Search this site
Matching entries from Houston's Clear Thinkers
Stros 2009 Season Review, Part Three
Given the inexplicable popularity of NFL football practice in these parts, who cares about Major League Baseball anymore, anyway? As expected, the Stros (59-62) faded into obscurity during the third quarter of the 2009 season, going 19-21 during that...
Stros 2009 Season Review, Part One
While waiting in line to pick up a bottle of water at a Stros game earlier in the week, an old friend of mine and fellow longtime Stros season-ticket holder stopped by to say hello and chat. Eventually, the...
Batter up! Stros 2009 Season Preview
Today is Opening Day for the Major League Baseball season and Houston, so it's time for HCT's annual preview of the Stros' upcoming season (previous annual previews since 2004 are here). The Stros opening day roster is here over...
Stros 2008 Season Review, Part Five: Season Recap and Report Card
The Stros 2008 season has been over for over a week now, so it's time for my final review of the 2008 season (prior 2008 season reviews are here) and my grading of the Stros players for the 2008...
Stros 2008 Season Review, Part Three
Inasmuch as Major League Baseball is taking a break for the All-Star break, I decided to post the third part of five periodic reviews of the Stros' 2008 season a game or so early (previous parts for the 2008...
Valuing the Stros
The Stros are not worth squat on the playing field this season, but the club continues to be among the dozen most valuable franchises in Major League Baseball. Forbes' annual valuation of MLB franchises is out and the Stros come...
Batter up! Stros 2008 Season Preview
The Stros are on the road for the first week of the 2008 Major League Baseball season, but that's not a bad thing considering that the optimism usually associated with Opening Day during the Biggio-Bagwell era of the Stros...
Baseball Prospectus 2008 is here
Baseball Prospectus 2008 is now shipping, so it's time to order your copy in plenty of time for the beginning of the MLB season. In terms of improving your understanding of baseball, it's the best $14 you can spend....
The Chronicle's vacuum of baseball analysis
It may be football season, but that doesn't stop Chronicle sports columnists from continuing to bludgeon us with their seemingly insatiable capacity to analyze the Stros and matters relating to Major League Baseball badly. First, there is this blog post...
First it was the moldy roof, now this!
At this rate, Drayton McLane is going to make a full-time living out of suing subcontractors who were involved in the construction of Minute Maid Park. McLane's latest lawsuit, reported in this Houston Business Journal ($) article, seeks to recover...
Stros 2007 Review, Part Ten: Season Recap and Report Card
It’s been a week now since the Craig Biggio Farewell Tour drew to a close during the final eighth of the Stros’ disappointing 2007 season. With the end of the season, the tremendously successful Biggio-Bagwell era in the history of...
Stros 2007 Season Review, Part Seven
Gosh, it's amazing how fast 20 games go by for the Stros (62-79) when the club's General Manager and manager are fired in the interim (previous periodic reviews are here). The reactions to the firing were varied (see here and...
The state of the Stros
As I've noted many times, the Chronicle's coverage of the Stros is pretty pathetic overall. But markets are wonderful things, so the blogosphere has quickly developed into a far superior source of analysis about the Stros than the mainstream media....
The Great Embarrassment of the 2007 season?
I am not as sure as most that Drayton McLane made the right move in firing General Manager Tim Purpura the other day. However, there is no doubt that Baseball Prospectus' Joe Sheehan thinks that McLane screwed the pooch in...
Drayton cleans house
Stros owner Drayton McLane finally pulled the plug and fired General Manager Tim Purpura and Manager Phil Garner on Monday as the Stros continue their spiral downward into last place in the National League Central. Although the timing of the...
Stros 2007 Season Review, Part Six
As the Stros (54-67) close in on the three-quarters pole of the season, I can't decide whether it's more of a reflection of the sad state of baseball analysis in local mainstream media outlets, or simply the remarkably mediocre nature...
The Futures at Minute Maid
Drayton McLane may have allowed the Stros franchise to decline steadily on the field over the past couple of seasons, but he rarely misses an opportunity to make a buck with his baseball franchise. That's why I'm a bit surprised...
Stros 2007 Season Review, Part Four
So, now that the Stros are done with that, where does the club go from here? As the Stros (34-47) reached the halfway point of the 2007 season, that's the question confronting the owner Drayton McLane and General Manager Tim...
