatest baseball player to ever play for Atlanta and arguably one of the 10 best baseball players of all-time.

When you see large muscle-bound men crush homers during this era of baseball, it is hard to fathom that Hank Arron stood — on his tip-toes — no taller than 6 feet, while most records had him 5-foot-11 and between 180 and 190 pounds. 

He also hit off his front foot and wasn’t that concerned about “launch angle.” Yet he finished his career with 755 homers and is still baseball’s all-time leader in RBIs with 2,297 and total bases with 6,856. He also never struck out more than 97 times in a season. He never hit more than 47 homers in a season but hit 10 or more in all 23 of his Major League campaigns.

Aaron was a first baseman late in his career but as a young man was a stellar outfielder with a strong throwing arm and above-average speed.

What I remember most about Aaron was his composure and class even in the face of adversity. I got the chance to see him hit a homer in person in 1974, which is one of my fondest memories.

•No. 2 is Dale Murphy. Let me go ahead and get this out of the way — Dale Murphy belongs in the Baseball Hall of Fame. 

While it appears he will never be enshrined in Cooperstown, he will be in my Hall of Fame forever. Another class individual who always seemed to carry a smile and have time to talk to fans.

From 1982 through 1987, he was arguably the best player in baseball. He earned back-to-back MVP awards in 1982 and 1983 and was in the top 10 the next two seasons. He was awarded the Gold Glove for five of those six seasons.

He came up as a catcher but eventually made his home in centerfield. He smashed 218 homers and drove in 629 during those six seasons. Only once during those six years did he fail to hit at least 36 homers and drive in at least 100 runs, that being the 1986 season, in which he had 29 homers and 83 RBIs. He hit .302 in his MVP year of 1982 when he also had a league-leading 121 RBIs and batted an even .300 in 1985 while also leading the league with 37 homers.

He was truly a pleasure to watch play the game, whether it was in person or on television.

•No. 1 is Phil Niekro. I can’t really explain why he is my favorite. To me he just epitomizes what it means to be a Brave. He gave his best whether the team was playing poorly or well. 

I got a chance to interview him on July 20, 1983, when I was still a green-behind-the ears sports reporter at the age of 24.

Niekro was the master of the knuckleball, winning 318 games over his 24-year career, earning himself a place in the Hall of Fame while tossing 245 complete games, including 20 or more in four separate seasons.

I got a chance to see him pitch in person multiple times, but the most memorable occurred on Monday, July 20, 1987, when he was pitching for the Cleveland Indians. On that night, the Indians defeated the Royals 9-5, earning Niekro the final win of his career.

I think it was only fitting that I was there.

The numbers 44 (Aaron), 3 (Murphy) and 35 (Niekro) will always be special to me. Just the thought of those numbers bring back countless memories.

Thanks for allowing me to share this list with you. I would love to read yours.

Austin Bishop, AKA The Old Sports Dude, has been covering high school, college, amateur and professional sports since 1975. He is currently pastor of Great Commission Assembly of God in Philadelphia. He may be contacted by email at starsportsboss@yahoo.com.