The Atlanta Braves' Marquis Grissom and slugger David Justice were part of a Braves roster that, heading into the 1997 season, was the MLB's highest-paid. Grissom ($4.8 million annual salary) and Justice ($6 million) were traded to the Indians in return for Lofton ($4.75 million) and Alan Embree ($206,000). "This is a trade of enormous magnitude for two very, very good franchises. We're talking about franchise-type players", Hart said. For Lofton, considered "the centerpiece of the Indians' 1990s revival", it was a return to the National League. "The trade will be in the back of my mind for a long time, but it's baseball. It happens to nearly everybody. I'm [in Atlanta] to play every day. It's all Braves from now on", Lofton said. By April 19, the Braves were 13–3 and Lofton's hitting (.453 batting average) had won favor with his new Braves teammates. "If he keeps hitting .400 he'll fit in just fine", said Chipper Jones. For the season, Lofton's .333 batting average and 27 stolen bases were team highs (his stolen-base total was to that point a career low). He was caught stealing 20 times, an MLB high. Atlanta won the NL East division with an MLB-best 101–61 record. The Braves swept the Houston Astros in the 1997 National League Division Series (NLDS), three games to none. In the 1997 National League Championship Series (NLCS), the Braves lost to the Florida Marlins, four games to two (the Marlins later defeated the Cleveland Indians in the World Series). For the NLCS, Lofton batted .185 and was one of three Braves' hitters who recorded seven strikeouts in the series. For Lofton, who was eligible for free agency at the end of the season, it was his only season with the Braves.