SportsJustice

March 04, 2010

I went to The University of Texas. I'm over it. Move on.

How does it feel to watch your Horns fall from an overrated number 1 NCAA position to out of the top 25 in a couple of months? That's got to hurt.

You're barking up the wrong tree, Jethro. I graduated 34 years ago. I'm over it. I didn't live and die with them now and damn sure don't live and die with them now. If you're going to insult me by insulting my college, you're going to have a long day of work.

I get emails like, ''Hey, Richard, Texas is nothing but a bunch of pot-smoking, Obama-loving, tree-hugging nuts. What do you think of that?''

I don't think your opinion of my college is worth a bucket of warm spit. It's a curious psychology that people remained abnormally attached to their alma mater through the sports teams.

It's actually a sickness. I've had people threaten me because I insulted UH, A&M or Texas Tech. I mean, who cares? I couldn't care less what you think of The University of Texas.

On the day of the national championship game, an A&M honors grad posted on his Facebook page, ''(Bleep) Mack Brown. (Bleep) Texas.'' He went on for about 500 words. His parents must be so proud. Money well spent.

I love The University of Texas for reasons that have zero to do with the football team. I wish the funding for my daughter's TA gig hadn't been pulled, but over time, I'll recover.

Otherwise, writing about Texas football is my job. Do I like it? I like Mack Brown and the players. I'm annoyed by the paranoia around college football programs and the bubble in which these kids live.

I also think the world of Mike Sherman, Bob Stoops, Tommy Tuberville, Kevin Sumlin and David Baliff. I'm much more emotionally invested in the Astros, Texans and Rockets because I know the people in charge and want them to succeed. I can't say I really know Mike Sherman or Mack Brown.

If you're still attached to your school to the point that you'd throw punches, you should seek counseling. As for me, you can say what you want about any team except the University of Wyoming swim team. I'll throw down over the Pokes.

Posted by Richard at 11:01 AM in | Comments (42)
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March 03, 2010

I've got questions for you. You've got questions for me.

I've got nothing today, so if you've got questions, fire away. One thing that has been on my mind a lot lately this thing Don Eigler did 20 years ago. He arranged 35 xenon atoms to spell IBM, thus becoming the first person to move and control an individual atom. Shouldn't this guy have a statue someplace? Maybe he does have a statue, but since it's not at a stadium or a sports bar, I haven't seen it.

I never thought much about nanotechnology until I read Michael Crichton's Prey. Now it's one more reason to lose sleep. Does anyone have thoughts on nanotechnology?

At least I don't have to sit around and be disappointed that Carly Simon wrote You're So Vain about David Geffen. How disappointing would that be? Anyway, Dick Ebersol says it's not about David Geffen, so I can continue to hope it's about Warren Beatty or Mick. It's the little things.

NFL owners lose credibility when they won't open their books and show the players why they need financial relief. Drayton McLane and I went down this road a bunch of times through the years. Before the 2002 labor agreement, Drayton promised to open his books and show how he was losing all this money. But when the agreement was done, he said he'd get in trouble with Commissioner Selig.

To his credit, Drayton has been much more open about his finances. He has confirmed that most of the annual estimates in Forbes are true and admitted to making a profit a couple of years. Regardless, owning the Astros has been very good for his portfolio for a variety of reasons, including how it raises his profolio to the benefit of his other benefits.

NFL owners signed a labor deal in 2006 that they say they can no longer live with. Roger Goodell would like to lower the players' share of revenues from around 59 percent to 41 percent. Here's the rub. Goodell says that 18 percent will be invested in the game, in paying off stadium debt, etc., and that the players will end up doing well.

Players say they will accept no rollbacks, and unless someone blinks, there's a work stoppage coming in 2011. Both sides have to watch their rhetoric, especially the players.

No one is going to side with them. Got that? No one. They may be in the right, but fans always side with management. Most NFL players don't leave the game with set-for-life money, but many do.

Both sides are dug in. Owners say they need relief. Players say they'll not take a cut. And fans are going to be ticked off that their game is held hostage while these people fight over a huge pile of cash.

OK, to the questions. Just to get things moving, I'll start by asking myself one.

Richard, should we be worried about Lance Berkman's sore knee?

