ESPN Hinch Article

Good article. I was reading an article in the Athletic about Hinch wanting to deploy a 4 man outfield against LHBs with extreme pull and fly ball tendencies. The only thing I could think about was whether pitch forks would come out before the ring ceremony if Gallo bunts successfully in the opening series.

 

In 2009, at the age of 34, Hinch became an unwitting disrupter. He was the Diamondbacks' director of player development when the team's general manager, Josh Byrnes, offered him a managing job. Hinch, who had never coached or managed at any level, thought he was being asked to run one of the minor league teams. No, Byrnes said, he wanted Hinch to take over for Bob Melvin in Phoenix.

It was unexpected and more than a little weird. For decades, the separation between the manager's office and the front office was sacrosanct: One controls the lineup card, the other the roster. Even Billy Beane, whose Moneyball philosophy included significant input on managerial decisions, never hired a manager with no managerial experience.

"When Josh made that decision, I was rooting for them," says Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow, then with the Cardinals. "It's always worth rooting for people who are on the outside edge, pushing the envelope and not following the traditional model."

 

I saw a little about that. Have you heard/seen more? Make it beer-league softball and just give everbody a rover?

Gallo could bunt to the SS in LCF and still get thrown out.

 

Stumbled upon this...Must feel great when big bets pay off.

http://houston.culturemap.com/news/...e-damning-report-jeff-luhnow-unfazed/#slide=0
The Worst Manager in a decade: A.J. Hinch gets a damning report, but Astros GM Jeff Luhnow is unfazed

9.30.14 | 5:56 am

A.J. Hinch comes out saying all the right things as the Houston Astros new manager. He harps about winning, talks about wanting to shock the world and even works a nifty compliment about Jose Altuve into his introductory press conference.

But a report from his past may haunt Hinch as he tries to guide the Astros into their future.

A high-level baseball executive told CSN Chicago reporter David Kaplan that Hinch is "one of the worst managers that he has evaluated over the past decade" when the Chicago Cubs were considering Hinch for their managerial opening last October. Hinch didn't get the Cubs job then, but he has the Astros one now.

This harsh criticism of Hinch's skills is based on what the new Astros manager did in his stint as the Arizona Diamondbacks manager in 2009 and 2010. Hinch went 89-123 in parts of two seasons — and he apparently left a stink in the desert in the minds of some baseball insiders.

"Perhaps no candidate that I have called about has evoked more negative response than Hinch with most everyone I spoke with, believing the Cubs would be making a major mistake hiring him," Kaplan wrote in arguing that the Cubs should avoid Hinch.


Luhnow surely had to know about the report. Hinch says the Astros "called just about every person I ever met" in vetting him. Once again, Luhnow and the Astros seem to be going against the baseball establishment in hiring Hinch.

It's the type of move that could be brilliant. Or a disaster. These Luhnow Astros do not do boring and safe. And there's plenty to be said for that.

Luhnow is clearly comfortable with Hinch in ways he never was with Bo Porter, a promising young manager who never received a real chance to succeed in Houston. Luhnow talks about important it is for the GM and manager to be on the same page — and it's undoubtedly even more vital when you're often going against baseball's often tired, old thinking like the Astros of Luhnow almost always are.

"I trust him," Luhnow says of Hinch.

This manager hire confirms what became apparent when Porter was fired: Jeff Luhnow holds all the real power in owner Jim Crane's organization. The Astros are going to rise or fall based on Luhnow's vision. It makes sense to have a manager who is all in on it. Luhnow and the 40-year-old Hinch have known each other since 2006. Luhnow is clearly excited that his new manager has player development and front office experience (Hinch most recently worked as the assistant GM in San Diego).

And like St. Louis Cardinals manager — and Luhnow favorite — Mike Matheny, Hinch is a former Major League catcher.

"It's important," Luhnow says of a general manager and manager being on the same page. "These are demanding jobs and we're in a fish bowl."

Sitting there in the bowels of Minute Maid Park, the day after another losing season ended, Luhnow almost sounds like he's got his old bravado back.

"I think A.J. is going to be the manager here when we win the World Series," Luhnow says.​

 

Man I absolutely loved this piece. Damn near brought me to tears a few times. I love this team and appreciate so much that I get to share this time with them.

 

I hope Hinch gets to manage the Astros vs. the Cubs in the Fall Classic. That will be sweet to add Cubs to his resume of Red Sox, Yankees, & Dodgers.

 

I totally read this article like, "I'm not crying! YOU'RE crying!"

 

Spoiler: BOSS