The dulling of the "Tomahawk Chop"

Well, the Atlanta Braves have been officially dethroned. The New York Mets have done what no one has been able to do since 1990. The Mets have become National League Eastern Division champs. The last time the Brave did not win the division, George Bush (H. W. that is) was president. Vanilla Ice was popular (still can't believe he ever was). The Milwaukee Brewers were still in the American League. No one had ever heard of the Florida Marlins, Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, or Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Washington Nationals were a historical footnote (having moved to Minnesota in the early 1960s). The Wild Card was term associated exclusively with the NFL.

The Braves won an amazing 14 consecutive division titles, a feat not even equalled by the vaunted New York Yankees. In those 14 years, the Braves won 5 pennants and only one World Series. The Florida Marlins, in the last 10 years, won two World Series. During the last 14 years, the Toronto Blue Jays won two. The Yankees won four.

It seems to me that the Braves were among the biggest underperformers in the post season. It's nice to see some new faces. Now, if we could just get the Yankees to lose.