The Braves planned to tell Fredi Gonzalez he was fired on Tuesday, when president of baseball operations John Hart could join GM John Coppolella in Pittsburgh. However, Gonzalez received a flight notification email informing him of a flight back to Atlanta on Tuesday afternoon. The Braves are in Pittsburgh through Thursday, so Gonzalez was able to put two and two together, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Gonzalez was zen about the situation, however. From O’Brien’s column:“What would have sucked is if you’d dragged it all the way out to the weekend before the season ended, and then got whacked,” he said. “There’s no perfect timing, but in this situation I think sooner than later was better.”
He added, “I think I’ll be OK. I’ve already talked to a bunch of baseball people, they texted me, offering support. Maybe I’ll take a week or two off, a month off, ride the motorcycle around before it gets too hot.”
Brian Snitker, formerly the manager at Triple-A Gwinnett, will manage the Braves in the interim. He’s overseeing the Braves tonight for the first time as they take on the Pirates.
