Braves name Walt Weiss as new manager: Atlanta bench coach promoted to top dugout job

The Atlanta Braves have reached an agreement for a new manager and it’s former player Walt Weiss, the team announced Monday. Weiss replaces the retiring Brian Snitker in the Braves’ dugout. 

Weiss, 61, spent parts of 14 seasons in the majors, playing for the A’s, Marlins, Rockies and concluding with three seasons for the Braves. He was part of the pennant-winning 1999 Braves, hitting .286 in the NLCS. 

Previously, Weiss managed the Rockies from 2013-16, going 283-365 and failing to make the playoffs. He’s spent the past eight seasons as the Braves’ bench coach, which is the MLB version of a top assistant, second-in-command.

The Braves have had a really nice run of success with Snitker and Weiss. Snitker took over as interim manager in 2016 after the dismissal of Fredi Gonzalez and impressed the higher-ups enough to keep the job on a full-time basis. Weiss joined as Snitker’s No. 2 in 2018. Starting that season, the Braves had a run of six consecutive NL East titles and then a wild-card berth after that. They won more than 100 games twice and won the 2021 World Series. Obviously, Snitker was the boss there, but Weiss had to have had some hand in the managing of the team and there’s something to be said for continuity in the dugout. 

Weiss was originally selected by the Athletics in the first round out of North Carolina in the 1985 Draft. He won American League Rookie of the year for the pennant-winning A’s in 1988 and was their starting shortstop for the 1989 World Series championship and then again the following year for the third straight AL pennant. He made the All-Star team for the Braves in 1998. 

It’s been a busy managerial carousel since the end of the regular season. Nine teams have been searching for their next manager and so far we’ve seen seven teams fill their vacancy. The Rockies and Padres are still looking for their next manager.