Should Atlanta Stick with Long-Term Manager for the 2026 Season?
Braves fans have been widely speculating that the 2025 season will be the final chapter for longtime manager Brian Snitker. Despite speculations, many were caught by surprise when reports surfaced that Snitker is open to coming back for the 2026 season. In his tenth season as manager, Snitker's team is set to post a negative record for the third time in his coaching career. As the franchise grapples with on-field struggles and a roster decimated by injuries, one increasingly pressing question looms over: Should Snitker return as the Braves manager in 2026?
Snitker first took over as interim manager in the 2016 season and was named the full-time manager at the end of that season. Since then, he has led the Braves to one of the most consistent stretches in franchise history with six straight National League East titles from 2018 to 2023 and a World Series title in 2021. He was named NL Manager of the Year in 2018 and has overseen seven playoff berths. The accolades are all there for the Braves to keep him around another year, but with two back-to-back seasons of declining baseball, many are thinking that it is time to move on.
Others are quick to point out how the 2024 and 2025 seasons have been riddled with injuries. 2023 MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. was out with a ruptured left ACL for most of the 2024 and part of the 2025 season. Similarly, Ace right-hander Pitcher Spencer Strider was out for a similar amount of time with a UCL injury. The Braves have seen every member of their Opening Day starting rotation land on the injured list in 2025. Add in injuries to Silver Slugger Austin Riley, an 80-game suspension for new signing Jurickson Profar, and now the season-ending right hip labral tear to Sean Murphy, and it's fair to say the Braves have faced a perfect storm.
The Braves have been dealing with a plethora of injuries to their star players. Does this excuse Brian Snitker for the past two years? Maybe. The biggest issue appears to be a culture of playing through it all, highlighted by Sean Murphy's injury, as he had been dealing with hip pain for three seasons. Despite this, Snitker led a strong second-half turnaround in 2024 that pushed Atlanta back into the postseason. There's reason to believe he could do it again in 2026 with a healthy roster. While bringing a new voice might seem reasonable, it's worth remembering that Snitker has been the leader of Atlanta's return to dominance, and that shouldn't be forgotten after one down year.
