Braves Brian Snitker Responds To Pinch-Hitting Decision

The Atlanta Braves dropped Wednesday night's game to the Cincinnati Reds, 4-3. In the bottom of the ninth with two outs and the tying run on first base, Manager Brian Snitker lifted Eli White in favor of Eddie Rosario.

Rosario stuck out on five pitches to end the ballgame. It was a bit of a head-scratcher. White has been the hottest team over the last dozen games. Snitker said after the game that he made the decision based on matchups and a hope Rosario still had something left in the tank.

"Yeah, this guy's got better numbers off right-handed hitters. Way better," he said. "I thought maybe Eddie could recreate some old magic."

For context, Rosario was the NLCS MVP in 2021 en route to the Braves winning the World Series. He batted .560 with a 1.647 OPS, three home runs and nine RBIs in the six-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Right-handed hitters have also struggled against Emilio Pagán this year. They are 1-for-29 with a home run.

So in defense to Snitker, there was logic there. Send in a lefty. They're batting .192 against him instead of .035.

It is also a statistical fact that if you look at Rosario's and White's career stats against righties, Rosario is the better hitter. However, Rosario just isn't hitting regardless of the pitcher's handedness right now. White is also batting .300 with a .920 OPS against righties this season.

There is no guarantee that having White step up in that exact moment would have changed everything - the metrics don't build much of a case either. However, if we're talking about what a hitter has to offer at the moment, it was clear that the hitter already penciled into the lineup was the man for the task at hand.

There are some stats that back at least giving the hot hand a try in this situation.

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