Reaching a milestone the wrong way
I've noted in several previous posts (here and here) how Stros management has hurt the club and thumbed its nose at the integrity of baseball by indulging Craig Biggio's quest for 3,000 hits, but Baseball Prospectus' Joe Sheehan really lays...
What's the excuse?
Despite the fact that Craig Biggio (-9 RCAA/.271 OBA/.382 SLG/.653 OPS) has been one of the least productive hitters (-28 RCAA) among regular National League players over the past season and a half, I at least understand the Stros' decision...
The Roy O trade that didn't occur
As the Stros were languishing below .500 at the halfway point of the 2006 season, rumors were circulating that the Stros were entertaining a trade of their ace starter, Roy Oswalt, among others. The Stros ended up standing pat and...
The Nardelli paycheck
Last week, this post noted Henry G. Manne's op-ed regarding the myth of shareholder democracy being some sort of panacea to all sorts of corporate agency cost problems. As if on cue, Professor Manne's op-ed was followed by Home Depot's...
Richard Justice, Andy Pettitte's press agent
It's hard to keep up with the sloppy and illogical analysis of Chronicle sportswriter Richard Justice, so usually I don't even try to do so. However, sometimes it spills over to such an extent that it simply can't be ignored....
Stros 2006 Review, Part Ten: Season Recap and Report Card
With the League Championship Series matchups now set, it's time to put the Stros 2006 season to rest. At least the Stros' late season surge was fun while it lasted, but it ended in the same manner as too many...
Getting off cheap
The Houston Rockets are off to Austin for pre-season training camp and, although the basketball team hasn't achieved much lately, Rockets owner Les Alexander recently joined for the first time fellow Houston professional sports franchise owners Bob McNair (the Texans)...
Stros lock up Roy O
In my most recent periodic review of the Stros 2006 season, I observed that the personnel moves that Stros General Manager Tim Purpura made this past off-season do not inspire much confidence that he knows what to do in turning...
Missing the point on Preston Wilson
The Stros mercifully waived Preston Wilson over the weekend, who has been one of the worst-producing regularly-playing outfielders in the National League this season (Wilson's .714 OPS was 79th in the National League among regular players). The news would not...
Those dang baseball expectations
People who follow baseball love to talk about possible trades of players, particularly when the hometown club isn't doing well, as is the case with the Stros this season. That's certainly been the case in Houston over the past couple...
Richard Justice's revisionist thinking
Chronicle sports columnist Richard Justice wrote the following answer to a question in his blog recently (toward the end of the blog post): I love [disabled Stros slugger Jeff Bagwell] to death, but his big contract and him not wanting...
Stros 2006 Review, Part Six
After the Stros were blown out by the Mets on Friday night and fell to a season-worst 46-51 record, it's looking clearer by the day that the magic of the Stros' past two second-half playoff runs has worn off completely....
The Rocket returns
Another segment in Houston's favorite reality show -- the Life and Times of Roger Clemens -- unfolded yesterday as the almost 44 year-old, indefatigable Rocket announced that he would return in a couple of weeks for his third season with...
The Bagwell disability claim lawsuit
As noted earlier here, the Stros have initiated a lawsuit against Connecticut General Life Insurance Co. over the insurer's denial of the Stros' claim under the disability insurance policy on the best player in Stros franchise history, Jeff Bagwell. Previous...
Stros 2006 Review, Part One
This is my first periodic review or the Stros' season in my third straight year of blogging the club, and the first 10% of the season has has initially justified my generally rosy pre-season outlook. The club has burst out...
Batter up! Stros 2006 Season Preview
It's Opening Day today in Houston as the Stros take on the Marlins this afternoon at Minute Maid Park, so it's time for my annual preview of the Stros upcoming team and season (last season's preview is here). Let's first...
Update on the Bagwell disability claim
The Chronicle's Stros beat writer, Jose de Jesus Ortiz, reports today that the insurer of the Stros disability insurance policy on slugger Jeff Bagwell has denied the Stros' claim that Bagwell's arthritic right shoulder has rendered him disabled under the...
More on the Bagwell muddle
Chronicle sportswriter Richard Justice continues in this column with his illogical broadsides on Stros owner Drayton McLane over whether the best player in Stros history -- Jeff Bagwell -- is disabled from playing Major League Baseball (previous posts here, here...
