Afternoon Chop: Atlanta Braves news, notes around the World Series
Lots of changes are coming.. minor leagues, managers… and that’s in addition to whatever personnel we’ll seen once roster moves begin in earnest after this week.
Ron Washington did not get the job that he interviewed twice for – that being the Padres managerial vacancy. He’s also not getting the bench coach position, which means that – for now – the Atlanta Braves still have their Teaching 3rd-base coach on the staff.
No one ever talks about why one person is picked for a role while another is passed over, though the hiring of 38-year-old Jayce Tingler stands in fairly sharp contrast to the candidacy of 67-year-old Ron Washington in terms of age in experience.
The recent trend of clubs hiring managers with little-or-no experience is interesting, and had had mixed results.
The Phillies have held high expectations over the past couple of years and have now opted for Joe Girardi as manager – while interviewing only well-experienced former field bosses.
The Twins hired Rocco Baldelli – still the youngest manager in MLB – yet they achieved breakout results in 2019.
The Mets hired manager without managerial experience (though he’s an experienced pitching coach) in Mickey Callaway, but now they appear to be heading toward a replacement hire that I’ll call an ‘experienced manager without MLB experience’… Eduardo Perez.
Our Atlanta Braves are getting good results with a similar kind of hire – Brian Snitker, who’s only prior management came in the minors. He keeps winning awards, in fact.
But is this more about the Front Office putting a club together properly or a manager mixing the X’s and O’s well?
Managers have a weird job… they aren’t the ones on the field who hit, run, throw, and field and yet they are the ones held most accountable for what happens… heck, they don’t even get to pick their own players most of the time.
Oh sure – there are discussions with the Front Office about personnel, but since everybody wants the best players, what you usually end up with is a player that you hope can fill the role you have an opening for.
Still, it’s interesting to see the changes occurring in baseball. Gone are most of the Old School authority figures. Enter instead the communicators… the friends. The father-figure is largely gone… the older brother is ushered in. That’s what makes Snitker unusual.
Remember the scene in Bull Durham? The experienced Crash Davis is asked for advice by his manager about how to get through to his team about using the fundamentals of baseball. The answer? “They’re kids…. scare ’em.” An armful of bats in the shower did that.
Somehow I doubt that’s a technique being used today.
Gattis not concerned about not playing
This note didn’t get a lot of press last week, but it’s noteworthy as we grew quite fond of a Large Adult Son named Evan Gattis who played for the Atlanta Braves for a couple of seasons.
El Oso Blanco – the White Bear – burst onto the scene seemingly out of a janitor’s closest and even got himself a World Series ring in the process.
While he was already an older prospect when he came up through the Braves system, Gattis is still just 33 today and could still play… though after helping Brian McCann throw out the first pitch of the World Series last week, reports are that he’s good with staying home.
If he’s done… and that more-or-less seems likely… he will have enjoyed a 6-year career as a catcher, DH, and occasional left-fielder while hitting 139 homers, knocking in 410 RBI and hitting .248 with a 111 OPS+.
He also made $16.6 million along the way and provided more than a few smiles from his unlikely trek to baseball, and then his equally unlikely skill at doing so.
That’s the stuff of a folk hero.
The Only Reasons to Root for the Nats?
So the World Series is now tied at 2 games all as this is being written, and honestly… I’ve been trying to conjure up reasons to pull for the Nationals. Don’t @ me.
After a full week, I’ve come up with only 4 such reasons:
- Kurt Suzuki and Jonny Venters would get rings.
- Bryce Harper isn’t on their team any more … he wouldn’t get one, of course.
- The entire NL East would have hoisted the trophy at one time or another.
- It would end an 11-year NL East drought… the Phillies being the last winners in the division (2008).
- The longest current divisional drought is that of the AL West. No such team has won it all since the Angels in 2002.
Going back to the Braves’ 1995 victory and all years since, the NL East is responsible for championships just 4 times… and as noted, only one of those coming since 2008.
The East (Red Sox and Yankees) have won 8 times and the NL West has matched the East with 4 trophies since 1995… but the San Fran wins are much more recent.
Both Central divisions have picked up the slack in recent seasons, but the AL West remains with just that lone 2002 title in the past 25 seasons.