A wide smile came across Braves manager Brian Snitker’s face.
As he sat with his legs crossed, Snitker confessed to a major mistake: He forgot his Peach Pass driving sticker for his drive into work.
“I got a real good parking spot,” he joked.
A lot has changed since Snitker last worked at Turner Field, where he was the third base coach from 2007-2013. In his three-year absence, the Braves have remade the roster. Only first baseman Freddie Freeman remains as the longest tenured Brave. However, some new talent has arrived like center fielder Mallex Smith and pitcher Matt Wisler, who both played for Snitker at Triple-A Gwinnett.
While the faces are different, some things still remained the same. The No. 43 jersey was still available and Turner Field still looked the familiar. But it wasn’t until he received visits from some old friends that made Snitker know he was finally at home.
“The best part is to see guys you known forever come in and say hello,” Snitker said. “It validates everything and makes you feel good. It’s not even about the desk that I was in. You lose sight of that. It is all about the friendships.”
That good feeling seems to have trickled down to the clubhouse. Since being brought in to replace Fredi Gonzalez on May 17, the Braves went into Tuesday’s play at 3-3, having just claimed their second series victory against the Phillies last weekend. For several players, Snitker’s positivity has led to a fresh start. It has also helped them feel more comfortable in the clubhouse and on the field.
“Snit comes in and brings a positive vibe and likes to have fun and be loose with everybody,” said pitcher Ian Krol, who also pitched for Snitker at Gwinnett. “It doesn’t seem like too much pressure, knowing our record. But we are going to go out and play baseball. For the most part, it has been really good.”
The team has responded. Offensively, the Braves hit nine home runs since Snitker’s arrival, matching their total through the first 36 games of the season. They have also pitched well, recording two shutout victories on the last road trip.
Catcher A.J. Pierzynski has taken notice. He credits it to a simple approach and timely hitting.
“It’s just to keep winning games,” Pierzynski said. “We haven’t done anything differently, I don’t feel like. We just got good pitching and good hits and that has led to winning baseball.”
Infielder Kelly Johnson agrees. He added that the team is trying to be more efficient in hitting to all fields and minimizing mistakes.
“We are trying to be short and focusing on getting ourselves in the best situations to get a base hit,” Johnson said.
The Braves hope to implement their recent road success at home, where it hasn’t been easy. The Braves were 2-17 at Turner Field entering the Milwaukee series and haven’t won a home game in nearly two weeks. Pitcher Julio Teheran, who faced the Brewers on Tuesday night, had a 2-2 record with a 2.04 ERA against the Brewers over his career.
The homestand serves as a chance to build some momentum from what had been the worst start in club history.
“We need to get the train going at home,” Johnson said. “I think we got the right guy on the mound and we will get a couple of starts with him at home. We got to pick him up and go and win some games.”