Absolutely. He and Roy Oswalt have reached the point in their careers where no injuries are inisignificant. This one is worrisome because there was no collision, no trauma. Is this the beginning of an arthritic condition? From the final month of the 2008 season through the end of 2009, Berkman wasn't the same player he'd be. If you're hoping for a comeback season in 2010, this isn't the news Astros fans wanted to hear, especially this early in the season. And then again, it could be nothing.

Posted by Richard at 08:33 AM in | Comments (58)
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The Sports Update: Bourn must continue to improve

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March 02, 2010

Texans have wasted almost as much money as the Astros

I think I've figured out why Bob McNair decided to play hard ball with Dunta Robinson, Owen Daniels and DeMeco Ryans. Maybe he decided he was already spending enough money. The Texans had the NFL's third-highest payroll in 2009 at $122.6 million, and that's a lot of money to spend on a team that didn't even make the playoffs.

The Texans also missed the playoffs in 2008 and 2007, but they had only the NFL's 22nd-highest payroll that year, according to figures compiled by USA Today.

We usually think of the Astros as the team in town that throws around a lot of money and gets little in return. Maybe we've been so focused on Drayton's wasteful spending that we haven't been paying enough attention to the Texans, who threw money at Ahman Green and a bunch of others without getting much return.

And let's face it, Mario Williams hasn't exactly morphed into the game-changing defensive player he was supposed to be. In the end, though, winning is all that matters.

If the Texans cruise into the playoffs next season, it won't matter how much money they wasted in 2009 or how badly they mishandled negotiations with three of their core guys.

I hope Dunta Robinson sends the Texans a thank-you card. He's going to do pretty well for himself, and he wouldn't have that opportunity if he and the Texans were still mud-wrestling over a new contract.

No one has ever accused McNair of being cheap. In fact, he's pretty much a model owner in that he tries to hire good people and then gives them the freedom and resources to do their jobs.

It has been four years since that 2-14 season, and the Texans finally are on the threshold of the playoffs. Their bad luck is to be in a division with two of the NFL's best franchises — Colts and Titans — but they were a play or two from going 3-1 against those teams.

Unlike previous years, they have only a few holes to fill. I'm not even sure they need help at cornerback despite Robinson's likely departure. Coaches played rookie Glover Quin only when forced to last season, and he did very well. Antwaun Molden was their third-round pick in 2008, and if he can stay healthy, he appears to have the skills to play well.

All they lack is experience, and that's important at those positions. Smith and Kubiak will have to weigh their other needs — running back, safety, offensive and defensive line — against what they already have at corner. If Kevin Walter leaves via free agency, wide receiver would also become a position of need.

Beyond his own team, McNair appears to be one of the leaders in picking a fight with the players, a fight that seems likely to result in a 2011 work stoppage. Owners want to roll back salaries, in part, to help pay for all those new stadiums. Players say there'll be no rollbacks.

I'm old enough to remember when baseball was the sport with labor issues. In fact, baseball endured a shutdown every few years as billionaire owners and millionaire players fought over a pile of cash that should have been big enough for everyone. Despite their best efforts, they didn't kill major league baseball.

Now it's the NFL owners preparing to do something stupid. A shutdown in 2011 would cost each team around $50 million, and while that's a lot of money, owners probably are better able to withstand a shutdown than players. So they're hoping the players will come crawling back.

Just our luck. Our team finally gets good enough to have some January fun, and the league calls the whole thing off. Dangit.

If you think the country is headed in the wrong direction, one way to change things is to follow me on Twitter. If I don't get to 10,000 followers, let's just say I may have to put Houston in my rearview mirror. I like it here. Help me, won't you?

Posted by Richard at 09:23 AM in Texans | Comments (26)
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The Sports Update: Can Oswalt return to previous form?

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March 01, 2010

Thoughts on Astros opening Dominican academy

I'm playing hurt this morning. I've had a minor cold for a few days, and last night, it grew into a hairy, ugly, raging thing. It started at dinner with some Astros folks last night. Nothing livens up a night out like a guy coughing his head off and trying to get everyone else sick.

Was up at 6 this morning to buy Sudafed, and now I'm better. Also, after days of either rain or cold, it's a postcard-perfect day in Central Florida. I'm feeling good enough that I may just drive over to the Astros complex and entertain the boys with some stories about how baseball was 20 years ago. There's nothing Puma and Roy like more than hearing about the time Sam Horn hit a pair of three-run dingers on Opening Day in Kansas City.

