Braves signal preference for Brian Snitker replacement following Giants' Tony Vitello breaking news originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Atlanta Braves are coming off one of their worst seasons in the past decade. It has been just as long since the team hasn’t been in any kind of postseason race or contention. Former Braves manager Brian Snitker was on the hot seat all season, and many expected it to be his final year at the helm.

“Because of that consistent recent success, Snit would normally be afforded a ‘mulligan’ year—even though going from the second-best preseason World Series odds to possibly the third-best odds of winning the draft lottery is a pretty serious mulligan,” Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller wrote. “At 69, though, he's already the oldest manager in the National League by a several-year margin and was likely to retire at the end of this season, which is the last one in his current contract.”

Now, the Braves are searching for their next manager, and GM Alex Anthopoulos has made it clear that the process won’t be rushed.

“You just can’t rush it or force it,” Anthopoulos said. “It’s a big decision. It’s a big hire. You’d love to do it sooner rather than later. But every team going through this would tell you the same thing.”

With the San Francisco Giants likely hiring Tony Vitello, it may reveal a lot about the Braves’ intentions.

“Names like David Ross, John Gibbons, and Walt Weiss all have the plus of past managerial experience on their side. The Vitello news could signal past managerial experience is a key prerequisite for Atlanta. That has to be a big reason why Atlanta didn't pursue Vitello harder because his success at Tennessee speaks for itself. You have to think if the Braves wanted Vitello he would have preferred to take the Braves job considering they have a better roster as of now,” HTHB’s Chase Owens wrote.

Ross and Weiss appear to be the top two candidates. Weiss has been part of the Braves clubhouse for years, while Ross knows the system as well as anyone.

Anthopoulos seems to be leaning toward hiring someone with managerial experience — a safer move compared to the Giants’ more aggressive approach. It will be interesting to see how the situation in Atlanta develops in the coming weeks.

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