Never in my life have I felt as sorry for a professional athlete as I do now for Roy O and more or less Lance. I'm sure others feel the same way. I just want to find him, hug him, and tell him from the bottom of my Astro-rooting heart that I am sorry for the trash this city has put him through. Roy has done nothing but perform at an elite level since he put on an Astros uniform and we have payed him back by running the organization into the ground. In much the same way i'm sure Lance sits in his bed at night and wonders what it would be like to play for an organization that didn't have it's head stuck up its ass for the better part of this century. These guys are not video game characters nor are they dumb; they see it just as clearly as we do. Both have signed sweet heart deals for this organization and both have been rewarded with catchers that wouldn't dream of hitting above .200 and back end rotations filled with men that the Red Sox would laugh off their triple A squad. Please don't mistake my critical attitude towards the organization as one devoid of any appreciation. I appreciate the playoff appearances and the heart that many of the players have shown, most evident in our two homegrown superstars. I just can't help but laugh out loud at the sudden revelation that a solid franchise is built around it's farm system. When Drayton pretends that sometime in the Fall of '07, while hitting a sweet approach shot on the second hole at River Oaks, it suddenly came to him that signing over-priced veterans was not the way to build a championship club - that my friends is hogwash. Dumb people can become rich; dumb people dont become Drayton-rich. So what is the excuse? Please explain to us, the 40,000 people that showed up at the game to root for a lame duck team, why it is we have not had a solid position player come from our system since Lance Berkman in 1999? I take that back, Hunter Pence will be a solid major leaguer. So can I get an explanation why we have two solid batting prospects in the last decade? Building from within is not a new notion. I can't recall a successful team built in free agency that wasn't at the very top of the team salaries list. Drayton, are you willing to have the team with the highest salaries in baseball? No? Then why are your pursuing this strategy? What do we have to look forward to in 2009? What do Roy and Lance have to look forward to? For the first time in my entire sports watching life I feel actual dread for players on my hometown team. I feel sorry that Roy and Lance have to wake up every day and play their hearts out while knowing its all futile. The streets of Houston are flooded and Lance and Roy are trying to use buckets to bail us out. Its too bad that Drayton has poked holes in the bottom of each one.
I don't really feel sorry for them because both have been to the World Series...Biggio and Bagwell, despite being on many talented teams, didn't make it there until the twilight of their career, and even then they didn't win a championship. At the end of the day, they're getting paid millions to play the sport they love. Very few people can say that. And this team isn't that much different from last years, and they made a late push for the playoffs. They could just as easily earn the Wild Card this year as they could hit rock bottom.
If Oswalt or Berkman did not want to be on the Astros, they didn't have to sign contract extensions. They've had a pretty damn good decade here, being in the playoff hunt virtually every year of their careers.
1) They both get paid an ass-load 2) They are almost always in contention for the playoffs 3) They have been to the World Series as Astros I don't feel sorry for him at all
The rotation may not end up as bad as some have feared. IF Hampton can stay healthy, he is capable of having an ERA in the high 3's. Ortiz looks pretty solid. High 3's. Capellan could make the club as a starter. He has been lights out this spring, but who knows what to expect? Oswalt Hampton Wandy Ortiz Capellan Moehler can fill in as a starter in case of injury. An average rotation, maybe. The lineup looks much better with the addition of Pudge. I'm guessing middle of the pack.
Yeah, I couldn't disagree with this thread more. The Astros have had prospects come through the system; they have just traded them for bigger names or lost potential picks due to signing top-tier free agents. Drayton has done plenty in the past. I don't have to go through all the moves for you. I think they have maintained a solid franchise very capably, a la the team we all hate, the Utah Jazz. The Astros have been in contention nearly every year for the past 15. Oswalt and Berkman have been infinitely further in the postseason than Biggio and Bagwell were at this same point in their careers. Hell, Berkman and Oswalt are the main reasons the Astros ever made it to the World Series. I think that has provided them with plenty to grateful for, both financially and personally. Sure, the farm system is inadequate, but who cares, the major-league team is still competitive. Shouldn't this organization have a bright future if the major league club is still in contention even with the worst farm system in the Bigs? The superstars on our squad are not yet past their prime, and the overall talent/depth at the minor-league level can only get better. They would have made the playoffs last year if not for Ike. Go Astros.
