The following link has what every team spent for the 2009 draft. It does indicate total money spent on player development (salaries for scouts, coaches, minor league operations, etc.).
So, we were one of only 7 teams to spend below our estimated slot allowance. And with all the reports about how good we did in this draft, I would have thought we ranked higher in total spending but we were right near the bottom. Not that spending is everything and we didn't pick near the top in the 1st round but for a team that needs to rebuild it's farm more than any other team, I would have expected us to be higher. What about previous years? If this was a year where we signed the majority of our draft picks, I'd hate to see where we ranked in other recent years, excluding last season. It also seems like we definitely draft players to a large extent based on signability.
I would LOVE for the Astros to sign Chone Figgins. He might finish the year with a .400 obp and 50 steals. He and Bourn as a 1-2 at the top of the lineup would be FUN to watch!
He wants to close, hence trying to build up as many suitors as possible by rejecting the option and not being offered arbitration (teams won't give up picks for an aging, injured reliever). He'll also be in a market with Hoffman, Valverde, Soriano, Gonzalez, etc.
Drayton don't listein to this kid he doesn't know what he's talking about, if you do this we will continue to be a 500 club with lazy as stars, just blow this damn thing up
Berkman's numbers from the right side of the plate are almost equally as pathetic. He needs to drop this bit of living out his father's dream of being Mickey Mantle and just hit left-handed.
Dont get me wrong, I agree that blowing up the team is the right thing to do but REALISTICALLY is he going to even consider it? It looks like he might be more willing to start blending in the youth and veterns a lot more but never a full rebuild mode. Now with Roy coming out and saying what he said there is LESS of a chance he would go full rebuild UNLESS Roy and Puma both go and then sure but again... In my view Wolf gives you a good third starter to go with Roy and Wandy which moves Norris to a 4th starter and makes Moles or whoever a true 5th. The Wags idea is because he is my boy and all but someone needs to close and I still dont think the guy is going to be asking for crazy money dude hasn't dont anything in 2 years. The offense is what it is, now someone mentioned Figgins and thats a guy who would be dynamic with Bourn at the leadoff spot and two hole but I think he might price himself right out of our range in the offseason.
Depends - what if you're picking people at those spots because they are signable for a good price instead of the best talent?
The complaint would be we used signability as a primary factor. As opposed to spending a later pick on a top round talent who dropped because of questions around signability. For example, Troy Patton was drafted in the 9th round, but was considered a top 3 round talent. We signed him and paid him "above slot". We did the same with Ross Seaton in the 3rd or 4th round. Edit: That's what I get for walking away from my computer, Major beat me to it.
Great article in the Austin American Statesman about the Round Rock Express, and it talks a lot about the Astros. Link to article Round Rock could switch to Texas Rangers organization Sunday, August 30, 2009 If you're a Round Rock Express fan, you might want to know that the Oklahoma City RedHawks won the American South last season and made it to the Pacific Coast League finals. This year they've owned sole possession of second place in the division since late June. Impressive stuff. You might also want to know that the Texas Rangers' Triple-A and Double-A baseball teams have sent 16 players to the major-league club this season. If you caught Neftali Feliz's act in the Bronx — don't blink; he throws that hard — he's one in a growing list of top arms that includes the potentially sensational Derek Holland and Tommy Hunter who have come from the RedHawks. That, uh, could be your Round Rock RedHawks someday. Nothing is set in concrete, of course. And it might not happen at all. But if Nolan Ryan is president of the Texas Rangers at this same time in 2010, Round Rock Express fans might end up trading in some of their caps and bobblehead dolls. They also may need to check their major-league allegiances at the turnstiles. Round Rock could well end its 10-year association with the Houston Astros after next season and become the Triple-A affiliate of the Rangers in 2011. In fact, I'd say bank on it. The decision, it appears, rests almost entirely upon Nolan Ryan's future with the Rangers. If a new owner of the team emerges within the next 12 months and wants to put Ryan in a lesser role or make him a figurehead, it's safe to guess the Express will remain aligned with the Astros and sign a two- to four-year extension next October. If Ryan retains his high-profile position with the wild card-contending Rangers, there's a great chance the Express hook up with Texas. And rising, young stars, such as first baseman Justin Smoak and 18-year-old Venezuelan lefty Martin Perez, could be playing in Round Rock in two years unless they're already with the big-league club in Arlington. Neither the Astros' top brass nor Ryan returned phone calls, but talks with half a dozen folks suggested some anxious moments loom for Astros owner Drayton McLane, who doesn't want to lose the fan base here or the benefits tied to having a Triple-A club so close to Houston. Express CEO Reid Ryan, one of Nolan's two sons who run the Round Rock club, said the team will review its options next fall and consider whether to re-up with the Astros or hitch its wagon to the ascendant Rangers. "Whether Nolan stays in Arlington 20 years or this is his last year there, we'll do what's in the best interest of our fans," Reid Ryan said. "We're not going to make a knee-jerk reaction." The uncertainty surrounding Tom Hicks' decision to sell part of all of the Rangers and speculation that Major League Baseball is pulling many of the club's strings seriously cloud the picture. So does the Express' place in the PCL standings. They're on pace for their second-worst record in history and their worst attendance ever, even though their average of 8,662 still ranks second in the PCL. "We've had an absolutely fabulous relationship with the Astros," said Houston businessman Don Sanders, who along with Nolan owns about 80 percent of the Express. "I think there's been some