[Biggp07]

Yes, another unsatisfactory month from our staff in terms of offense and pitching. We are a work in progress, I guess, like building a plane while in flight. Our record in August was 11-16 for a .407 percentage. That’s worse than July’s record. We managed some series wins, although it didn't matter in the standings or the wild-card race.



We did take a couple of key series within our division, but throughout the month, we still failed to capitalize on any of them.



As has been the case all season, we are not getting or putting guys on base enough to score in games, and it is glaringly obvious. Even with our speedy baserunners and base stealers like Bobby, Rosario, and Garcia, the lineup is not producing enough hits to bring them home for a score. Relying solely on base stealing is not effective and risks players like Bobby getting injured and sidelined for long periods, as we've already seen this season.

Our pitching staff has declined significantly since the start of the season but has been well supported by our bullpen. We need to work on consistency in our rotation during the offseason, focusing on increasing strikeouts and opposing batting averages. Our starters must generate more movement on the ball in the zone and induce more swings on close pitches. I think my decision to trade Seth Lugo at the trade deadline was too focused on cutting salary. I should have waited until the winter meetings to make that decision.

My main goal this offseason offensively is to improve our ability to get on base and enhance our wOBA by emphasizing plate discipline and better contact. I want hitters like Pasquatch and Bobby, along with some prospects from Triple-A, to be patient at the plate and work pitchers’ counts. For us to truly click as a lineup, Paul Hoover and I need to make some adjustments and put players in positions that leverage their strengths. I need to trust Paul more with day-to-day decisions because I am also managing the role of GM and working with Picollo to bring in the right talent for the team. I plan to focus on managing the pitching staff and bullpen rotations, starting by finding a better pitching coach than Brian Sweeney and a more effective team trainer than Kyle Turner. I want to hold him accountable for damaging our pitching staff early in the season due to his poor ratings at arm rehab and fatigue recovery, with little initial improvement. However, I can’t blame him entirely because I understand how fragile Ragans and all starters are. I probably should have reduced pitch counts for the entire rotation until they were a few starts in and more comfortable on the mound.

If we can get past 65 wins, and I still have my job after the postseason, I’ll be happy.