I think he is close to being done with the Astros. He just cannot get command of his pitches. It’s too bad because he has the stuff to be a high end closer.
Luhnow traded for Maldy twice and then signed him as a free agent a few weeks before he was fired. Then Click signed him to an extension. Luhnow traded for Pressly but then Click signed him to an extension. I would give both to Luhnow. Click picked Martinez in the 2020 rule 5 draft. The way I see it, if a player hits FA then he is gone and new regime gets credit. If he signs an extension prior to FA then it's old regime.(unless credit can be split, then it's 67% old, 33% new)
On the topic of Enoli, along with the command issues, he seems to have lost some of his stuff as well. He averaged 96 mph in the pandemic season and i've never seen him average that kind of velo in the past couple of seasons. Same thing with Dubin - he's rumored to throw high 90s but every time I see him pitch it's more like 92-94.
Signing our own FAs and extensions beyond the original contract should be considered as their own, with the caveat that credit begins at the expiration of the prior contract rather than the date of the extension. So Alvarez is credited to Luhnow 2016-2022 and Brown 2023-2028 (even though extended prior to 2022). Click gets credit for not hindering his development and bringing him up in 2019. But extensions covering CC & ARB years are fuzzy since they remain under CC whether under a negotiated contract or not.
That’s why they have asterisks. Luhnow acquired Maldy (twice) and Pressly, but Click signed them to extensions; without those extensions they wouldn’t be on the roster. Pretty sure Martinez was added by Click during the 2020 minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft.
Getting players to sign extensions is a very valuable skill. The Dana Brown thread is right to praise Brown for getting Javier to be extended, and that getting Astros players extended should be the top priority for the GM. Keeping a team (MLB players and upper level prospects) together as much as possible capable of winning a World Series should be the top priority for a GM (i.e., new GM should get more than 33% credit and much much more than 0% that most give).
People shouldn't get credit if it's a no brainer extension. Click gets credit for Martinez, Diaz, Montero, Neris, Stanek, Gilbert, and Dirden.
Crane gets credit for Brantley, who will likely replace Julks when he comes back, and Click gets credit for McCullers, who will likely replace Martinez. Luhnow Getz credit for Altuve who will replace Salazar or Diaz.
I feel like in a couple of years we are going to see that Click was an incredible GM during his short time here, and the benefits will be felt by the franchise for years to come...just like we still reap benefits from Luhnow's time, just like we will see benefits from Brown's time.
It is too early to tell but the 2022 draft could be an all timer. Early returns are very encouraging. That draft will likely define Clicks legacy as Astros GM. Of course there are other players he acquired who could become core pieces that define Click’s Astros tenure (Yainer Diaz, Pedro Leon, etc.)
Click built a bullpen on other organizations castoffs. Pretty damn impressive. There is no denying that the Astros bullpen was the reason they won a championship last year.
A lot of MLB-level success would have to happen for him to get the deserved credit. However, does Pupurra get credit for them signing somebody who would go on to become a HOF caliber player on the Astros? Does anybody acknowledge the GM who drafted the other HOF Astros? In the end, front office legacy still starts/ends with championships... and unfortunately for Click, he will never be out of Luhnow's shadow in regards to this entire era.
I do think Purpura should get a lot of credit for signing Altuve, just as Ed Wade should get credit for George Springer.
Would JD Martinez have made that commitment to improve had he not been castoff? That's what always gets overlooked in these "what if" scenarios... despite Luhnow full/well admitting it was one of his biggest mistakes.
If thats the case, that should outweigh anything of the other things Pupura ever did... there's not a lot of teams in the history of the game with homegrown international HOF players!!! (I'm kidding guys...)