disappointment or maybe even a lot of disappointment at the caliber of players we have. "That resulted from the fiasco the Astros went through three and four years ago when they didn't sign a lot of their draft choices. It's probably been remedied to a point, but it's been an absolute disaster." Houston has done a good job restocking its farm clubs lately, signing 24 of its top 25 picks this summer. That haul, coupled with agreements with 33 of its top 39 the year before, should go a long way toward replenishing the talent level. The Astros have also come to terms with 22 of 23 draftees in the top 10 rounds the last two classes. But they have a steep hill to climb. The Rangers' minor-league system ranked No. 1 by Baseball America in April after sitting at No. 4 a year ago. Houston's been dead-last 30th both years, as the Astros refused to sign above the slotted amounts for prospects and failed to offer arbitration to a few veterans, which could have yielded draft picks. McLane wants to win badly but can be tight-fisted. "It killed 'em," said Jim Callis, executive editor of Baseball America. "They didn't draft well a couple of years, and they haven't done near as much internationally." That neglect has translated into weaker Express teams like the 2009 version that is fighting New Orleans for the American South basement. Round Rock and its fans are used to winning. The team had winning seasons six of its first seven years and won the Texas League title in 2000 and the PCL American Conference in 2006 before three consecutive losing seasons. Blood is thicker than both water and ink on a contract that the Ryans signed with the Astros in February 2008, in which they agreed to a two-year extension that expires at the end of next season. Corpus Christi, the Double-A club of the Astros, which is also owned by the Ryan-Sanders group, inked a four-year deal with the Astros. The disparity is telling. "They know where we stand," Reid Ryan said. "We went to two years, and that left the door open. "We did it to keep our options open and move forward." There is no hurry. As Sanders said, "Drayton's been a great partner. Everything's up in the air. It's like you're (packing) to go to San Francisco in three months. Why don't you wait until a week before you go and check the weather." The situation has more moving parts than Kevin Youkilis' swing. Perhaps the Ryans could team with Sanders and maybe even George Bush to purchase the Rangers, but Sanders said he didn't think that was the direction the former president wanted to go. One source connected to these negotiations heard rumblings that McLane briefly considered selling the Astros a year or two ago, and certainly the Ryans and Sanders wouldn't be opposed to looking for investors for that. They're always looking for a good deal and have scouted out places such as Richmond, Va., and Baton Rouge, La., as sites for possible minor-league investment. The Express have remained one of the most successful minor-league franchises in the nation even though a recent Sports Business Journal lumped together all the city's semipro sports, including the Turfcats and Toros, and ranked the Austin-Round Rock market as only the 187th-best out of 239 minor-league areas. Don't tell McLane that. Only debt approaching an estimated $6 million — thanks, in part, to $3.5 million worth of improvements last offseason — keeps the Express from ranking as one of the most successful minor-league franchises. However, there might not be anything McLane can do that keeps the Express as an Astros farm club. ---------------------------------------------------------- Pretty telling. DD
Good article, DaDakota. More stuff for Drayton to worry about. Round Rock is awful this season. Baseball America and Don Sanders both pointed out our serious draft failures. I remember hearing those rumors about McLane considering selling the team. I wonder if more rumors like that will pop up in the not too distant future.
We won in the past with PITCHING. Our main focus should be getting a good pitching rotation rather than offense. Pitching wins! sign, SF Giants
The Giants have the best pitching in the league and if the season ended today wouldn't make the playoffs. And they are your example for "pitching wins"? Meanwhile, the top four offenses in the league all would make the playoffs. Shouldn't the quote then be hitting wins, signed the New York Yankees. and LA Angels
Except that we have drafted some good prospects in guys like Seaton, Meir, etc etc. The problem is that the Astros have had a history of highly rated draft busts. See Chris Burke and Phil Nevin.
Every team drafts some good prospects but it's all relative. How well are we drafting compared to other teams? How much are we devoting to scouting, drafting and development compared to other teams? According to Jared's link, despite having the worst farm system in all of baseball for the 2nd consecutive year, the Astros were in the bottom 6 in total draft expenditure and they are one of only 7 teams to spend below slot allowance in 2009. Sure, we've done better the last 2 seasons compared to our own crappy standards but how about compared to the rest of the league? It would seem to me we need to be among the top tier of spenders and be as willing as any other team to spend over slot in order to make up for all the recent draft failures (whether those failures were due to poor picks or failure to sign picks). This is all without even touching on the quality of our scouting and development which I know nothing about.
I agree John McMullen was much worse. But it's pretty telling when you have to pull out the "Well, McMullen was worse" defense.
I am hard pressed to think of another team that could not spend unlimited resources on FAs (Yankees, Red Sox, Braves) that has had a 37% playoff appearance rate over the last 16 years. Please keep in mind that I realize the Braves are no longer in the unlimited resource boat...but they were throughout the 1990s.
Exactly right, and a big part of the problem I have with the whole notion that "the Astros can just rebuild through the draft" concept. Every team rebuilds through the draft, so all that does is get a team to be average. If the Astros want to be above-average, they have to (a) get more prospects than other teams (thus the notion of trading their top talent) or (b) get lucky and hit on more players than other teams do. There's no evidence as of yet that (b) is occurring - maybe it will, but it's too early to tell at this point since all the prospects are in A-ball.
