John Smoltz's career is a reflection of my life. Seriously.

Shortly before I turned three years-old, the Atlanta Braves traded 36 year-old Doyle Alexander to Detroit for a young, balding fastballer by the name of John Smoltz. Since that fateful day a lot has happened in the world:

George Bush became president. America attacked Iraq. The Berlin Wall fell. The Braves went from worst to first. The Soviet Union fell. Atlanta lost an NHL team. Lightning struck twice and the Braves went back to the series. Greg Maddux came to Atlanta. The Braves won the division again...and baseball went on strike as Tom Glavine betrayed us. After three championships, Jordan tried to play baseball. The Bills lost four straight Super Bowls.

The Braves won the Series! The Browns left Cleveland. The Olympics came to Atlanta. The Braves won the division again and 18 year-old Andruw Jones tried to upset the Yankees. Jordan came back to win three more. The Falcons did the dirty bird all the way to the Super Bowl and Smoltz won the Cy Young. The Braves won four more division titles. Smoltz won the Cy Young. The Browns came back to Cleveland.

I went to high school. Another George Bush got elected. Everyone in baseball did steroids. Pro hockey returned to Atlanta. The World Trade Centers fell. Tom Glavine betrayed us, again. The Falcons drafted Mike Vick. Georgia Tech went to the Final Four. Smoltz came back from surgery to become the best closer of all time. I graduated high school.

I went to college and Smoltz returned to the rotation as the Braves won two more divisions. Lance Armstrong won six consecutive Tour's de France. The Braves ended their division win streak at 14, the longest record in any sport ever. Smoltz got divorced. The Hawks returned to the playoffs. Brett Favre retired and unretired. Smoltz got strikeout 3,000. Michael Phelps won eight gold medals.

I graduated college. Chipper Jones won his first batting title. The Tampa Bay Rays went from worst to first. Tech stopped UGA's football win streak at seven. The Braves lost 90 games for the first time since '90. I got a job.

And then, on January 8, 2009, a few months before my 24th birthday....



...John Smoltz left.