This week’s announcement that Jim Crane will have the Astros (either as individuals or as a group) apologize for the electronic cheating scandal seemingly rubbed many Astros’ fans the wrong way.
Today’s post will be pretty simple. What do you as an Astro fan want from this organization?
- Do you want the players to get up and read a carefully crafted apology to the fans for the heartbreak they have caused?
- Do you want Jim Crane to get up and apologize for all this happening on his watch?
- Do you want Commissioner Manfred to get up and apologize for all this happening on his watch? (Don’t hold your breath on this)
- Do you want the team to give away “stuff”? Free hotdogs? Half price caps?
- Do you want Crane to make some big splash acquisition of a pitcher – luxury tax be damned?
- Do you just want the players to shut up and play and win?
- Do you want MLB to investigate every team as deeply as they investigated the Astros with immunity for all the players involved?
- Do you want more information on what the Astros actually did? Did they cheat in every single game? Did they cheat only at home (where they performed worse than on the road)? Did they cheat more in the playoffs? Did some players try it and then they said, no thanks?
- Or do you want it all to go underground and go quiet?
This is your turn! Let us know what you want as a fan of baseball or as a fan of the Astros.
CHIPALATTA 
As for me, I am a big boy, and I don’t want, demand, or even want an apology from anyone. What I want is an excellent product on and off the field – and another, completely untainted, world series championship in Houston. And, if I had my druthers, I’d really rather never see: 1. any in clubhouse media access allowed at all, at any time; b. any Astro player ever again stare into the camera after scoring a run or making a play; c. any Astro player mouth off at or say derogatory things about a player on another team; or d. carry his bat to first base, or otherwise drawing attention to himself, after hitting a dinger.
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Kind of like the book by Laura Ingraham, “Shut up and Sing”, I agree that these guys should just Shut up and Play! Let your play be your answer.
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Shut up and Play the stink will be on this for many many years!
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I’m going to repost my comment on the previous piece.
Do you folks think this “it” will effect Carlos Beltran’s chance of getting in the HOF? How about Verlander? Or Altuve, Correa, Bregman when their playing days are over. That ring is the CROWN JEWEL of baseball…..I would hate it, if this scandal kept any of these guys out of the HOF.
I’ll answer your questions later today Dan.
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Becky, I think the answer varies for all involved. I think Verlander is a lock unless does/says something offensive between now and when his eligibility for the ballot occurs. I think Beltran is a lock on the first ballot unless allegations of impropriety surface related to his stints in STL and NY. Prior to November I would have said Altuve was a lock barring a major injury. It now depends on whether his performance and health can hold steady for another couple years. Sportswriters are questioning his MVP season’s legitimacy…because they are either stupid or didn’t bother following the Astros that year. Here are his splits…again:
Home: .311 / .371 / .463 9 HR 35 RBI
Away: .381 / .449 / .633 15 HR 46 RBI
I think Correa and Bregman are longshots. They need to maintain their level of play and stay healthy for a long time. If they do then people will wave away this scandal. Also, but the time either is on the ballot, there will be revelations about the games other teams were playing but not caught/punished for during this era.
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Becky, this is often compared to the steroid scandals. In fact, some people say it is worse. That said, think of the players who are still not in the HOF because of that…Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are two of the more prominent players.
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Just read that the Astros will interview Brad Ausmus. I like that possibility
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Dan, remember my email to you on the night they fired Hinch! Yes, not surprised that Ausmus is in the mix. Is he a serious candidate? Dunno. You have to wonder how much influence Biggio and Bagwell may have had in bringing him in for today’s interview! Probably significant!
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I thought so too – Chip – seemed like someone that they were saving to interview. I don’t know how good any of these guys will be, he seems to be on the younger side but experienced.
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There is also the possibility the Astros have several “No Thanks.”
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The Ausmus resume does not impress me.
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I would like for the players to concentrate on being at their best for each game. As a fan, I require no apology, other than perhaps a show of embarrassment for being a part of something so unsophisticated as banging on trash cans. That to me is like robbing a bank and using a bicycle for your getaway vehicle. I could care less about apologizing to Yankee, Dodger, etc players or fans. It wouldn’t satisfy them anyway. I agree with Mr. Bill, stop it with the classless antics (Bergman) and act like you’ve been there before.
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Ausmus was a disaster in Detroit and LA hell no!
