LAS VEGAS — Brian Snitker is one of baseball’s feel-good stories.
After spending years and years in the minor leagues, Snitker finally was given his shot by the Braves. He has made the most of it – and then some.
Snitker is a finalist for National League Manager of the Year. The Mets’ Buck Showalter and the Dodgers’ Dave Roberts are the other finalists.
This would be Snitker’s second time winning the award. He also captured the honor in 2018, when his Braves exceeded expectations and began a run of what is now five consecutive postseason appearances.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America votes on the award. Voting took place at the end of the season. The winner will be announced Nov. 15.
In 2022, Snitker guided the Braves to 101 wins and a fifth consecutive NL East crown. His team overcame the largest deficit to win the division in franchise history. The Braves trailed the Mets by 10 ½ games after play on June 1.
Before the June 1 game in Arizona, Snitker held a team meeting. He hoped to emphasize that his team, capable of much more than it had shown, was not playing its brand of baseball.
From June through the end of the regular season, the Braves went 78-34.
In the process, Snitker eclipsed 500 career wins as a big-league manager.
“It’s all about the people,” Snitker said in July, of his time with the Braves. “I’ve said many times: I’ve been raised by Hall of Famers and really good people. There’s a laundry list of guys – a lot of them aren’t here anymore – that were very influential in my career. It’s always been about the quality players in the Atlanta Braves organization. The players, the people, the general managers, the directors, the scouts, the whole thing.
“It’s been very special. This is a different place.”
His players love him.
After Snitker’s 500th career win, Dansby Swanson said this: “I think he just really allows guys to be themselves. There’s definitely, like, standards in this organization that we all feel like we need to uphold and everything like that, but he definitely kind of creates that box that you can play in and allows you to just be you. He makes everything about winning just like you do.”
Spencer Strider said this: “Just his calmness and the confidence he exudes as a result. Early on, we were sort of scuffling, there was never any panic. You know that he’s at the helm and he’s confident, and there’s no reason we shouldn’t be as well.”
It’s difficult to know whether Snitker will win the award. These honors usually go to the manager who helps turn around a team that wasn’t as successful the year before or came out of nowhere.
Showalter, who led the Mets to 101 wins and one of their best finishes in franchise history, might be the favorite. Roberts’ Dodgers won 111 games, the second-highest total in NL history.
But time and again, Snitker has proven he is among the sport’s top managers.
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