Good Morning Washington Nationals Fans,

I hope you enjoyed your Halloween. Here are the latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball for today, November 1, 2023. I am Haden and let’s dive into the news.

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Leading today’s Morning Briefing: Gerardo Parra and Ricky Gutierrez join coaching staff

The Nationals have brought in Gerardo Parra and Ricky Gutierrez to be their first and third base coaches in the 2023 season, according to a report from Andrew Golden of The Washington Post. Parra served as a special assistant to Mike Rizzo since he retired, while Gutierrez was the run prevention coordinator last season.

Parra and Gutierrez come in to replace Eric Young Jr. and Gary Discarcina respectively, who served as base coaches for two seasons. The full roles of Parra and Gutierrez have yet to be announced, but you would figure that Parra would play a role in the coaching of outfielders. He brings experience as a two-time Gold Glove winner and an overall defensive player of the year.

Additionally, Parra and Gutierrez will be tasked with improving the baserunning of a team that struggled in 2023, with the exception of CJ Abrams. When you exclude Abrams 9.5 Baserunning Runs, the team ranks in the bottom third. Neither Parra nor Gutierrez were prolific baserunners in their major league career. But with less to worry about now that they are on the coaching side of baseball, maybe they end up being better teachers than students.

According to Mark Zuckerman of MASN, Gutierrez is a big reason why we saw Abrams make the leap defensively this season. You’d assume that he’d continue to work as an infield coach in 2024.

World Series Roundup

The Rangers have taken a convincing 3-1 lead in the series after winning 3-1 on Monday and 11-7 last night. The Rangers lost the services of postseason hero Adolis Garcia after he went on the injured list prior to last night’s game.

Last night, the Rangers took a quick 10-0 lead in the third inning with back-to-back five-run innings. Marcus Semien had five RBIs from the leadoff spot. Travis Jankowski, called up to replace Garcia on the roster, contributed by going 2-4 with a double and two RBIs.

The Diamondbacks attempted to mount a comeback by scoring six runs across the final two innings. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth after knocking in a run in the fourth. Rookie catcher Gabriel Moreno drove in two runs with a single in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, but it was too late for the Diamondbacks.

The Diamondbacks must win the next three games to be World Series champions. The first of which is tonight in Chase Field. Then they will have to try and win on the road.

ICYMI: Latest articles on the Nats Report

Even though it is the offseason, we have been extremely busy producing a lot of great content here on the Nats Report. Here are just a couple of the articles that we have published this week that you might have missed:

• Player Profile: RHP Jackson Rutledge
• This is not the free agency you are looking for
• A practical free agency wishlist
• 2023: A Nationals Year in Review
• The Nationals should push for Aaron Nola
• How draft picks 1-5 fared in their pro debuts

We are working on a lot of great Nationals-themed content all off-season so make sure that you are following us on all the major social media channels for the latest.

We need your feedback

Now that is the offseason, we want to prepare the best content that you need the most. We’ve added three writers to the team since the end of the season, and we want to know how we can improve and best curate the content for you. Let us know what you want to see and read from us in the survey linked here.

Fan Corner: Your Nationals Stories

Do you have a memorable Nationals story or experience you'd like to share with our community? Whether it's a special moment at the ballpark, an encounter with a player, or a favorite Nationals tradition, we'd love to hear from you! Send us your story to Themorning@thenatsreport.com and we might feature it in a future weekly or Morning Briefing.

Featured Story of the Day

• Aaron Judge wins Roberto Clemente award via ESPN

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