Alex Anthopoulos Opens Up on Future of Braves' Coaching Staff

Whether manager Walt Weiss keeps the same coaches next to him in 2027 is one of the first offseason questions for the Atlanta Braves.

President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos met with Atlanta media on Sunday, Oct. 11, where he was asked directly about pitching coach Jeremy Hefner and hitting coach Tim Hyers.

Atlanta went 94-68, won the National League East and beat the Phillies in the Wild Card Series before the Dodgers closed out the NLDS in four games with a 4-1 win at Truist Park on Oct. 7.

When the talk turned to the staff, Anthopoulos explained where he stands on the coaches.

"If we had a good year, I do believe in continuity from a coaching staff. That’s not to say that you keep everybody for the sake of keeping everybody. If you think you can get better, you need to make adjustments."

He has not talked with Weiss about it yet, he said, because this is their first offseason together and there is no rush.

He also said everybody on the staff did a really good job and that he was pleased with all of them.

The pitching staff gives Hefner an easy case, with a 3.63 team ERA that ranked third in the NL behind only the Brewers and the Dodgers.

Hefner was one of many new coaches on the staff this year, and Anthopoulos said new coaches need time to earn trust from players, so he believes this group can get better in year two.

Hyers has a harder case to make.

Atlanta scored 742 runs, the eighth most in baseball, and ranked seventh in slugging at .409, but its .309 on-base percentage ranked 28th out of 30 teams and it drew only 465 walks, the third fewest in the majors.

Anthopoulos admitted the on-base number was low, and one of the team's biggest bats owned his rough year after the Dodgers series.

Hyers was also one of only two coaches kept from the old staff when Weiss took over, and MLB.com reported that he signed a two-year deal before starting the job in 2025.

Weiss spent eight seasons as Brian Snitker's bench coach before taking over, and after his first year in charge ended with a division title through a long list of injuries, he has earned a big say in who stays.

According to MLB.com, the Braves have an exclusive window to negotiate with their own free agents until the World Series ends, and that series starts Friday in Milwaukee, so Anthopoulos will soon be busy with the plans he laid out for those players as well.

I would keep Hefner and the pitching group in place without a second thought, because the results were there all year.

Hyers is a tougher call, and I would bring him back only if the Braves show up to spring training with a clear plan to draw more walks, since a lineup that finished 28th in on-base percentage cannot lean on home runs alone in October.