You could always count on Hunsicker most of the time getting the better end of the deal. http://www.crawfishboxes.com/2010/5/27/1488525/battle-of-the-astros-gms-ed-wade
Yes, well aware - are you suggesting had he stayed, the team wouldn't be in its current rut? Because, again - the erosion of the franchise was initiated under Hunsicker's watch.
My suggestion is that if he was given the freedom to do what he wanted, he would have the initiated the rebuilding process a long time ago. To say the erosion began under his watch is misleading. Yes, he traded away prospects,but it was for a run at the World Series. Like you said, no regrets at all with those moves. It's part of the cyclicality of baseball. But many of the moves since 2005 have been horrible, and I don't think Hunsicker would have made unless forced to from above.
Berman: J .Kent Friedman leading a group to buy the Astros. Pretty far along. Approved by MLB. We got investment bankers and finance lined up. 700 mil lined up but dont know what it will take. Jim Crane could be in drivers seat. McLane: Exclusive negotiating with Jim Crane. Someone feel free to post the FOX26 article(if its up)
http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/sports/mlb/110502-houstonian-friedman-also-trying-to-buy-astros HOUSTON - Houston attorney J. Kent Friedman confirmed for FOX 26 Sports Monday he is the lead investor of a local group attempting to buy the Houston Astros franchise. Friedman said he has been quietly working below the radar developing a group of 15 investors. "I have several hundred million dollars committed and the financing to go with it," Friedman said. "My investors have told me if you do the deal, count me in." Friedman acknowledged that Houston businessman Jim Crane, who is in the midst of an exclusive negotiating window to try and buy the franchise, is way ahead of him in the race to get the Astros. However, Friedman has not given up on his efforts to do a deal. "My group and I have come a long ways in a very short period of time and we're not ready to concede it's over, until it's actually over," Friedman said. Astros owner Drayton McLane said his focus for selling his franchise is on Crane. "We are negotiating exclusively with Jim Crane for several weeks and we'll see where that goes," McLane said. "We have no signed agreement and there is no deal in place to sell the team." Friedman is a senior partner in the Houston office of Haynes and Boone, which is based in Dallas. He is also chairman of the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority. Friedman already has the blessing of Major League Baseball to go forward in his efforts to buy the Astros. "I was approved by Major League Baseball in five days," Friedman said. "I am told that was very fast." Friedman worked for the Astros in the 70's as outside counsel and said he as been a fan of the team for most of his life. "I view the Astros as a community asset and it should stay in the community," Friedman said. "I would be thrilled to be the lead owner of the Astros." Friedman's son, Andrew, is general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays.
good luck with that EEOC record of Jim Crane's. Don't know how good it is to have an owner who hates Minorities....
BTW...if it was an NBA or NFL team, Jim Crane would have NO SHOT at ownership. No blacks would want to play for him........the leagues wouldn't even consider him.
I for one am not in favor of Crane. It doesn't matter (sadly enough) if the allegations from his past were untrue; the stigma is there. In recent history, every time the Astros failed to sign an African American player or let one go because he sucked, people were crying racism (against the guy who hired the first ever African American GM, against the guy who brought Cecil Cooper up to be bench coach and promoted him to Manager without much of a real candidate search at all). If we had to put up with it then, I don't even want to imagine what we'll hear with Crane. Add to that, if the allegations were actually true, then the guy is a rat b*stard and I don't want him anywhere near my Astros. Nolan Ryan, please. Oh, wait...
Link: http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/sports/mlb/110505-mclane-is-hopeful-deal-to-sell-astros-is-close
Channel 13's Bob Allen just reported deal is basically done. Astros sold to Jim Crane for $680 million dollars.
Here is the link and story from channel 13's website: Link: http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/sports/pro/baseball&id=8121827
I hope he takes over soon so he can make the call to move Wandy or/and Myers sooner than later. I wasn't opposed to either signing but you didn't really need both. Wandy would probably bring back more than Myers both moving both would be fine.