I wrote a game story that day that would put Granny Rice to shame. I caught up with John Hickey over the weekend. He showed up at camp now working for AOL Fanhouse after a distinguished newspaper career covering the A's and Mariners.

We started reminiscing about Tony and Eck and Stew Ball, and got to laughing, and I was sure that all these young ball writers and PR types thought it was the most interesting thing in the world. And then I looked up, and it was just me and Hick Man there alone.

Everone else suddenly had someplace they just had to be. If you ask me, that story speaks volumes about what has happened to this country. You try to teach these kids some history, and they just don't want to know. They think Berkman is an old-timer. It's a lack of respect I'll tell you, a lack of respect.

Anyway, moving on to today's topic, the Astros are very, very excited about the ribbon-cutting on their Dominican Republic Academy later this spring. Drayton McLane, who has only seen pictures, will be going down for the event.

His people have worked tirelessly to get it right and to allow the Astros a better chance to tap into the amazing pipeline of Dominican talent. If you drove around United States cities in, say, the '50s, you would have come upon kids playing baseball games. In Houston. In Los Angeles. All over.

That's how it is in the Dominican Republic. Kids don't have much in the way of equipment, but they play anyway. Baseball is their sport. Teams like the Dodgers and Blue Jays have done great work harvesting the talent through the years.

There'll be a social component to the Astros' efforts as well. Their facility will have 50 beds, a computer lab and a cafeteria. Kids will be taught English along with baseball fundaments. The hope is that the kids who aren't good enough to be brought over to the minor leagues will be better equipped to make a living in the smothering poverty of the Dominican.

The Astros already have a large international flavor to their roster this spring. Seventeen of the 40 players on their roster were born outside the United States, including 11 from the Dominican. They also have players from Panama, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.

A significant number of those players were originally signed by other organizations, but the starting rotation could be 40 percent Dominican-born if Felipe Paulino can win a spot and join fellow countryman Wandy Rodriguez.

When Ed Wade began rebuilding the player development system, he made it a priority not just to do a better job in the United States, but to go find players in the Pacific Rim and in Caribbean states. He got off to a good start in 2008 with the signing of Taiwanese reliever Chia-jen Lo and added several more last summer.

Lo is a strong-looking kid with a power arm. He has blown through the minor leagues ahead of the 2008 draft class and likely will pitch in the big leagues this season. The Astros hope he's the first of many from outside the USA, and the opening of the Dominican Academy and the playing of games there in May will be another step in the right direction.

Astros' 2009 international signings

Name	Age	Position	Throws/Bats	Nation
Ramirez, Felix Alberto	18	RHP	R/R	Dominican Republic
Perdomo, Yeudy Aurelis	17	LHP	L/L	Dominican Republic
Mejia, Yonathan Algenis	16	2B	R/S	Dominican Republic
Pena, Kilby	16	LHP	L/L	Dominican Republic
Fernandez, Jose Luis	16	SS	R/R	Dominican Republic
Marte, Ydarqui	16	OF	R/R	Dominican Republic
Feliz, Andres	18	LHP	L/L	Dominican Republic
Guduan, Reymin Yojairo	17	LHP	L/L	Dominican Republic
Gaillard, Joel	17	OF	R/R	Dominican Republic
Ferreira, Edgar Leekaran	17	LHP	L/L	Dominican Republic
Arias, Johan Manuel	17	RHP	R/R	Dominican Republic
Franco, Enderson Daniel	16	RHP	R/R	Venezuela
Ordosgoitti, Luis	17	RHP	R/R	Venezuela
Angulo, Yoiner	17	OF	R/R	Colombia
Martinez, Alexander Jose	16	RHP	R/R	Nicaragua
Martone, Luca	16	2B	R/S	Italy
Moon, Chan Jong	18	3B	R/L	South Korea

Whether you're Dominican or Taiwanese or even if you've never been east of Lufkin, you'll love following me on Twitter. I'm 4,124 followers short of winning that Chevy Volt, and I need your help.

