The forced resignation of Braves GM John Coppolella on Monday came as a "shock to the system," as he had done a "terrific job building" the team's farm system in his two years on the job, according to MLB Network's Jon Heyman. The Braves "have the best group of players on the farm in the National League." Additionally, the Braves had been an "organization that's a paragon of stability." However, the departure of Coppolella coming after the firing of GM Frank Wren in '14 shows the club has to "remake a few things" ("The Rundown," MLB Network, 10/3). In Atlanta, Jeff Schultz asked, "What has happened to the Braves' front office and how did they allow this to happen?" Coppolella, who was forced to resign on Monday after an ongoing MLB investigation, had become "more autocratic" over the years, "listening less to people around him and growing increasingly obsessed to the point of ... feeling compelled to cheat." He "became like an addict." He "lost perspective, clarity." The job "clouded his thinking." The declining morale in the Braves' offices was "strikingly similar" to Wren's final days. Coppolella turned on anybody who "didn't agree with his positions on players or roster strategy." He took on an almost "bunker mentality" and became "overly sensitive to criticism" (AJC.com, 10/3).
LENDING A HELPING HAND? In DC, Chelsea Janes cites sources as saying that Nationals GM Mike Rizzo called the Braves to "recommend his longtime right-hand man," Assistant GM & VP/Player Development Doug Harris, for their GM opening. Harris oversees the Nationals' minor league system "from top to bottom" (WASHINGTON POST, 10/4).
