The Atlanta Braves need to hire a manager and Brian Snitker seems to have all of the “momentum”. The interim manager performed quite well in terms of wins and losses and, at least from the outside looking in, Snitker appears to have the full support of the players.
However, the front office (rightly) appears to be conducting a legitimate interview process, including recent discussions with both Bud Black and Ron Washington. To that end, Snitker spoke with Mark Bowman of MLB.com and he had this to say in support of the external interviews:
"If I was them, I'd be doing the same thing. You never know. Somebody might come in here and blow them away with something they've never thought of before. If that is going to make this club and this organization better, then heck, I'm all for it."
With that in mind, Bowman also weighed in on the managerial search on Tuesday morning, positing that it could be a “two-horse race” between Snitker and Black.
I'd say it's a two-horse race, but I think Snit is slightly in front of Black right now. Things could change. https://t.co/KlrKnA9JGz
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) October 4, 2016
Frankly, this is in line with common thinking over the past few weeks and months, as Black has always been closely linked to the Braves opening. He is considered to, at least potentially, be a more analytically inclined option and Black was the NL Manager of the Year in 2010 with the Padres. In addition, he has close ties to John Schuerholz and with the presence of only Washington as an external candidate that we know about, Black would be the logical choice alongside Snitker.
It remains to be seen what the Atlanta Braves will do in terms of the choice to lead the team in 2017 and beyond, but at the very least, it is encouraging to see the team exploring other options rather than operating in close-minded fashion. Stay tuned.