This was originally published in The Athletic.

Jim Riggleman has eight weeks to show us what he can do.

That sentence probably reads weird because, well, he’s had three and a half months to give us a sense of how he manages, his philosophies and whether he’s the guy to run the club on a permanent basis.

The whole “should they removed Riggleman’s interim tag” thing has been a big issue for most of the summer, especially so in late June and early July when the Reds were winning more than they were losing. It ignited just enough optimism that you could finally claim that the Reds weren’t far away from contending without getting laughed at.

I’ve never thought it made much sense to make Riggleman “The Guy” before the season is over. Mainly I see no harm in conducting a search once the season ends, while keeping Riggleman in mind as a legitimate candidate for the job. But I’ve also wanted to see what kind of work he turned in when things weren’t going as swimmingly as they were a month ago, or when he isn’t equipped with an intact, healthy club.

To read the entire piece, go to The Athletic.