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Hinch was a disaster in Arizona – a lot of times if you don’t have the players or you are buried by injuries you don’t end up with a good record.
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Adding to your list, Joe Girardi, Joe Torre and even Tony Larussa were so-so or just horrible in their first and/or second gigs. Interestingly, Hinch, Torre and Girardi were all catchers.
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Right now, I want to cancel my MLB.tv subscription. Unfortunately, I don’t see a way to do that without contacting them on the phone.
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I heard that Keuchel apologized today
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For what? Did he throw Vaseline balls? Did he know about it? More unanswered questions. Time to move on.
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Oh and I wouldn’t mind Ausmus.
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What do I want? Baseball season to start. And MAYBE a little more information, but not too much. I don’t want a Perry Mason scene of “YES, I did it.”
And Ausmus would be a better choice, in my opinion, than a couple guys that are my age – which is like bread and milk – past their expiration dates.
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Absolutely no apologies!
I would like to see some Biggio/Bagwell class from these guys.
Also, Manfred so tangled up in this mess he created, he offers his resignation.
Ausmus over every one else they’ve interviewed to this point.
Maybe if Ausmus becomes manager Bagwell will become bench coach.
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I thought Keuchel had decent comments – he was at the White Sox fan fest. Said the Astros cheated and he was sorry about it, but it’s not like they did it all the time or that it always worked. He said that was the way things were back then – that why else would teams including ours – change signs with no one on base. He was also disappointed that Fiers broke the clubhouse code.
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I thought Keuchel’s comments were pretty measured and rational. It was good to hear it from a pitcher and I think he showed some perspective. I also listened to a podcast on The Athletic from Jayson Stark and Doug Glanville and they thought that disclosure was inevitable because pitchers were negatively impacted and hitters were positively impacted and the balance between the two was artificially skewed. I really don’t want a long drawn out media circus in spring training so get out and make a statement of regret on day one and then do like some players when they refuse to make any comments on contract or trade rumors. I’m no fan of Bryce Harper but when he told reporters that any question regarding his pending free agency would immediately end the interview it was effective. Judgment has been rendered and justice meted out. Let’s play ball.
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Play ball. Just play ball.
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Brad Ausmus.
I wasn’t going to answer your question. Until I saw my answer in the paper this morning. It’s the only pinhole of hope I’ve seen in this mess. Brad would be a little bit of salve on our fans’ hearts. It would be us against the world. Which it will be anyway. But Ausmus is as close to Hinch in demeanor and copacetic with players as you’re going to get. And he brings back a homeboy feeling that no stranger will be able to. It would be a bright spot in this debacle. Almost a feeling of meant to be.
Mr. Crane, hire Brad Ausmus.
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I’m weary of the whole scandal. The Cora details, when released, will be worse than the Astro fiasco. We’ll likely hear more about Beltran too. Nothing that comes out of this will be good for baseball. It also will not take any glare away from the Astros. But get it done and then stop, even if other clubs are guilty of similar transgressions.
I want the Astros to go about the business of playing baseball. I want to see fiscal responsibility. I want the club to remain competitive in October, most years. I want integrity. As Mr. Bill notes, I don’t want the arrogance, even if MLB might think it’s good for business and building a younger fan base. It is a business. But there can be joy again too. Do both well.
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I’ve already shared what I would like on a couple of subjects. Here is some more:
* I would like Reddick’s surgery to have been successful and for him to play better this year. I would like him to be more of a veteran and less like a teenager.
* I would like Michael Brantley to use his respected status to become more of a leader on this club. He is a player not tainted by the Curse of the Can.
* I think the club needs a guy like Ausmus who will stay calm when times get tough.
*I want more young pitchers from our system to pitch for the Astros. I’m tired of pulling for prospects for years, only to see them not make it or get shipped off to someone else.
* I want to talk baseball again.
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OP, thanks for your Ausmus vote.
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I have been so tied up with doctors this week that I missed this.
https://climbingtalshill.com/2020/01/24/astros-whitley-19-non-roster-invitees-spring-training/
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Misery loves company. Right now, the Astros are miserable. Brad Ausmus is a miserable manager. (Please understand what I’m saying.) It’s meant to be. What have you got to lose? Shoot your wad.
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I did want to say to Kevin and Daveb that you could be absolutely right about Ausmus.
