At least they have pieces at every position now... some will plan out, some won't... but that's a far cry from just 2 years ago.
**** Jim Crane. **** Drayton. **** Selig. I was so fed up with the organization after 2005. They really ****ed it up. Badly. I'm no longer an Astros fan thanks to these guys. I can't recognize a single player on this team. What irks me most about the move to the AL? How inconvenient it is for non-Astros fans who want to see NL baseball. A Cubs fan who lives in San Antonio? Tough **** -- now you're going to have to drive to Phoenix, St. Louis, or Atlanta to watch them.
Thing is, why would the Astros worry about "non Astros fans who want to see NL baseball"?? Crane wanted the team, his only choice was going to the AL, anyone who says they would have just backed out of the deal . . is either lying, or really doesn't care about baseball
So... would you prefer enduring more hellacious years in the National League with little to almost no hope of competing, while the ownership situation remains in limbo, just for the sake of seeing the Astros retain their National League status? Hey, I'm largely over the move to the AL. I've gotten less and less angry about the whole deal as the offseason went on.
There's plenty of interleague now.... more than ever since they have an odd amount of teams in each league. I actually think I hate that just as much as the Astros switching leagues... there's going to be less and less of a reason to have different "leagues"... and MLB is morphing into the "conference" setup of the other leagues.
If Crane had said "under no circumstances do I agree to move this team to the AL", I'm pretty sure Selig would have still had to let the deal go through (and would have found a plan "B" to get 15-15 teams). That being said, the way it went down, Crane ends up getting a $65 million discount to switch leagues... which is ultimately what I feel led to this deal getting finalized. I'm all for bashing Crane for allowing this to happen... and ending up getting a discount for it. I don't think he really cared all that much... and in the end, Selig wouldn't have stopped a sale due to this contingency.
I disagree, I think it was pretty obvious Selig wanted this done and he wasn't going to agree to a deal with the Astros moving. The most obvious team to move was his Brewers back to where they came from, and he wasn't about to let that happen. I like what Crane has done and think we are headed in the right direction. BUT, Crane has plenty in his past for Selig to deny him ownership if he hadn't agreed to the deal
I put the blame on the AL move more on McLane and Selig than on Crane. McLane was desperate to unload this team and he has always been Selig's yes man. Selig saw this as an opportunity to realign like he wanted (although there is no good reason to) and strong-armed Crane into moving, with no resistance coming from McLane. Compare that to what Shahid Khan did, the owner of the Jacksonville Jags, who said any sale of the team would be conditioned on the team staying in Jacksonville.
I hate that board. It alone put my opinion of MMP in the toilet. I hope that board goes away forever very, very soon. Someone please kill it with fire.
The deal was already done... and MLB would have looked pretty foolish to turn down this big of a deal over this contingency. Also, Selig was up against a deadline to approve the deal due to the CBA/union ratification needing to be done. The deal was going to go through regardless... had McClane/Crane put their foots down and said "hell no" to moving to the AL, Selig would have had to found a plan B. In the end, he sold Crane on a $65 million discount to agree to do it, and Crane bought it. If Crane was that "bad" of an owner candidate, he wouldn't have had to offer him anything. I still think the whole 15-15 thing is short-sided and DUMB. MLB has had disproportionate leagues for a LONG time. Why the need to try to fix it now is beyond me... and having to uproot an original NL team, and implement constant everyday interleague to do it seems so damn forced.
McLane has no reason to demand the team he no longer owns can't move to the AL. It's not his decision to make, and he owes it to the new prospective owner to give them the freedom to do what they want with the team.
Not that they care much about me either, but living closest to ATL make it very hard for me to see the Astros every year. Absolutely killer to me. Much easier to grow up rooting for a team you saw every year, even seeing them 4 times in the playoffs between 1997-2005. Now that is gone. Selig obviously holds the most blame as this is his fault. Crane didn't want to call their bluff, and then got a huge cash incentive. McLane got his team sold for way more than it was valued for even after his portion of the reduced price to Crane.
Charlotte, New Orleans, Indianapolis are three cites without even doing internet research that have a football and basketball team with no baseball. The state of Tennessee has a football and basketball team just down the road from each other with no baseball team. Basketball has much higher ratings not only in regual season but post season so you have no clue what you are talking about
I'm open to "giving the man a try". Those 5 things that I listed did not help him become popular with me, sorry. I did like the uniform changes, so I'll give him that. But if I'm Crane, I think he needs to start making some moves to win fans back -- you've got to give them something.
I think new ownership/management combo has done a great job with the rebuild plan. Hopefully we'll start seeing some significant international signings now that Luhnow & Co. have gotten their team in place. I would love to see the Astros land a Miguel Sano level talent.
Is no one else excited about the potential rivalry with the Rangers? Sure, people are laughing at the differences in teams now, but imagine a late September game against an in-state team with the division on the line. It's gonna happen and it's gonna bring a fun new element to baseball in Texas. We've had fun rivalries in the past, but no other NL team would list us as their #1 rival. That's gonna change with the Rangers. Maybe not right away, but it will.
http://www.chron.com/news/houston-t...ros-owner-playing-ball-with-Obama-4285110.php This is why bugtexxxx is mad.
And two of those cities lost their NBA team due to poor financial support. My point is that MLB teams are in, on average, bigger markets and garner more support than their basketball counterparts. Again, name a city where the basketball team is more popular than the baseball team by far (excluding Miami). All things being equal, talent-wise, between the Rockets/Astros... the Astros end up getting more support over the Rockets. Houston does only support winners... but as 2005-2011 has shown us, they'll support medicore baseball over mediocre basketball. And the World Series almost always has higher ratings than the NBA finals.
