Great article. I do not disagree with cranes assessment of click but I do believe that the best teams are ones with a mix of free agents vs home grown / superstars vs role players. Too many big personalities seem to get in the way of winning. Not saying marte or Hendrick or Wilson were that. But for example I know luhnow wanted tj realmuto for years.....he is better than maldy on probably every level but I am happy we have maldy.
Wow, great article! I had never heard this info about Hendricks and Marte. Thanks for sharing! Can you imagine how good this year’s team would have been with those two on it? I think I agree with Crane on all of those issues, and this is going to be a good change for Astros fans.
Click will be a better fit in an organization with a concrete budget ceiling. Crane is willing to spend if it means winning. He needs someone who can bring him deals, where he can approve or reject. We need a GM that can provide a steady flow of options and roll with the punches when his/her recommendations get shot down.
This off-season is going to be wild, and I can’t wait to see our lineup next year. It seems kinda awkward now, but I think we are going to look back on this week quite positively next year.
This is the type of Astros insight we need. Subscribing now! Thank you for sharing. Although most people on here seem to side with Crane, I tend to lean Click. Yes I'm happy Crane is willing to spend and make a splash, but most of the big free agent signings seem to be ego grabs by the owners. Crane prob. has a little bit of that in him- wanting to rub shoulders with the owners of the Yankees, Dodgers, Mets, etc when it comes to spending and say "look what we spent and who we signed." But the Luhnow and Click way seems more to develop and then give money to your homegrown guys. It's too bad they couldn't work it out- because right now maybe they balanced eaach other out and that's a good thing?? I def. agree on the locker room chemistry- NO PLAYER- is worth upsetting team chemistry and vibe. The Astros get an A+ in locker room chemistry and I believe it's a huge part of how well they perform.
Great insights. Hard to say Click was wrong in these circumstances. He put together a significantly cheaper team with substantially more financial flexibility and still managed to win the World Series. Click’s “worst” deals were for the 26th roster spot utility man and a reliever that got hurt after he signed with us. Every other one of his deals yielded something positive in one respect or another.
My biggest concern going forward (and evidenced by the Montero re-signing) is that Crane is going to overspend on free agents and we’ll wind up with a bloated roster of bad contracts in a few years a la the Yankees.
A natural conflict between manager/GM/owner can lead to the best outcomes if all three are moving in the right direction and willing to accept input. I believe that’s what we had in 2022.
I find it impressive that 8 of the top 20 prospects according to MLB.com are still Luhnow guys. I happen to think Meyers was still a good bet though the injury didn't let his development occur this year.
With Crane proving to be more and more the megalomaniac, it seems like he'd be better served to simply add GM to his job title; either that, or just declare he'll be the one thru whom all decisions are made or whose desk all moves will arrive to await his final approval (however temporary the Firkus promotion proves to be).
Great article! I feel some are going overboard likening Crane to Jerry Jones. He’s had his finger on essentially every move that’s been made since he bought the team. Im not about to question his decisions now. Just was never a good marriage between the 3. Writings were on the wall when Crane hired Dusty then Click anyways.
I said all along that everyone should be wary that Click might bring that small ball mentality from Tampa. Niko Goodrum was a reach and a half. And while he did get Montero and Graveman, the latter left in free agency with very little effort by Houston to retain him. Click knew the offensive deficiencies coming into the season, and really didn't do squat to address them. And as for bringing in aforementioned Montero, Nerris and Stanek, who were all largely given up on by their previous teams, everyone should read this outstanding article on Dusty. https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/unsung-genius-dissecting-dusty-bakers-bullpen-brilliance-for-his-sabermetric-critics/ar-AA13YnMH
Awesome article. I love Crane’s mentality…win. I don’t understand how Click would NOT make moves because it’s too expensive…it’s not even his money!!! The owner literally giving you the green light to spend.
Feels like Click helped his owner save some of his money. Also emboldens Click’s resume for his next employer to show he knows how to tweak but not go big and still reach the end goal.
