Well, here we are again on the back side of a Major League Baseball postseason with that all-too-familiar incomplete feeling.  I truly believed that this year’s team was special and they were in their own unique way.  I truly believed that we had a legitimate shot at making a little noise this October as the playoffs began.  I truly believed that this year would be different.  Unfortunately, it was not to be.

Being a fan is a very complex role to fill and as I survey the history of my life as a Braves fan, I’m reminded of some of the most memorable moments I’ve been fortunate enough to experience.  My first memory is having my picture taken in front of the Hank Aaron Memorial statue outside of Atlanta Fulton County Stadium just moments before another photograph was taken…this time it was with my dad and Atlanta Braves legend Dale Murphy.

I remember our journey from worst to first and how 1991 changed everything.  I remember the day Fred McGriff arrived in Atlanta…you remember…the day the stadium caught on fire.  I remember when Sid slid in ’92.  I remember how devastated I was when the strike began in ’94.  I remember the last out of the ’95 series that sealed the deal and deemed us baseball’s World Champions…FINALLY!!!

But I also remember losing what many consider to be the greatest World Series of all time thanks to Kent Hrbek pulling Ron Gant off the bag at 1st…and some guy named Jack Morris.  I remember losing another World Series to the Toronto Blue Jays just one year later.  I remember losing to the Phillies in the National League Championship Series in ’93.  I remember losing another World Series to the Yankees in ’96, the NLCS to the Marlins in ’97, the NLCS to the Padres in ’98, getting swept by the Yankees in the World Series in ’99, getting swept again in the NLDS by the Cardinals in ’00, nearly getting swept by the Diamondbacks in the NLCS in ’01, losing the NLDS to the Giants in ’02, losing to the Cubs in the NLDS in ’03, losing to the Astros in the NLDS in ’04, losing again to the Astros in the NLDS in ’05, going virtually non-existent in October for 4 years, then losing to the Giants in the NLDS in 2010.

We then go on to lose to St. Louis yet again in a Wild Card game…you know…the infamous infield fly rule game, we then lose to the Dodgers in the NLDS in ’13, go virtually non-existent in October for another 4 years, then lose to the Dodgers in the NLDS again last year and…well, we all know what happened 2 days ago.

I’m exhausted from typing all the details of our misfortune over the years, which brings me to the purpose of this particular blog entry.  As the 2019 campaign imploded in just 25 minutes on Wednesday evening, I witnessed a firestorm on Twitter concerning the response of fans and media throughout Braves Country.  Some were refusing to speak anything derogatory about our team, others couldn’t say anything but negative comments about our team and a third group spoke the truth through the breaks in their hearts and the tears in their eyes.

One of the most treasured memories I have as a Braves fan is the awesome privilege I had to meet the one and only Skip Caray.  Skip was a treasure.  Skip was hilarious.  Skip was also honest and brutally so at times.

Speaking of his dad, Chip Caray said this, “I hope his legacy is one of uncompromising honesty, integrity and character.  My dad was never afraid to tell the truth.  My dad was never afraid to be himself.  Aren’t you supposed to tell the truth?  My dad was not a guy that suffered fools lightly.  If a guy was playing badly, he said so.  If a guy was playing well, he said so.  If the team was doing well, he said so.  If not, he said so.  I think, frankly speaking, at times his honesty today would probably make him unemployable by a lot of people.  A lot of people in our business don’t want anybody to ruffle feathers.  Well, the truth is the truth and dad was never afraid to express it.  By and large, the people who were his audience grew to appreciate that quality from him because they looked to him as a guy that wasn’t a suit.  He wasn’t a corporate guy.  He really was broadcasting the games for the fans who were paying their good money to watch what, frankly, was a bad product.  I think dad felt he owed that to them at times when things were going badly to be honest about what they were buying.”

Unfortunately, we live in an era where no one wants to be inconvenienced by a differing opinion of any kind.  But, as has already been stated, the truth is the truth and the truth is that we stunk it up on Wednesday.  And, contrary to the views of some, as fans…lifelong fans…fans who buy tickets and pay for parking and buy $7 hot dogs and stand in line waiting for the gates to open and buy jerseys and t shirts and hats…we reserve the right to be frustrated and displeased when things aren’t going well.  After all, baseball is not about the players or the owners or the commissioner.  Baseball has always been and will always be about the fans.  When we’re honest about how awful things are, it doesn’t mean we’re no longer fans.  It doesn’t mean we’ve given up on the team that we love so much.  It simply means that we’re willing to be honest about where things stand.

I’m sad to admit that, not only has truth been placed on the back burner in baseball, it’s been benched in life as well.  Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free.”  An alcohol problem cannot be fixed when the alcoholic refuses to admit there’s a problem.  A failing marriage cannot be restored without both parties committing to God and each other.  Financial ruin cannot be reversed without discipline and responsibility.  You cannot ignore what the Bible says and expect everything to somehow supernaturally work out.  Jesus wasn’t suggesting one of many ways to live our lives.  He was giving us a foolproof blueprint for blessing.  He wasn’t offering an option.  He was laying out an unmistakable path to our destiny in His kingdom.

In life, as in baseball, we cannot simply ignore the facts and hope that rose-colored glasses will cause us to see things differently than they actually are.  After all, you can put lipstick on a pig but, at the end of the day, it’s still a pig with a little bit of lipstick.

I miss Skip Caray.  I miss his honesty.  I miss his humor.  I miss his ability to call things just as he saw them.  I miss truth.  I miss the days when we actually, with the help of the Holy Spirit, had the ability to know a tree by its fruit and call it as such.  You can’t grow apple trees that produce oranges.  You can’t make an Italian dinner with cereal and milk.  And you can’t win Game 5 of the NLDS with the strategy we used on Wednesday.  We need to be honest about the fact that, as Braves fans, we’re tired of every season ending the same way…either suffering unimaginable heartbreak or missing the playoffs altogether.  We’ll keep chopping.  We’ll keep buying tickets.  We’ll keep looking at Opening Day as a major holiday.  (I still don’t understand why school is not closed on MLB Opening Day.)  But we’ll also continue to be honest about our team and we need to get better.

We also need to be honest about the condition of our hearts and lives.  Make no mistake about it…the truth will win in the end.  As my grandmother used to say, “You can fool people but you can’t fool God.”

I refuse to believe that the world has discovered a better way than honesty.  I refuse to believe that society has discovered a better path than character.  I refuse to believe that people like Skip Caray can no longer call things as they are for fear of retribution because for every person you offend by speaking the truth, you’ll be honored and respected by as many or more for standing up for what you believe in.  How much of an impact did Skip Caray make on our lives?  Just ask our son…Conner Caray DeLoach.