The final month of the MLB regular season is here. All teams, including the ones not making the playoffs, are looking to finish the season strong. The teams out of the post-season races are also looking towards the future. One of those teams, the Houston Astros, will finish off the season without manager Bo Porter.

On Monday morning, multiple reports surfaced that the Astros had fired Porter. This move was rather surprising to most people. About a week ago, there were rumors that Porter and GM Jeff Luhnow did not get along. Whether that contributed to the firing is impossible to say, but it certainly would not have helped.

Bo Porter was hired during the 2012 offseason. Luhnow believed that he was a good manager that could help get the ball club headed in the right direction. He was a third base coach for the Washington Nationals prior, and becoming a manager was a huge step up for him. In 2013, the Astros did not turn things around at all with another season with more than 100 losses. This season, the Astros are four wins away from avoiding another season with 100 losses. While they are still far from where they want to be, Porter was helping this team improve, slowly but surely.

Tom Lawless has been named interim manger for the remainder of the season. Although he probably won't be the manager long term, he will certainly be considered if he his successful for the remained of the year. Lawless was previously the manager of the Astros' minor league affiliates. In 2009, he was named the manager for the Lancaster JetHawks. In 2011, he was manager for the Corpus Christi Hooks. While never at the major league level, Lawless does have plenty of managing experience.

Dave Trembley was also fired. The Astros' bench coach was only with the team for two seasons; in 2013, when he served as their third base coach, and this season, as the bench coach. Adam Everett is rumored to take over as the bench coach. Everett is currently a fielding instructor for the Astros' minor league affiliates, and is a bright young baseball mind with a intriguing coaching future ahead.

While Porter did not produce winning baseball with the Astros, it is hard to place too much blame on him with their obvious lack of talent. The Astros have an eye on the future with their impressive minor league system. Obviously, the Astros did not believe that they could trust Porter to help develop their young crop of talent, and decided to go their separate ways.