I am thinking that Crane would have asked Verlander if Ausmus was good or not. I think he was with two teams that did not have anywhere the talent that he will see here. He could flop or he could excel. Or he could not get the job.
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Dan I agree on Arizona , from all my tiger friends for 40 years, he screwed that team up, they had talent and they cheered when he was let go!
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Kevin –
Looking back at his teams in Detroit – it looked like they under performed his first first season (2014) when he had a top notch offense and a lot of good starting pitching – though Verlander had a rocky season. Their bullpen looked iffy that season as Joe Nathan came to earth. After that with Scherzer and then Price leaving and with Verlander hurt in 2015 – they seemed to have pretty rotten starting pitching – a couple good starters followed by terrible.
Do they think he should have gotten more out of his pitchers? Was he a rotten strategist? Did he lose the clubhouse? How much did losing Dombrowski as GM affect things?
I would be interested in knowing what the inside scoop was.
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Ill see if I can get any scoops
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I wonder if Ausmus had enough of a pulse on his Angel club. I also don’t like the way he handled the Marisnick issue from his end. And while he did not have especially good teams to work with, he certainly did not overachieve either.
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Astros interviewed former SF GM Bobby Evans for GM spot….
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2020/01/astros-interviewed-bobby-evans-for-gm-job.html
Some connection to Dusty Baker
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The Astros have only one player (Forrest Whitley – #19) in the MLB pipeline top 100 prospects.
I don’t feel that is true but is it a reflection of anti-Astro sentiment or a reflection of them sending more prospects for Greinke and having Alvarez and Tucker no longer prospects.
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We do not have big prospects anymore. What we do have is a lot of young pitchers with good arms and some upside.
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I thought that maybe Abreu or Javier might sneak in to the top 100.
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In Ausmus’s defense, people with good memories will remember that Detroit had one of the worst bullpens in history during his four years as manager and he had a good hitting, bad fielding lineup with no speed and lots of payroll. They also had a barren MILB system. I still have visions of Detroit’s starting pitchers leaving with the lead and watching helplessly from the dugout as the lead and the win vanished.
In his one year with the Angels he had a team without starting pitchers.
Yes, I looked up the stats to make sure I was remembering correctly.
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Just to put it in perspective, had Brad Peacock been a starter last year for the Angels, he would have been the Ace of the staff.
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My last comment on this subject to everyone’s undying relief: The Astros are the least of my worries right now, as I’m sure is true of many here. All I remember is the last thing Ausmus said before he left: “I’ll always be an Astro.” I don’t know Brad Ausmus personally. Either he meant it or he didn’t.
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A friend of mine has a early morning sports talk show “Lotta Sports”, they were living in Dallas, but moved to North Carolina last fall. Her husband was sitting in a bar Friday waiting to get his flight in Houston, when Ausmus sat down next to him after his meeting with Jim Crane. Her husband said he didn’t think Brad was too excited about taking the job, but he said Ausmus told Crane he wanted $2 million, and he said Dusty Baker is NOT getting the job. So that’s one man’s take on it.
After gnashing my teeth, crying like a baby FOR WEEKS…..I’m not going to let this consume me.
The fall out will last many, many years, probably out last my time on earth.
A grown adult who knew better, and a team of pretty young players got caught doing something very stupid.
They didn’t kill anyone.
They didn’t rob any banks.
They used very bad judgment.
The commissioner has gone WAY over his punishments for this organization.
We’re other teams doing the same thing? YES.
Will stealing signs keep happening? YES.
Have most of us forgiven them? Yeah I think so.
I still think this eam needs ONE voice to talk to the press, and after the interview is over….it’s over.
It’s time to talk baseball…..PAST time.
P.S. Kole Bryant and 4 daughters died a few minutes ago in a helicopter crash in California. Prayers for his family🙏 I can’t imagine.
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There is some conflicting reports about the other people in the crash. Some are saying his 4 daughters were with him, and some are saying adults were involved. What a tragic loss.😭
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Shocking news today, Becky – just saw a headline that said his 13 year old daughter was on board.
As soon as it happened I wondered if fog was involved. Had been watching the golf tournament in San Diego and there was a ton of fog yesterday and some fog today. Reminded me of what happened to Stevie Ray Vaughn where his helicopter turned right into a hill in the fog in Wisconsin.
Terrible tragedy
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