Peter King's MMQ has a funny little nugget about a prank Sean Payton pulled on Jerry Jones at the Scouting Combine. SI.com

Craig Biggio's St. Thomas team is playing Strake Jesuit Tuesday night to raise money and awareness for breast cancer research. pinkribbons.org

Posted by Richard at 07:55 AM in Astros | Comments (16)
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The Sports Update: Confidence a hallmark for young Bud Norris

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February 28, 2010

How the Astros evaluated Lyon and Lindstrom

I'm writing a column about the signing of Brandon Lyon and why Ed Wade has been criticized for it nationally. I don't fully understand the criticism because it was a competitive bidding situation, and with Lyon having multiple two-year offers, the Astros had to either overpay for two or give him a third year.

The Astros had him rated No. 2 among eighth-inning free-agent relievers, behind only J.J. Putz, who didn't pitch after June 4 last season but says he's healthy this spring. As for closers, Wade could have traded for Atlanta's Rafael Soriano, but preferred adding to the bullpen without giving up a player.

Wade had penciled in Jose Valverde for $9 million in 2010 and La Troy Hawkins for $4 million. When he signed Matt Lindstrom and Lyon for a total of around $6 million, Wade had enough money left over to get a third baseman (Pedro Feliz). But as Wade said, ''It'll come down to how they pitch.''

(In addition, the Astros covered the Brett Myers contract, in part, by winning their arbitration hearing with Wandy Rodriguez. They were committed to Myers before the arbitration process was finished, so it was a gamble.)

Wade did give Lyon three years, but the average annual value is a reasonable $5 million. Lyon has had an interesting career, having been both a closer and a setup man. The Astros are his fifth team in nine seasons. He had a 5.19 ERA in his first four seasons, a 3.45 ERA in his last four. He was phenomenal down the stretch for the Tigers last summer, compiling a 1.56 ERA after June 1.

He was booed on Opening Day at Comerica Park, but ended up pitching very well after tweaking his cutter or getting better command of it. He's currently sidelined after having a cyst in his shoulder drained. That cyst is worrisome, but Wade said two MRIs have revealed no other problem and that he's confident Lyon will be good to go on Opening Day.

Wade showed me his scouting three scouting reports — one on Lyon, two on Lindstrom. Overall, the Astros had four reports on Lindstrom, two on Lyon. Keep in mind that the Astros' scouts give 20-80 grades, so 50 is average. Above 50 is above major league average. In other words, pretty good.

Skill	Lyon	Lindstrom	Lindstrom
Fastball	60	80	70
Command	50	50	45
Fastball life	55	70	55
Curveball	55	na	na
Slider	60	55	60
Change	45	50	45
Overall command	55	50	50

One scout's report on Lyon...

''Strong compact athletic body. Can field position. Holds runners. 1-3 delivery. Has good stuff. Has closed on occasion early in the year. Has in the past. Effective setup reliever. A couple of strikeout pitches with slider and curveball. Occasional fastball stuff is mostly hard. Curveball defuses the style some. Aggressive with first-pitch strikes. Both sides of the plate. Uses curveball early in count. Competes well, has intangibles, which allows to use all of his pitches and go after hitters. Is more sinker-slider type, who can run a four-seamer into right-handed hitters. Can be stretched out multiple innings. See him as a good piece at the back of the pen as a depth reliever who has some flex in use, including closing.''

Here's the first report on Lindstrom...

''Power reliever with closer stuff. Plus fastball that can be overpowering. Runs a hard tilted slider away from right-handed hitters. Primarily a two-pitch guy. Tends to run up high pitch count. Command can be inconsistent. Had a health issue which is resolved. Needs better command.''

Here's the second report on Lindstrom...

''Closing games. Big tall kid. High three-quarter delivery. Power arm. Quick delivery out of stretch. Often rushes, leaving fastball up in the zone. Gets hitters to chase, who will learn in time to stay off that pitch. Needs to get fastball down in the zone more often. Challenges hitters. Will use both sides of the plate. Fastball occasionally will have short cut action. Slider is his next-best pitch. Tight bite with tilt, primarily away from left-handed hitters and occasionally backdoor to lefthanders. Sliders to right-handed hitters when ahead in the count can be chaseable off the outside edge. Good arm. Still a bit of a thrower. Has trouble putting hitters away. Occasional spit-finger, some tumble out of the zone, primarily a show pitch. Still a work in progress as a closer. Like his arm and power.''

