As the Atlanta Braves make their way through a long rebuilding season in 2016, manager Fredi Gonzalez will reportedly no longer be with the team.
According to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Braves fired Gonzalez on Tuesday.
The timing comes as a bit of a surprise, as Mark Bowman of MLB.com reported May 8 the Braves weren't expected to relieve Gonzalez of his duties soon:
But over the past few days, it seems Atlanta has become more receptive to giving Gonzalez at least a couple more weeks to compete against a kinder schedule and a roster that now includes Ender Inciarte, the energetic outfielder who returned on Saturday from a month-long absence caused by a strained left hamstring.
However, Gonzalez wasn't expected to manage the Braves next season, and a potential replacement has already been named. On May 4, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported former San Diego Padres manager Bud Black is considered a "heavy favorite" to take over in Atlanta next season.
Nightengale added in his full report that Braves management is "embarrassed over their horrific start this season."
There's no way to classify Atlanta's poor start as anything but bad, though it's also prudent to add context. The front office put Gonzalez in a no-win situation this year by trading away Andrelton Simmons, Cameron Maybin, Christian Bethancourt and Shelby Miller over the winter.
Everyone expected the Braves to be bad this season because the front office was going to start building through the farm system.
The Braves' faith in Gonzalez dating back to 2015 has been interesting, to say the least. He was given a contract extension around the All-Star break last year that guaranteed his salary for 2016 and includes an option for 2017.
At the time, Gonzalez had managed the Braves to a 42-47 record. It was not a great mark, but last year was also seen as the start of a rebuild for the franchise after Jason Heyward, Justin Upton and Craig Kimbrel were traded during the offseason.
Fortunately for the Braves, Gonzalez is only under a guaranteed contract for 2016, so they won't have to pay him for a long time to go away after the firing.
