Grading the 2023 Pirates -- Manager
2023 was Derek Shelton's fourth season as the Pirates manager
Personally, I’d view this question in a broader, organizational context. It should be more than just writing the lineup card, making pitching changes, ordering guys to bunt who don’t know how to bunt, etc. The Pirates talk about operating in a collegial manner, so it’s entirely sensible to hold the manager accountable for his coaches, for instance, and to some extent for personnel decisions.
It’s also entirely sensible to assign the manager some responsibility for developing prospects. IMO, the single hardest aspect of prospect development is the last stage, getting them acclimated to the majors. Nobody who followed the Pirates through the Gene Lamont years could doubt the importance of the manager’s role in that aspect of development.
But how to weigh all these and other factors is up to you.
I voted Derek Shelton as a "D" for 2023. In his first three years he was an "F" in that it was obvious that he was definitely in a Manager Apprenticeship Program. But, he is probably cheap and knows his place. I remember a time when the salary of the Manager was public knowledge
The hubris of most fans is that they can be a better baseball manager than anyone in the dugout and their strategy would always work. Every failure on the field is the managers fault... the players never do the fundamentals right because of the manager... well Francona, Bochy, Baker, LaRussa, Counsell, Snitker, Leyland... all had different strategies and were/are successful. Their common trait is to be able to lead men, to bring out the best in the players by making them want to play their hardest for the sake of the team. Shelton seems to have that quality, the Pirates play hard and the players want to be successful for their teammates the fans and the staff. Looking forward to a bright future with this management team.