Valverde and Hawkins were terrific in their season and a half together. Both were very good people in the clubhouse, especially LaTroy, who is one of the funniest people I've known.

He and Wade had a warm telephone conversation after LaTroy had agreed to terms with the Brewers. Wade helped jump-start LaTroy's career after the Yankees had shown him the door.

Anyway, we might all feel pretty good about the 2010 Astros if they had Hawkins and Valverde for the eighth and ninth innings. Lindstrom is a guy with a huge upside, but who has never been able to harness that 99-mph fastball. He's like Felipe Paulino in that way.

Lyon is solid, but as he told me the other day, there's a huge psychological difference between pitching the eighth and ninth inning. At times, he has done both well, but he has had some bad stretches, too.

If they're both good, the Astros will have a deep, talented bullpen. Wade has done an excellent job of collecting low-price guys. Jeff Fulchino and Albero Arias were $25,000 waiver claims, Wesley Wright a Rule V pickup.

I asked Wade his organizational setup for picking up players off waivers. And that's Monday's blog.

Follow me on Twitter, and something good might happen. If I get to 10,000 followers, my bosses have promised I can accompany the Astros to Kansas City in June. This would be significant only if you've had the slice of heaven that is Stroud's Pan-Fried Chicken. Do a brother, solid. Send me to KC. Chicken. Gravy. Biscuits. Fries. Cinnamon Rolls. Cold Jax Beer. Little Jimmy Dickens on the jukebox. I would say something about all the great talks I had with Hank Bauer through the years, but Hank has made his last trip to Strouds if you know what I mean and I think you do. You'd do it for your mother, wouldn't you? Well, mama can't make it, but I can.

Posted by Richard at 09:19 AM in Astros | Comments (22)
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February 27, 2010

Puma and I had a chat this morning

Julio Cortez/Chronicle

People have gotten the idea you don't care and you don't work hard because you joke about it.

''I was thinking about that the other day. Maybe I've overplayed that a little. It's easy when the interview is on television for people to see it's said tongue-in-cheek. You say some of these things in the print media, and it comes off as serious. I probably should have been a little more guarded with some of my remarks. But I don't want to be a guy that hides behind cliches.

''I would like for people to know I do work hard. I worked the whole off-season. The first thing I did was lose about 12 pounds. I follow Gene Coleman's program. They send us home with an off-season training manual.''

Why did you lose weight?

''When you start having leg problems, one of the culprits can be if you get a little bit too heavy. I like to play at 220. At the end of the season, I was at 230. I was about 10 pounds heavier than I wanted to be. I'm getting older and it's harder to keep the weight off. I don't feel I've ever been fat or unathletic. I joke about it because that's how people perceive me. People tell me I look like I'm 300 pounds on television. I don't run pretty. I'm not the most fluid on the bases. I feel like I always play hard. I run hard. I do care about what we're doing here.''

I tell people you're a Type A, that you're obsessive about doing well and that you're miserable when you're doing poorly. For some reason, they'd rather buy into the Fat Elvis thing.

''People have an impression of who Bagwell was. I remember when I was a young player, and we'd lose in the playoffs. It was always, 'Bagwell is not a very good leader. He doesn't have the passion. He doesn't have the fire.' That couldn't have been farther from the truth. If you played with Baggy, he was an incredible leader. He was great in the clubhouse. We all loved him. He was a great, great guy.

''Now that he has quit playing, everybody has re-embraced him. I very distinctly remember the things that were written about him or said on the radio. He was too laid back, not vocal enough. He gets hits when the game doesn't count. None of that could have been farther from the truth. You can't really know a person just by reading about him in the newspaper.

''I enjoy joking around. Part of alleviating the boredom of hearing the same questions over and over is to joke around and say things people don't expect. Sometimes that has been to my detriment.''

Some athletes say what they think they're supposed to say, and that seems to be what fans want. If you veer off, they think you don't care.

''Like A-Rod. Until very recently, everything he said was scripted. I'm not going to tell you something because that's what you guys or the general public want to hear. I would hope the people that are truly fans would pay close enough attention to the way I play. I've never dogged it on the field my entire life. If you hit a ground ball to the second baseman, and he's standing there holding it, you may not run 100 percent through first base all the time. You're out halfway down the line. That kind of thing happens.

