John Coppolella has officially resigned from his position as general manager of the Atlanta Braves.
The MLB started investigated Coppolella for numerous reasons dating back to a few weeks ago. Multiple reasons have been cited for investigation:
MLB was looking into everything from Braves' int'l operations to its domestic draft to Coppolella's treatment of Braves employees.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 2, 2017
Passan has exposed that Coppy was essentially loathed by those around him. Coppy has a bright mind but is not one to bite his tongue. And clearly, he broke some rules along the way during this Braves rebuild that has seen the team’s farm system elevate from one of the worst in the league to one of the best. It may be a while until we know the violations or the consequences that would go hand in hand with them. The MLB is still investigating, but it is believed to be a violation of rules in the international player market:
. @MLB is investigating #Braves international rules violation with the team's "full cooperation and support,” per club president John Hart.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) October 2, 2017
Official: #Braves GM John Coppolella resigns, due to "breach of Major League Baseball rules regarding the international player market." @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) October 2, 2017
Baseball writer Bob Nightengale even went as far to say that Coppy is unlikely to ever resurface in the MLB ever again. Gordon Blakeley has also resigned from his position as special assistant.
#Braves special asst Blakeley also resigning, sources tell The Athletic. MLB investigating team for circumvention of int’l signing rules.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) October 2, 2017
John Hart will take back the GM role for now. Stay tuned for more updates.