It is probably a good thing that the postseason is going on right now as it has given the Atlanta Braves some cover to work through the transition that started when Brian Snitker decided to retire and leave their manager chair empty. Assistant coaches had to be talked to, especially those that could be in the running to replace Snitker or get jobs elsewhere and discussions needed to happen to start the work of distilling exactly what Atlanta wants in their new manager.
In an ideal world, the Braves would get that work done quickly and would have done at least some of that work before Snitker's announcement so that they would have a manager in place before the start of free agency. However, Alex Anthopoulos has been adamant at every given opportunity that the job was Snitker's if he wanted to come back and Anthopoulos did not want to disrespect Snit by shopping around for his heir before he was ready.
However, because Snitker was unsure as to whether or not he would retire and because the Braves appear to have some high standards and a lot of background work to do before they start actually interviewing guys, this unfortunately may not be a speedy process.
If Alex Anthopoulos' comments are true, Braves fans may be waiting a while for their next manager
One caveat here is that we are assuming that Anthopoulos is telling the whole truth about not having a list of replacement candidates in place and not doing any work before Snitker decided to move on. While Anthopoulos isn't a blatant liar to the media, he also is never going to tell them everything and would prefer them to know nothing about their moves until they happen. In his own words, "I know this makes it tough on you guys, but if we do our job the way I want us to do it, you guys won’t have anything.”
However, what Anthopoulos did say about the team's search for a new manager is that integrity is going to be given a lot of weight which makes sense given that they are trying to replace a pillar like Snitker. Unfortunately, that is also a very tough quality to suss out without doing a ton of background work and extensive interviews. While the Braves will want someone that knows X's and O's and has an appreciation for analytics, Anthopoulos needs a partner in the dugout that he can trust completely and that isn't something you can get from a LinkedIn job posting.
The one thing that isn't on the Braves' side right now is time. Atlanta has a long shopping list this offseason and luring the right players to the Braves is probably going to require a new manager being put in place first. While David Ross may look like a great candidate on paper or Anthopoulos' previous relationship with John Gibbons could help bridge the trust gap, it is clear that the Braves will not be rushed and that could cause it's own problems.