All of Pedro Grifol’s earlier roles in baseball — from scouting to serving as a bench coach — have turn out to be useful throughout his first season as a big-league supervisor with the Chicago White Sox.
“Every single job,” Grifol stated within the visiting supervisor’s room at Yankee Stadium earlier than Tuesday’s sport in opposition to the New York Yankees. “All the way from my area scouting, when you have to learn how to evaluate, to advance scouting to international, every single job I’ve had has served a (purpose).”
He recalled a dialog he had Monday with bench coach Charlie Montoyo about winter ball.
“I managed four years of winter ball — it’s a tough environment to manage in,” Grifol stated. “I was managing guys who were older than me and that taught me a ton. Just the day-to-day stuff that you had to take care of and worry about. Every job has been really important for this.”
Just greater than 60 video games into his big-league managerial profession, Grifol stated he hasn’t been stunned by a lot. Part of it comes from what he realized in all these earlier roles. And additionally his teaching workers.
“I have a good staff, man. I think the staff is really important,” Grifol stated. “They have experience, they’ve been in the big leagues a long time. The versatility of this staff, the wisdom and experience they have.”
The job proper now for Grifol and the teaching workers is to attempt to dig out from a tough begin. The Sox had been 19-14 getting into Tuesday since starting the season 7-21.
“I’m enjoying the climb,” he stated when requested if he’s nonetheless having fun with the job. “Obviously I didn’t get pleasure from in any respect the 10-game shedding streak. I didn’t get pleasure from 7-21. Did not get pleasure from that.
“But I’m enjoying getting better and playing better. I’m enjoying getting better all the way round: the team, myself, the staff.”
Grifol is aware of enhancements are wanted offensively, defensively and with the pitching workers if the Sox are going to climb within the American League Central standings.
Offensively, the Sox are engaged on chasing fewer pitches. The crew’s O-swing% (swings at pitches exterior the zone), in keeping with FanGraphs, is 36.7%, the worst within the majors.
“We’ve got to get better,” Grifol stated. “And it’s not simply to win video games, it’s to maximise their capability. We have loads of expertise on the offensive facet of the ball and if we swing at good pitches, we’re going to do some injury. So we’ve got to get higher at not chasing.
“We’re constantly searching for that. They’re searching for it; we are too. We’re searching for it together.”
Grifol likes how the pitching has progressed, “however, there’s times we’ve got to get better when we’re way ahead in the count. 0-2, 1-2, you almost can’t allow slugging in those counts. You fight to get to 0–2, 1-2, you’ve got to put guys away. But we’re better at it. The pitching has improved big time.”
The crew had a 5.88 ERA via 28 video games and a 3.80 ERA within the subsequent 33 video games.
Defensively, Grifol desires to see the Sox enhance at “preventing free bases at 90 feet. Stolen base, we’ve got to get better at holding, eliminating attempts.”
The league common for caught stealing is 21%, whereas the Sox are at 17%.
All of these — and extra — are areas the Sox are targeted on. Despite the early stumbles, the Sox (26-35) entered Tuesday 5½ video games out of first place within the AL Central.
While the goal is the division, the main target is on the each day. But Grifol did word that the brand new schedule has created an fascinating wrinkle.
“There’s no sample on this new schedule, like how does this thing work,” Grifol stated. “Everybody is enjoying all people. So so far as who’s in, who’s out, I feel we’re going to see some issues a bit totally different than we’ve got up to now. How totally different I don’t know.
“But the new schedule is going to play a new factor somewhere. Because everybody is playing everybody. You can’t say these guys have a tough schedule or a tough month. Everybody is going to have that month. That’s another reason I don’t get too far ahead on this stuff.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com