Blue Jays have history in Atlanta

Following a successful weekend in New York, The Toronto Blue Jays head south to face the Atlanta Braves for three games beginning on Tuesday.  In their history, the Blue Jays have played 23 regular season and playoff games in Atlanta; none bigger than the first three.
 

The Braves called Fulton County Stadium home from 1966 to 1996, the site of one of the greatest triumphs in Blue Jays franchise history.

The 1992 World Series opened in Atlanta, with Joe Carter getting the scoring underway for the Blue Jays in Game 1 by taking Tom Glavine deep to lead off the fourth inning.  Unfortunately, that would be the only highlight the Jays would have that night as they fell 3-1 in their first ever Fall Classic Game.  

Things would get worse before they got better for the Jays.  Prior to the second game of the series, the U.S. Marine Corps Color Guard flew the Canadian flag upside down during the pre-game performance of the anthem.  

Following the flag issues, the game itself finished more positively for the visitors. Third baseman Ed Sprague came off the bench in the top of the ninth inning to hit a two-run homer off Braves closer Jeff Reardon, leading the Jays to a 5-4 victory to even the World Series at a game apiece.
 

After taking two of three games in Toronto, the series would return to Atlanta with the Jays looking for one victory to capture their first championship.

The Blue Jays carried a potential series-clinching lead into the ninth inning of Game 6, but closer Tom Henke was not able to put the game away thanks to an RBI single from Braves outfielder Otis Nixon.  

Dramatically, Dave Winfield doubled home two runs in the top of the 11th and Mike Timlin picked up the final out in the bottom of the inning to secure the 1992 title.  The iconic scene was punctuated by outfielder Joe Carter, who started the game at first base, squeezing the final out and leaping into the air to begin the celebration.

The Blue Jays would not return to Atlanta until the second season of interleague play, when they contested a June series at Turner Field in 1998. They have amassed an 8-12 regular season record overall on the road against the Braves.

Their best regular-season performance would come in 2006 when they swept a three-game series from June 20th to June 22nd.  Closer B.J. Ryan picked up a save in all three victories and the Jays were powered by home runs from Reed Johnson, Troy Glaus and Vernon Wells.

Following the series sweep, the Blue Jays would lose their next eight straight games in Atlanta, including dropping all three games in 2009 and 2011. They were shutout twice over this stretch, with Kenshin Kawakami going eight scoreless against them in 2009 and  Tim Hudson tossing eight scoreless against them in 2011.

Most recently, the Jays split two road games with the Braves in 2013.  Edwin Encarnacion had a three hit game in a 3-0 win in the opener and Mark DeRosa drove in two runs in an 11-3 loss in the series finale.

The Blue Jays will send Mark Buehrle to the mound on Tuesday as they continue their push towards the 2015 MLB playoffs and hopefully in the process, create a few more positive baseball memories in Atlanta.