Okay there Captain Grammar.
Of the five primary relievers used in the playoffs, Pressley and Abreu were in the organization before Click. They were arguably the two most dominant relievers for the Astros during this playoff run.
Click was instrumental in adding Montero, Stanek and Neris.
But I would credit the players coming together at the right time more than Click being some sort of mastermind.
Bummed to admit these are all excellent points. Maybe Crane has an eye on some other nerd to run the show.
Nerds abound.
Itās good ballplayers that are hard to find.
I really have nothing new or original to submit regarding the GM move. I liked Click and publicly he seemed to have a handle on his job. I agree with those who suspect the seeds were planted this summer before the trade deadline. And I think Crane already has a back-up plan, figuring Click wasnāt going to accept the one year offer. Also, regarding what Stearns said about going nowhere ā I have heard guys say that many times before and then have seen the opposite happen soon afterwards.
Iāll also swim against the current here and say that I donāt feel a huge loss from Click. Iām sure heās a fine GM, and maybe he was the grease in the wheel that made this whole team work, but I donāt see it. He didnāt exactly go out and build this team from scratch. I hate to harsh the winning vibe as much as anyone, but Iām not necessarily seeing this as a catastrophe.
I only see it as a catastrophe if he hires Cashman.
Jim Crane proudly welcomes back as Astros GMā¦ Tim Purpura!
I thought of him, but he did get 2005 accomplished.
I guess Theo Epstein is available.
I guess we could see what Gerry Hunsicker is doing.
No surprise to me, but I totally agree.
Is Spec Richardson still available?
For what itās worth, before Click got the job, Crane also interviewed:
Also, given that Scott Powers got fired but Andy Ball (Clickās other AGM hire) is still with the team, I could see Ball getting a shot at the job. Certainly has the name for it.
You guys act like Ed Wade doesnāt exist.
Pat Gillick and Tal Smith are unemployed. My friend Gordon had lunch with them last Saturday.
Didnāt Tal Smith get a similar treatment to Click after the 1980 LCS?
I do not remember the timing, but it was much worse than the Click situation.
McMullen went so far as to call Smith a ādespicable human beingā.
Perhaps the Jose Urquidy for Willson Contreras deal that James Click had worked out and Jim Crane vetoed after Dusty Baker voiced his displeasure was the tipping point in the relationship being fractured? Weāll never know. I will say, Iām not sorry that it got squashed. Vazquez was a good option, too, and he cost low-level prospects, not your 4th or 5th starter.
At the time, McCullers was still rehabbing and a big question mark. Also, just because Hunter Brown was pitching well enough in AAA to deserve a call up, it doesnāt mean he was going to immediately come to the big leagues and pitch well every five days. Not to mention, how happy would Contreras have been as a primary DH catching one, maybe two games a week, especially heading into free agency where heās hoping to get a lucrative contract from someone?
What I do know is Jim Crane has earned the benefit of the doubt, and the core of this team predates James Click. I trust him to bring in a quality general manager and continue to have the Astros positioned as an elite organization in MLB.
I donāt worry so much about Click specifically, just worries me when an owner starts to meddle like it seems Crane has started to. I used Jerry Jones as a comp for a reason, he was a great owner for a while and then wanted to run things himself and everything went to shit. I have no way of knowing that anything like that will happen here.
I hope Crane hires another badass GM and the Astros continue dominate baseball forevermore.
Itās just not a great sign, to me, to can a GM after winning the whole thing.