Great article. I do not disagree with cranes assessment of click but I do believe that the best teams are ones with a mix of free agents vs home grown / superstars vs role players. Too many big personalities seem to get in the way of winning. Not saying marte or Hendrick or Wilson were that. But for example I know luhnow wanted tj realmuto for years.....he is better than maldy on probably every level but I am happy we have maldy.
Wow, great article! I had never heard this info about Hendricks and Marte. Thanks for sharing! Can you imagine how good this year’s team would have been with those two on it? I think I agree with Crane on all of those issues, and this is going to be a good change for Astros fans.
Click will be a better fit in an organization with a concrete budget ceiling. Crane is willing to spend if it means winning. He needs someone who can bring him deals, where he can approve or reject. We need a GM that can provide a steady flow of options and roll with the punches when his/her recommendations get shot down.
This off-season is going to be wild, and I can’t wait to see our lineup next year. It seems kinda awkward now, but I think we are going to look back on this week quite positively next year.
This is the type of Astros insight we need. Subscribing now! Thank you for sharing. Although most people on here seem to side with Crane, I tend to lean Click. Yes I'm happy Crane is willing to spend and make a splash, but most of the big free agent signings seem to be ego grabs by the owners. Crane prob. has a little bit of that in him- wanting to rub shoulders with the owners of the Yankees, Dodgers, Mets, etc when it comes to spending and say "look what we spent and who we signed." But the Luhnow and Click way seems more to develop and then give money to your homegrown guys. It's too bad they couldn't work it out- because right now maybe they balanced eaach other out and that's a good thing?? I def. agree on the locker room chemistry- NO PLAYER- is worth upsetting team chemistry and vibe. The Astros get an A+ in locker room chemistry and I believe it's a huge part of how well they perform.
Great insights. Hard to say Click was wrong in these circumstances. He put together a significantly cheaper team with substantially more financial flexibility and still managed to win the World Series. Click’s “worst” deals were for the 26th roster spot utility man and a reliever that got hurt after he signed with us. Every other one of his deals yielded something positive in one respect or another.
My biggest concern going forward (and evidenced by the Montero re-signing) is that Crane is going to overspend on free agents and we’ll wind up with a bloated roster of bad contracts in a few years a la the Yankees.
A natural conflict between manager/GM/owner can lead to the best outcomes if all three are moving in the right direction and willing to accept input. I believe that’s what we had in 2022.
Excellent article Michael! I always wondered why those deals never happened. It was a bad marriage, a clean divorce, and now we move on!
I find it impressive that 8 of the top 20 prospects according to MLB.com are still Luhnow guys. I happen to think Meyers was still a good bet though the injury didn't let his development occur this year.
Good stuff Mike
Excellent work here. Thank you!
With Crane proving to be more and more the megalomaniac, it seems like he'd be better served to simply add GM to his job title; either that, or just declare he'll be the one thru whom all decisions are made or whose desk all moves will arrive to await his final approval (however temporary the Firkus promotion proves to be).
Great article! I feel some are going overboard likening Crane to Jerry Jones. He’s had his finger on essentially every move that’s been made since he bought the team. Im not about to question his decisions now. Just was never a good marriage between the 3. Writings were on the wall when Crane hired Dusty then Click anyways.
basically crane is very hands on aka a waanbe GM
Great article!
I said all along that everyone should be wary that Click might bring that small ball mentality from Tampa. Niko Goodrum was a reach and a half. And while he did get Montero and Graveman, the latter left in free agency with very little effort by Houston to retain him. Click knew the offensive deficiencies coming into the season, and really didn't do squat to address them. And as for bringing in aforementioned Montero, Nerris and Stanek, who were all largely given up on by their previous teams, everyone should read this outstanding article on Dusty. https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/unsung-genius-dissecting-dusty-bakers-bullpen-brilliance-for-his-sabermetric-critics/ar-AA13YnMH
Awesome article. I love Crane’s mentality…win. I don’t understand how Click would NOT make moves because it’s too expensive…it’s not even his money!!! The owner literally giving you the green light to spend.
Feels like Click helped his owner save some of his money. Also emboldens Click’s resume for his next employer to show he knows how to tweak but not go big and still reach the end goal.