I'm a little unclear on what you're complaining about, Droopy. Your issue is the sudden shift in attention from maintaining success through free agents and trading to building through the farm system and why it took so to realize this was a better strategy? I mean, a big part of the reason why our farm system is crap right now is not because of McClane. Was he unwilling to fork over bigger bonuses for some of our draft picks that went unsigned? Yes, and I'm sure our minors talent suffered for it...but the players we DID draft and sign have largely been busts for a LOOONG time. That spans over two GMs. As beloved as Hunsicker was, he still made a lot of mistakes in the draft, especially towards the end of his Astros career. Purpura was terrible. But none of that was Drayton's fault. He hired these guys to do their job and they did it poorly for a while. They're gone now and he is trying to fix what they broke with a guy who, despite other deficiencies, is known for having a good eye for amateur talent. I hate that our Astros will probably suck this year. It makes the period between football seasons so much more dull when all you hear on sports talk radio is people b****ing about the Astros. But I don't feel sorry for the players because both Roy and Lance have experienced prolonged success so far in their careers. Much more than the average player will see other than long time Yankee or Red Sox players. If either of those players are really expecting their team's front offices to continue to maintain the success they enjoyed for so long, I think they are deluding themselves.
I feel bad for all of the players that were in the wake of the Purpura era. Even moreso for the fans. I won't be giving the Stros any of my money so long as Drayton remains entrenched in "be just good enough to keep the box office going" mode. Evan
hobby. Antonyms: job, profession, vocation, work job. A regular activity performed in exchange for payment, especially as one's trade, occupation, or profession. time. just wasted 2 minutes explaining the difference between a hobby and a job. you win this time ryan. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Raven, You are right, my message was unclear. That's because I am typing more from my heart and my thoughts are clearly dazed by my man love for Oswalt. My man crush is not unfounded though; Roy is a tough man who tells it like it is and performs without excuses. He is what you want out of a ball player and he is arguably the most important player to put on an Astros uniform in my lifetime. I do not agree with this classic BBS argument that Drayton is not responsible for our woes. Of course we can point to Hunsicker, Purpura and too a small extent Wade as the men that make the mistakes that we are now paying for dearly. We must look to the top though to see who handcuffed these decision makers. If you truly understand the singularly most important winning concept in baseball, building within, then you don't refuse to pay bonuses to prospects in leiu of handing Kaz Matsui's literal sore ass millions more than the former required. I will admit Carlos Lee has exceeded all my expectations, but can you imagine what 18 million dollars could do in the amateur draft? If even three of the prospects you spend that money on prevail over time, that's three positions taken care of by arbitration for six years. I'm not saying we should spend 18 million on a single amateur draft, this is an extreme example, but can you honestly say this team would not be better if Drayton invested properly in the draft instead of tickling Bud Selig's butthole in appeasement for 15 years? I know I am going to lose the two people who support my argument after my next few points, but please at least listen with an open mind. The three teams I support above all others are the Houston Rockets, Dallas Cowboys, and the Houston Astros. I trust Morey and Alexander. Whenever Morey makes a move I am instantly pleased because his track record is great and if he believes he's improving the team I am going to support him. Drafting Landry and Brooks, trading for Artest, signing Von Wafer... the man has made deft moves throughout his tenure. Les Alexander has never let money fetter his GMs actions. Jerry Jones, for all the hate he receives inside the Cowboy's world and throughout the nation, can never be accused of not wanting to win. Jerry wants to win at all costs. As a Cowboy's fan I have to at least appreciate and acknowledge this. He doesn't always make the right moves, but you can't ask for more than an owner who truly cares. As long as there are people filling up the Juice Box and paying 7 dollars for a cup of beer or 10 dollars for a margarita with a quarter-shot of liquor in it, Drayton will not care. If Drayton could get away with fielding a baseball team consisting of ducks pattering in circles, he would do it. The counter to this argument is that the Astros have been successful for much of Drayton's reign and his payrolls approach the 100 million dollar mark. I believe this is all in spite of Drayton. I think if we saw the real accounting, we would see a man that has been making wheelbarrows full of money while simultaneously claiming poverty. Barring some ridiculous turn of events, the Astros are going to be awful for the next few years and it is Drayton's fault. I am not too naive to see that owning a baseball franchise is like any other business; you are there to make money. I just wish that our owner loved the Astros as much as we do. Sorry for the long post. I am hitting my ritalin high and had a thirty minute break. tl;dr Its too bad a badass like Roy doesn't have an owner who cares about winning as much as he does.
Hmmmmm, you wasted your time ranting about a hobby that people get paid for. No one feels sorry for them. Get a clue.
The irony is that you need to read the responses to your post. It shows people think you're clueless.
