Brian Snitker had a puzzling explanation for not benching Jarred Kelenic after Ronald Acuña Jr. called him out

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Back in 2019, Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. was benched against the Dodgers when he watched a fly ball hit off the wall and had to settle for a long single. Come Saturday, Jarred Kelenic made a similar mistake but was allowed to stay in the game. That sparked some drama with the struggling Braves.

No wonder Acuña was frustrated, and the public airing of that grievance came to the surprise of manager Brian Snitker.

Yet, Snitker's explanation for the apparent double standard didn't make the situation any better. According to the Braves manager, he didn't bench Kelenic because he didn't see what happened until the following day. So, basically, the manager wasn't watching the game.

Kelenic deserves to be out. You’re not a HR hitter. Run. Jogged all the way to first. Or just stay at first and don’t be out by a mile. Don’t do this kids pic.twitter.com/ADQds4kEog

— (@JeffMoyer41) April 20, 2025

Snitker said via The Athletic:

“Yeah, you don’t run and it’s a big time (in the game) like that, yeah,” he said. “But quite honestly, I don’t look for (Kelenic) to not do that, because he plays with his hair on fire all the time and he’s laying out (for fly balls). And I didn’t know it till I saw this morning. I went in and I looked at it when I got here, and then I had a discussion with him and we got it squared away.”

The entire situation unfolded in front of the Braves dugout, and Snitker can actually be seen in the background on the replay. So, it's a bit puzzling to claim that he didn't see what happened.

To Kelenic's credit, the Braves outfielder was the one who went into Snitker's office and took responsibility for the mistake. Acuña would probably like to see everyone held to the same standard when he returns, though.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Brian Snitker had a puzzling explanation for not benching Jarred Kelenic after Ronald Acuña Jr. called him out

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