Former UNO letterman Snitker leads Braves to NL East crown

ATLANTA – For the first time since 2013, the Atlanta Braves are the NL East champions. Led by former University of New Orleans letterwinner Brian Snitker, the Braves will appear in the National League Divisional Series, beginning October 4. After taking over as interim manager to end the 2016 season, Snitker is in his second full season as the skipper in Atlanta.

A 1976-77 letterwinner for the Privateers, Snitker became the second UNO student-athlete to manage a Major League team (Mike Quade managed the Chicago Cubs from 2010-11).

Joining the Privateers in the fall of 1975 following two all-state seasons at Lincoln Junior College in Illinois, Snitker spent the summer with the Central Illinois Collegiate, hitting .323. Despite playing in five games due to injury in his Privateer debut, Snitker was selected in the 25th round of the 1976 Major League Draft by the Chicago Cubs.

He returned for his senior campaign with the Privateers and went on to hit .268 with a .406 slugging percentage courtesy of six doubles, one triple and three home runs while driving in 21 runs, scoring 10 times, posting six stolen bases and drawing 25 walks. In his lone full season on the diamond, Snitker helped UNO post a 35-9 overall record and an appearance to the 1977 South Central Regional in Arlington, Texas – the first postseason bid by the Privateers as a Division I program.

In two seasons at UNO, Snitker was part of a squad that posted a combined 61-13-1 record while hitting .261 (35-for-134) to go with 19 extra-base hits, 22 RBI and 12 runs scored. Following his senior season, he signed a free agent contract with the Braves and played from 1977-80 in the organization – advancing as far as Triple-A Richmond in 1978. For his career, he hit .254 with a .390 slugging percentage on the strength of 31 doubles, three triples and 23 home runs while posting 112 RBI, 10 stolen bases and 96 runs scored in 236 career games.

A native of Decatur, Illinois, Snitker is no stranger to MLB or the Braves as he served as the team’s bullpen coach in 1985 and again from 1988-90, and as the third base coach from 2006-13. He began his professional managing career with the Anderson Braves of the South Atlantic League in 1982. He also managed Braves’ minor league affiliates Durham from 1983-84 and 1987, Sumter in 1986, Danville in 1996, Macon from 1997-98, Myrtle Beach from 1999-2001, Greenville from 2002-06 and Gwinnett from 2014 until his most recent call to “The Show.”

At the Minor League level, Snitker posted a combined record of 1,302-1,309 with seven winning campaigns, including a career-best 88-52 mark in 2000 with the Myrtle Beach where the Advanced-A squad posted the best record in the Carolina League and won the postseason league title. His Myrtle Beach team also won the Carolina League in 1999 with a 79-60 record, and Snitker was named the league’s Manager of the Year both seasons.

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