Notable transactions • May 11, 1972:
Steve Barber was released by the Braves. • June 6, 1972:
Preston Hanna was drafted by the Braves in the 1st round (11th pick) of the
1972 Major League Baseball draft. • June 15, 1972:
Jim Nash and
Gary Neibauer were traded by the Braves to the
Philadelphia Phillies for
Andre Thornton and
Joe Hoerner. • June 29, 1972:
Orlando Cepeda was traded by the Braves to the
Oakland Athletics for
Denny McLain.
Front-office and managerial turnover The 1972 Braves' 70–84 season, following on the heels of a hopeful, 82–80 mark in , resulted in the in-season firings of both
general manager Paul Richards, on the job since January 1967, and
field manager Luman Harris, who was in the midst of his fifth season as the team's skipper. Richards and Harris were a management team that had worked in tandem for 15 years with the
Chicago White Sox,
Baltimore Orioles and
Houston Astros before coming to the Braves. Atlanta was 18–22 on June 1 when Richards was demoted from GM to special assignment scout; his replacement was another longtime associate,
Eddie Robinson, 51, the director of the club's
farm system. Harris was fired August 6, with the Braves standing at 47–57 (.452), in fourth place in the NL West Division and 16 games behind the
Cincinnati Reds. His successor was another internal hire,
Eddie Mathews, 40, the team's first-base coach and perennial
All-Star third baseman from its glory days in
Milwaukee during the 1950s.
Season standings Record vs. opponents Roster == Player stats ==