DETROIT -- Braves manager Brian Snitker will enter this season’s final week with the Braves on an eight-game winning streak, earned by completing a three-game sweep of the playoff-hopeful Tigers with a 6-2 finale victory on Sunday afternoon at Comerica Park.
This has been a fun stretch, but the 69-year-old skipper still hasn’t been told what role he’ll fill during what will be his 50th straight season as a coach, player, instructor or manager within the Braves’ system. His managerial contract expires at the end of this season.
“[The winning streak] has increased excitement about getting to the ballpark tomorrow,” Snitker said. “I'm excited to get to the next series and hopefully win a series right there. I'm proud of how the guys have responded here late.”
The Braves have continued to say they won’t discuss Snitker’s future until the season ends. So, is it weird for the baseball lifer to not know whether he’ll remain a big league manager or have a cushy advisor’s role next year?
“I’m going to get through a week from today and then decompress a little bit,” Snitker said. “I kind of put it out of my mind right now and I’m just concentrating on today.”
There had been an assumption Snitker would retire at the end of this season and move into the front office. But two weeks ago, he said there’s a chance he would like to remain in his current position, which he was elevated to six weeks into the 2016 season.
Snitker guided the Braves to six straight National League East titles from 2018-23 and to a seventh straight postseason with last year’s injury-depleted squad. Signs that this year might be different were realized when Atlanta began 0-7 and lost both Reynaldo López (season-ending shoulder surgery) and top offseason acquisition Jurickson Profar (80-game performance-enhancing drug suspension) during the span.
Each of the five members of Atlanta’s season-opening starting rotation spent time on the 60-day injured list. As for Spencer Strider, he also missed nearly two months because of injuries.
But if the Braves win at least five of their final six games, they can finish just six games below .500. In other words, they would have won more games than they lost after the 0-7 start. This would certainly be beneficial to any argument to keep Snitker in his current role.
Along with "Snitker Watch," here are a few other things to watch during the final homestand, which includes visits from the Nationals (Monday-Wednesday) and Pirates (Friday-Sunday).
Strider’s final start
Strider might not be back to being Strider, but he’s been pretty good over the final month. His five scoreless innings against the Tigers on Sunday gave him a 2.10 ERA over his past five starts. It took the right-hander some time to distance himself from last year’s season-ending elbow surgery. But he has shown how effective his secondary pitches can be, even when his fastball isn’t at its best in terms of both velocity and command.
If the Braves choose, both Strider and Chris Sale -- who is slated to face the Nationals on Monday -- could pitch during next weekend’s series against the Pirates. Sale has a 1.37 ERA over his past 14 starts.
Having a rotation that will be headed by Sale, Strider and Spencer Schwellenbach gives Snitker even more reason to be excited about what next year might bring.
30/100
Matt Olson doesn’t need round numbers to feel satisfied with how he performed while leading all MLB first basemen in WAR this year. But it would be nice to see Olson get the two homers and seven RBIs he needs to notch his fourth 30-homer, 100-RBI season in five seasons. He finished one homer and two RBIs short of a fourth straight such season last year.
In just his fourth year with Atlanta, Olson could join Hank Aaron (10), Andruw Jones (5), Dale Murphy (5), Eddie Mathews (5), Chipper Jones (5) and Wally Berger as the only players to have at least three 30/100 seasons for the Braves.
Final portion of the recruiting visit
Ha-Seong Kim’s two home runs during this weekend’s series sweep gave the Braves further reason to hope he returns to be their shortstop next year. The 29-year-old veteran would become a top free-agent target if he declines his $16 million option for 2026.
But the Braves could try to lock him up with a multi-year deal before he hits free agency. Other potential suitors don’t have the advantage of being able to woo him during the season’s final week.