I have expected it for awhile..... we are going to see obvious collusion by owners. This is an industry wide issue........ the Rays could have tried to move Morton and same with Hand. I know a lot of fans are thinking that the Astros could for 40-50 million QUICKLY close the gap..... (add Morton and Hand ($25 million).... go after JBJ and then target a bat like Cruz)...... but I expect the Astros to play the game like everyone else. We will add some guys for sure but I don't see us really spending a lot either. Too bad, because there are going to be some extreme deals out there...........
And Hand's $10 million would offset Osuna's $10 million they just saved. Assuming Osuna was healthy, they would have tendered him so why not claim Hand. Guaranteed player to suit up for Houston. As for Morton, wow. Retire? You think he's willing to come back to Houston?
If Crane is willing to spend to the luxury tax this year, he could add Morton, Hendricks, Hand, JBJ, and Profar....at the rates projected.
Sounds like a stock market crash. Those that can buy make out big time in the long run. Most don't though.
There in lies the issue..... if all of baseball goes the austerity direction, I think he follows suit. Then again, he just got ****** by the other owners and the league office so maybe he goes all out to win a WS to silence everyone. I know that he was quite happy with what the Astros did in the playoffs. Morton had a 3.30 ERA and is 47-18 the last four years..... he isn't young, but he isn't THAT old either...... adding him to the top of the Astros rotation would make a big difference for a number of reasons......... Valdez/Morton/Greinke/Urquidy/McCullers ..... that moves Javier to the pen and that makes the bullpen even better........ Signing Hand......... and adding him to a pen of Hand/Javier/Pressly/Paredes/Taylor/Scrubb The Astros could then go after someone like JBJ or Pilar to play CF... and even go after Profar or Nelson Cruz as well...... The overall defense improves....... the offense goes down a little, but mostly just changes.... we lose homers likely.... but I am not sure how much. Altuve Profar Bregman Alvarez Correa Tucker Guriel Pilar Maldonado That Astros team would be pretty damn deep and good.
I think Morton might just retire and be a family man at his home in Tampa especially with the uncertainty of next year.
I think the Rays and Indians tried to move these guys. MLB played games last season during an epidemic. While I think it was obvious the owners were going to win last season over the players regarding pay, I think owners were banking on a vaccine being ready prior to the 2021 season or people accepting that they have to wear masks/social distance (i.e., not being an idiot like Justin Turner). Considering the owners paid full salaries last season (only deductions based on reduced season), I think MLB owners for the most part are going to get taken to the cleaners this upcoming season. If they try to shorten the season after having the health and safety plan in place, they will lose a grievance big time. For the teams that have money, they are going to rack up some serious talent this year. Without fans in the stands, MLB will lose a lot of revenue, and a lot of their expenses are already fixed. This shouldn't affect the big markets too much, but there is no reason for them to help the small markets when they can just pick through the small market carcasses once they've released everyone they can.
I don't think most teams are acting "poor". I think most owners don't like to lose money, and a lot of teams aren't capable of weathering this without owner stepping up. Crane should still have a lot of money left over from what the Astros made in 2019. Granted, I expect Astros to tighten budget some...It shouldn't be like the Rays or Indians, though. or Pirates. or A's. I'm still expecting a decent budget so Astros can add two OFs and a relief pitcher.
We will see. I think that lost finances certainly play a part.... but I also think that this is a degree of collusion with the owners and players on poor terms and the CBA ending soon. The owners have done this before.
With health, I would expect an offensive increase from this team. Altuve rebounds to replace Springer's offense. Bregman and Yuli are better. Alvarez is an add. Pilar would replace Altuve's offense. Profar is an upgrade over Reddick's offense.
Crane was still paying down his investors so I don't know how much money he has left for certain. The Astros I am sure will spend money, I just don't know that they are going to be willing to look at all the good values available and exploit it to the degree that ideally would. I don't think the Astros will be at this level either....... I expect them to add two bats and at least a pitcher. I just don't think they are going to spend as much as some fans are expecting and the guys they add will likely not excite fans...... although they will likely prove to be effective players. I do think the offense takes a step back though..... with depth in pitching and defense improving.
Those are all good points...... just losing Springer and Brantley is a lot to lose. Profar is certainly an upgrade over Reddick........ Pilar is a weird one, because sometimes he is actually quite good with the bat, other times he is horrible....... I do see the defense being better though and adding players like Profar would allow the Astros greater flexibility in the field.
Does collusion require teams to communicate with one another? If we are having this discussion...I don't see why teams would need to collude (i.e., talk). Teams don't need to talk to determine they can decide to protect their bottom line or try to take advantage of the situation to win. For the Astros, protecting their bottom line and trying to win are more closely tied than most teams at the moment because they have a lot of great players.
Are you asking me legally or what do I think MLB is doing? We know that they actually communicated and planned it out when they were caught in the early 80's. More recently, I believe there was collusion a few years ago..... and there were those in the game that believed there was some degree of communication between the owners agreeing to tighten the wallet. I don't believe that there is a conference call where they all get on board...... I believe that there are owners that speak amongst themselves, and everyone falls in line....... MLB ownership is very much a good old boys club. My point is only that I do not think we will see Crane look at the landscape of available players and think "these values can greatly increase my teams ability to win the WS the next few years. Lets stretch the budget and take advantage"....... I think we will see the Astros follow the market trend and be very conservative.... we will still add players, but we for example will likely not pounce on Brad Hand for $10,000,000 like we would a normal season.
I don't have the insider sources others seem to have. All I know is, the Astros would go a long way towards convincing the fans they intend to stay competitive if Springer chooses to leave and they are able to replace him with a solid CF like JBJ, a lights-out closer in Hand and bringing back C.F.M. Would probably save money in the process.
I’d be more than okay with adding Morton/Bauer/Minor too the rotation, Re-signing Brantley, adding JBJ and a quality bullpen arm.