''All I'm saying is that I feel like I've played hard, I've played hurt, I've been on the field, I want to win. I would hope that people that watch the games would know that just by watching.''

Why were your numbers down in 2009?

''I don't understand it. I felt pretty good. That's the thing that's frustrating for me. I'm a guy that has the ability to hit well over .300 and hit 35 home runs and drive in 120 runs. I've done that. I've also been the guy that hit .280 with 25 home runs and 80-90 RBIs.''

Did the losing get to you?

''Whenever you are not performing up to your capabilities, you always feel like you've got to do more. That's just the nature of anything. If you're drowning, you're going to swim harder.''

How bad was the clubhouse environment?

''It was really bad. But I don't want people to blame that all on Coop. It was bad because I played bad. I wasn't as good as I can be. Roy was hurt and down. Nobody really played up to what they were supposed to. We had a lot of guys under-perform. In fact, the only guy to perform consistently well was Wandy. He pitched great. Outside of that, everybody had a down year, and that in and of itself creates a horrendous environment. I think people want to say it was the manager. It wasn't all his fault. Certainly, he has some responsibility in that because he was the manager. It was our fault.''

What difference can a new manager make?

''It can give you a fresh perspective and make it feel like a new day. It's a breath of fresh air, and I think it's going to help.''

Why didn't you go into Drayton and tell them there was a huge problem with Coop managing the team?

''One of the main reasons is I'm a leader of the guys here in the clubhouse. It's not my responsibility to go in there and try to get someone fired. If Drayton had come to me and asked, I would have given him an honest opinion. I would not have volunteered it. I don't think that's appropriate.''

Are you optimistic about this team?

''I really am. I can't think of a time when I have not been optimistic about the club. I can't help but like who we've got. I think we really have a legitimate chance, particularly if guys bounce back. I think Roy's going to have a big bounce-back year. If Brett can stay healthy. If Bud makes a step forward. I think we've got a chance to have a really good starting staff, and that's the very foundation of a good season. You cannot win in the big leagues without good pitching. I think our pitching this year is going to be a lot better than it was last year.''

You contacted Garrett Gilbert after the National Championship Game. Why?

''I told him I was proud of the way they responded to a tough situation. I was trying to think back to when I was a freshman. You think about the magnitude of that game, the whole deal. He played great. It was great to watch. It was inspiring. You could tell when Colt went out, they were reeling. The defense. The coaching staff. Everybody. It was like, `Oh my gosh, what do we do?' The team as a whole collected themselves in a short period of time, and they had a chance to win that game in almost insurmountable odds.''

Follow me on Twitter. I'm no longer asking. I'm begging. I need 10,000 followers. I want that Chevy Volt, but I need 10,000 followers.

Posted by Richard at 01:29 PM in Astros | Comments (25)
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February 26, 2010

The Sports Update: On Michael Jordan and NBA ownership

Posted by Richard at 09:36 AM in Sports Update | Comments (4)
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February 25, 2010

Ed Wade has done a good job with Astros, and I don't mean maybe

Deadspin had an essay about the Astros that portrayed Ed Wade in an unflattering light, and me being the thoughtful one in the room, I decided to review Ed's two years in charge of our ball club.

I'd use much more colorful language, but those Internet big-shots are very touchy. I took a little shot at Bill Simmons a couple of years ago, and he got every college freshman in America to fire me a nasty email. Since then, I salute whenever someone mentions Bill Simmons or any of his work or members of his immediate family.

He appears to be close to Daryl Morey, and when a 2.1 GPA University of Texas graduate gets into a fight with the MIT crowd, it's not going to end well. So I'm being real delicate about Deadspin. However...

The bottom line is that Ed Wade has done a very solid job. He arrived two off-seasons ago to find an organization terrible at the big league level and even worse at the minor league level.

He was given the twin assignments of rebuilding the Astros from below while keeping them competitive at the top. And oh by the way, he wouldn't have impact money to spend in free agency.

OK, now let's take a deep breath and review what we've covered so far. Ed's orders were to not spend a lot of money and to get almost nothing from the minor leagues, but to keep the big league team competitive. Never mind he spent those first two seasons with a manager who would rank somewhere below Mike Scioscia, Tony La Russa and 27 others on the competence scale.

