Atlanta Braves At a Crossroad: Fire Now or Fire Later?
With His Team Circling the Drain, the Firing Squad is Lining Up Around Fredi Gonzalez
The tweet storm was raised to a Category 4 today:
Bud Black, who was nearly hired to manage the #Nats this year, now on the #Braves radar for the 2017 season. https://t.co/lWyvbhE94g
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) May 4, 2016
Column https://t.co/wmtkUF9NFA Question for #Braves is not if they r firing mgr Fredi Gonzalez, but when. Tomorrow is in play.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) May 4, 2016
The specifics from each of these columnists are getting equally hair-raising. Just a couple of days ago, it seemed that the sentiment might be toward letting Fredi Gonzalez continue to ride out the season. That seemed to be the message being conveyed yesterday in this exchange by David O’Brien, who is clearly close to the situation:
@gondeee Then fire him after those decisions or collapses, not now when this debacle is not his doing. Ride out season, then make change.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) May 3, 2016
Freddie Freeman is echoing that kind of sentiment is remarks made this afternoon:
Freeman on #Braves' 7-20 start: "It's the players, not the manager"https://t.co/zSVLPU84cq
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) May 4, 2016
Yet none of that may ultimately matter. The media is seeing blood in the water and many fans are grabbing the popcorn and joining in the fray:
Waiting on Fredi to get fired. #Barves #FireFredi pic.twitter.com/Vh4kMXSdWI
— Chad Caldwell (@ChadCaldwell24) May 3, 2016
If it took THIS kind of embarrassing start for #Braves front office to FINALLY see what we've all seen for YEARS, I'll take it. #FireFredi
— Daria Huber (@dariadel) May 4, 2016
Next: What Actual Journalists are Actually Saying