The Bagwell non-issue
The silliness about the Stros-Jeff Bagwell situation continues over at Richard Justice's blog: And the Drayton McLane-Jeff Bagwell dispute is a story with legs. What if the insurance claim is rejected, and Bagwell ends up on the field in spring...
What's the deal with Richard Justice?
Chronicle sportswriter Richard Justice -- who still has a difficult time accepting Stros owner Drayton McLane's decision of over a year ago not to retain former Stros GM Gerry Hunsicker -- rarely misses an opportunity to slam McLane and current...
At least Wagner is consistently classless
This earlier post from yesterday noted the dubious decision of the New York Mets to pay former Stros closer Billy Wagner $43 million over the next three seasons with an option for a fourth season that could push the total...
A snarky week in Strosland
Kevin Whited and I have been shaking our heads this week over the barbs that have been being flying to and from the Stros' front office. The Stros' front office hasn't been involved in this kind of flame war since...
More on former Stros General Managers
Blogging is a big light today as I make some blog site upgrades, but I wanted to pass along a couple of interesting items on former Stros general managers. In this remarkably frank article, Chronicle Stros beat reporter Jose de...
Does Phil Garner read Clear Thinkers?
This NY Times article from over the weekend contains the following blurb from Stros manager, Phil Garner: Phil Garner praised the Astros' owner, Drayton McLane, for his willingness to re-sign Carlos Beltran after his scintillating 2004 postseason, but he said...
The remarkable Mr. Biggio
On the heels of their dramatic win in the last game of the regular season to seal the National League Wild Card Playoff berth, the Stros announced today that the club had signed future Hall of Famer and lifelong Stro...
John McMullen, R.I.P.
John McMullen -- who went from savior of the Houston Astros franchise to one of the more reviled owners in Houston professional sports history -- died yesterday at his home in Montclair, New Jersey. McMullen was 87 years old. McMullen...
Good news from Kissimmee
The Stros have scheduled a news conference for this afternoon in which they will announce that the club and All-Star Lance Berkman have agreed to a six year, $85 million contract. Berkman is one of the best hitters in Major...
A note on Roy Oswalt
A tip of the hat today goes to Stros owner Drayton McLane and GM Tim Purpura for signing ace pitcher Roy Oswalt to a two year $16.9 million contract. The contract will take Oswalt up to his final arbitration year...
Is it time for Drayton to sell the Stros?
Drayton McLane has done a pretty darn good job of running the Stros. During his tenure, the club has been in the top tier of performance among Major League teams and a consistent playoff participant or contender. Under his tutelage,...
Tim Purpura's first big challenge
Now that the Stros' dance with Carlos Beltran is over, new Stros General Manager Tim Purpura can finally get on with showing us what he can do in the job. The Stros did not handle the Beltran negotiations particularly well,...
Is Landry's making a play for the Stros?
As noted in this earlier post, Drayton McLane may be quietly trying to sell the Stros. This Chronicle article speculates that Landry's announcement yesterday that it has completed arrangements for almost $850 million in debt may portend a move by...
Herskowitz on Stros GM's
Longtime Houston sportswriter Mickey Herskowitz, who I have mentioned frequently in these earlier posts, is my favorite sportswriter. Mickey's blend of insight, humor and historical perspective is sadly lacking in much of the sportswriting that we must endure these days....
Gerry Hunsicker resigns as the Stros' GM
Gerry Hunsicker -- the most successful general manager in the history of the Houston Astros -- resigned Monday after nine years as the club's general manager. Hunsicker's tenure as Stros GM coincided with the most successful decade in Stros' history....
Stros 2004 Review: Stros-Braves Playoff Preview
The media is all aflutter with the fact that the Stros have never beaten the Braves in three previous playoffs (in 1997, 1999, and 2001), but that fact is irrelevant to the current series. Only five of the Stros' 25...
Stros continue to tease
Raul Chavez improbably drove in a career-high five runs, Jason Lane went 3-for-4 with and scored twice, and Morgan Ensberg went 4-for-5 with two runs scored as the Stros hung on to their slim playoff hopes with an 11-7 win...
Baseball Prospectus on the Astros' bench
Amid the mainstream media's mindless analysis of Major League Baseball in general and the Houston Astros in particular, Baseball Prospectus provides an objective, and less than encouraging, analysis of the Astros' bench players for the upcoming season: We've put off...
Feed Subscription
If you use an RSS reader, you can subscribe to a feed of all future entries matching '"Drayton McLane"'. [What is this?]