As I'm constantly reminded, it's impossible to evaluate any Astros' GM fairly or accurately without knowing his instructions from ownership. When a GM gets the kind of marching orders Wade has had, he's going to be forced to take some chances.

I'll admit I like Ed personally, and I've liked him more and more as I've gotten to know him. Does this color my evaluation? Of course it does. I'm not a machine. I'm a living, breathing, loving, handsome, good-in-print, great-on-Internet, good-on-TV, outstanding-on-radio, America-loving man.

Ed is an interesting guy. Gets up and runs seven miles in the dark many mornings. Voracious reader of everything from John Grisham to Vince Flynn to historians of all stripes. Student of military history. Has a son training to be a Navy Seal and a daughter working for Villanova basketball.

Wade has been in baseball almost four decades, has seen and heard a lot. He's also the kind of guy whose real heroes are Marines. Ed tears up at the National Anthem. In other words, Ed is good people.

Some of you will say this doesn't matter. You would be wrong. It does matter. At least it matters to me. I'm much more inclined to cut some slack for a good man than a guy who goes around back-stabbing his coaches to try and save his own job. I'm not naming names, but you know who you are, Charley Casserly.

Wade tore up the Astros that first winter. Some of his moves were good. Some weren't. That's what happens when a GM makes a bunch of decisions in a small amount of time. He added Randy Wolf and LaTroy Hawkins during the 2008 season, and both those moves turned out extraordinarily well.

At the end of the day, he hasn't gotten the Astros back to the post-season, and in the end, that's all that matters. But he has done a very good job given the circumstances—and the ownership—he was given.

He appears to have gotten it right in the hiring of scouting director Bobby Heck. He has also somehow convinced Drayton McLane that player development is important.

Drayton has had trouble understanding throwing big money at an area with a 95-percent failure rate even though it's the only way to build a competitive mid-market franchise. Come to think of it, the Yankees and Red Sox wouldn't be competitive without a farm system, either.

At this point, the hiring of Bobby Heck, his reorganization of the amateur scouting department, and the quick signing of two draft classes stands as his most important work.

He also led the effort to hire a new manager, and although it's real early, the Astros appear to have gotten it right with Brad Mills.

''Our leadership in Ed Wade and Brad Mills is the best it has been in my 18 years owning the Astros,'' Drayton McLane said.

As for his big league moves, he did a terrific job acquiring Michael Bourn, Randy Wolf, LaTroy Hawkins, Miguel Tejada, Pedro Feliz, Jose Valverde and Brett Myers. I might have allocated resources differently, but all those guys were what he thought they'd be. It's too early to grade his acquisitions of Brandon Lyon and Matt Lindstrom.

Giving Lyon a three-year contract raised eyebrows all over baseball, but Wade had just lost Valverde and Hawkins, and Detroit was offering Lyon a two-year deal.

Would the Astros have been better off keeping Valverde and Hawkins? Yes, they would have. But the Brewers slipped in and offered Hawkins an additional year, and Valverde made the odd decision of rejecting arbitration in a tight market.

Again, it comes down to winning. The Astros are bringing some kids along, but they're not in a rebuilding mode. Any club with Roy Oswalt, Brett Myers, Carlos Lee and Lance Berkman is in a win-now mode, and Wade's acquisition will play a big role in the 2010 won-loss record. But his options were still limited by the huge contracts he inherited and a smaller payroll.

As for his mistakes, Kaz Matsui is the biggest. Wade gambled that a guy that had been hurt most of his career would stay healthy. He hasn't. And when he was healthy last year, he wasn't all that productive.

I thought Wade was past the point of being a punch line after his work in putting together the foundation of a club in Philadelphia that won back-to-back National League pennants.

Pat Gillick took Wade's core group and finished off the roster. When the Phillies won in 2008, Gillick publicly saluted Wade for his good work.

I've been critical of Wade during his two years for Matsui and even Tejada, but the bottom line is that given the circumstances, it's difficult to imagine anyone doing better.

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Posted by Richard at 02:23 PM in Astros | Comments (43)
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The Sports Update: Take your family to spring training

Posted by Richard at 09:25 AM in Sports Update | Comments (3)
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