Brian Snitker: Losing coaches is “the price of success”

Manager Brian Snitker talked about bullpen chief and losing base coaches Ron Washington and Eric Young Sr.

Teams regularly come and go from meetings at the Winter Meetings with representatives from Major League Baseball, free agent agencies, and various media outlets.

However, a related—and crucial—focus is on job interviews. While many job seekers are in Nashville to meet with baseball personnel about entry-level positions, higher-level meetings are also taking place.

The manager of the Atlanta Braves, Brian Snitker, acknowledged that the team is working on finding a replacement for base coaches Ron Washington and Eric Young Sr. Washington left to take a leadership position with the Los Angeles Angels, and Snitker would not commit to details about Atlanta’s hiring process.

“We’re having conversations and carrying out our research. We don’t feel under any obligation to act, and it’s similar to the players we’ve lost (Dansby Swanson and Freddie Freeman, to name two from prior offseasons): all three were crucial to our success.”

With all due respect, though, Snitker argued that the team could succeed even without those coaches. “We’ve created a situation where we’re not defined by one player (or) one coach – we’re going to fill those voids and we’ll continue to be really good.”

In the end, though, Snitker stated he anticipated this. That’s the cost of success, I informed Alex Anthopoulos. People are drawn to your people, so those guys have a lot of great opportunities.”

Bullpen coach Drew French, who is currently the pitching coach for the Baltimore Orioles, was the third member of the staff to leave this season without much fanfare. Snitker did take some time to recognize French.