While there was the possibility of Snitker calling it a career, the Atlanta Braves general manager continues to insist that there is no list of successors yet.
The speculation for who could be the next Atlanta Braves manager has begun, but there is no confirmation for who could be a more realistic candidate than others. As far as general manager Alex Anthopoulos is concerned, these guesses are purely guesses. He said on Saturday that there is currently no list.
Anthopoulos insisted that if Snitker had wanted to return for 2026, then he would have gotten the chance.
“He would have been back. That’s why we were going to wait and give him the time he needed,” he told the Associated Press.
He wanted to make sure some things done internally” before the search could begin. They have no reached the stage of interviewing any candidates.
“I will now turn my attention to the manager,” Anthopoulos said to the Associated Press. “… We have not spoken with anybody.”
The process will not be rushed, but ideally, this will get done “sooner than later.”
This isn’t the first time that he has insisted that he doesn’t have a list. Last month, he made a similar statement during a pregame press conference when ensuring that Snitker would always have a place with the organization.
“Absolutely not. Would never do that,” he said last month. “I think it’s a completely disrespectful thing to do or even consider. He’s the manager of the team, and that’s not even crossed my mind.”
One potential candidate has already gotten a manager job since Brian Snitker retired earlier this week. Skip Schumaker chose to take with the Texas Rangers, where he had been a senior adviser last season after stepping away from the Marlins manager position.
There two internal candidates. Walt Weiss was the Colorado Rockies manager from 2013 to 2016, and Fredi Gonzalez managed the Braves, with Snitker as one of his coaches from 2011 to 2016. When the latter was fired, Sniter took over as the interim manager, and the rest is history.
Former Braves catcher and former Cubs manager David Ross has expressed interest in another chance at being the manager, as well as specifically showing interest in the open position in Atlanta.
Other potential candidates include Mark DeRosa, who is a former Braves utility player and the current manager for Team USA for the World Baseball Classic. John Gibbons, who served as the Blue Jays manager under Anthopoulos in Toronto, became available after leaving his position as the Mets bench coach.
Cubs bench coach Ryan Flaherty has begun to be mentioned as a potential option for the position. The 39-year-old coach was also the bench coach for the Padres and served as the acting manager when Bob Melvin had to step away to go on COVID-19 protocols. He also has a connection to the Braves. He played for them in 2018.
While he’s not a rumored candidate, per se, Melvin could also be a potential candidate since he was let go by the Giants.
