ReportWire

Tag: Jim Crane

  • Four Looming Questions for the Astros This Offseason – Houston Press

    [ad_1]

    When you miss the postseason for the first time in eight years, even if it was only by a couple games, decisions will need to be made. This is particularly true of an Astros organization that has celebrated one of the best runs of any team in baseball over the last decade including a pair of World Series wins.

    It is what makes this winter both fascinating and a little concerning for anyone following this team. Jim Crane has said the championship window will always be open as long as he is the owner, but that is easier said that done, particularly when you are simultaneously trying to remain relevant and rebuild a farm system devastated by trades, injuries and penalties in the wake of the 2017 sign-stealing scandal.

    GM Dana Brown will have a lot on his plate when the hot stove starts heating up. Here are four questions that will be top of mind for him and Astros fans.

    How do you deal with the starting pitching?

    At present, the Astros have exactly two healthy starting pitchers we can assume will occupy the team’s starting rotation in 2026: Hunter Brown and Cristian Javier. Framber Valdez is a free agent and not expected to return. Barring surgery, Spencer Arrighetti should be back and Lance McCullers, Jr. could take one last shot at starting. After that, it’s a crapshoot.

    Multiple players including Ronel Blanco, Luis Garcia, Hayden Wesneski and Brandon Walter are expected to miss all of next season following surgery. That leaves rookie AJ Blubaugh, who was good in his handful of starts, but hardly a guarantee, and Jason Alexander, who could return but was only good this past year after being claimed off waivers.

    After swinging and missing at a starter at the deadline, Brown will have no greater priority than finding at least one, possibly two, starting arms this offseason and pray for health in 2026, something that has eluded the organization for several years.

    What moves do you make to clean up the infield logjam?

    Bring Carlos Correa back via trade was not just good for the feels at Daikan, it was beneficial on the field as well. Likewise, Ramon Urias provided some much needed depth on the infield. But with Isaac Paredes back from injury, there are now more players than spots available. Paredes could be moved to second base, but few believe he can excel defensively there, something the Astros as an organization have prioritized in their infield acquisitions. But if not there, where?

    Christian Walker came on at the end of the season, but was a general disappointment at the plate despite being excellent at first. Jose Altuve bounced between left field, second and designated hitter, but many people the left field experiment will end leaving him with few options in the field, especially when Yordan Alvarez is healthy.

    Then there is the fact that with Urias, the Astros are essentially carrying two utility men with Mauricio Dubon, who regressed at the plate in 2025. Could some of these players be moved to clear room?

    Oh, and we didn’t even mention the fact that rookie Brice Matthews, who plays second base, looks ready for a full season in the bigs. A lot to consider here.

    Can better coaching improve hitting with these players?

    After firing Alex Cintrón and Troy Snitker, the team will move to fill those vacancies with new hires focused on hitting, but will that be enough. For years, this has been an organization that preached plate discipline, but that seemed to escape them this year. With so many free swingers on the roster and not enough of them power hitters, the Astros offense was anemic at best.

    You’d be hard pressed to find people in baseball who believe hitting coaches can change the fortunes of entire teams, but they need to get these hires right. Getting back to taking more pitches and saving swings for balls in the zone must be a priority.

    Ultimately, however, it will take the right combination of players (and health) to get this team out of the offensive basement. Adding ANY power to the mix would also be hugely helpful.

    What 40-man roster moves should be on the table?

    When you consider the names on the roster and the lack of minor league depth, it seems like an offseason primed for some trades of players most fans know. Where players like Dubon, Walker and/or Paredes fit will be part of the calculus, particularly with the glaring need for pitching.

    Then there is the outfield. Jesus Sanchez in right was below average in the field platooning with the surprising rookie Cam Smith, who excelled defensively despite never playing in the outfield. But, Sanchez also struggled at the plate. They team dealt for him, hoping for a boost from his left handed bat. With a full year under his belt, Smith probably deserves the full time role in right, but where does that leave Sanchez?

    Likewise, rookie Zach Cole had a huge impact down the stretch and seemingly came out of nowhere, but would seem to be squeezed in the outfield when you consider the returns of Jacob Melton, one of the team’s best prospects, and Zach Dezenzo, who could play multiple spots on the field.

    Finally, there are Chas McCormick and Jake Meyers. McCormick could be a candidate to be non tendered and Meyers might be at the peak of his trade value after a good season at the plate and continued success defensively in center.

    A lot will be decided in a short period of time with potential seismic shifts up and down the roster.

    This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.

    [ad_2]

    Jeff Balke

    Source link

  • Alex Bregman is a Free Agent, Will He Return to Houston

    Alex Bregman is a Free Agent, Will He Return to Houston

    [ad_1]

    Perhaps the most important signing (or non-signing) watch of the offseason began Thursday. With the Dodgers beating the Yankees in a yawner of a World Series, baseball is officially over until 2025, which means teams will begin the mad scramble that is hot stove season.

    For the Astros, all eyes are on Alex Bregman. The home grown third baseman is a free agent and should get a massive contract by the Astros or some other team. How much, how long and with whom are questions every Astros fan is wondering right now and no one knows the answer.

    Unlike previous seasons when the Astros allowed George Springer and Carlos Correa to leave via free agency, this is not a team that is still loaded with talent across the board. There is no Jeremy Peña waiting in the wings to take over at third base and no dominant other youngsters who might fill the void in the lineup. For the first time in the “golden era” of Astros baseball, Jim Crane may be forced to doll out the kind of contract he has been loathe to give previously.

    Not only is there not a viable option at third if Bregman leaves (making it more likely they will have to spend money on some high end free agent at that position), but he is rather unique among the Astros veterans. On field, he often acts like another coach, working with pitchers on strategy. He was one of the players who encouraged Yussei Kikuchi to throw specific pitches repeatedly that ended in tremendous success after coming to Houston.

    There is also a point where, as a franchise, you have to find a way to stop the bleeding and keep some of your best players in house. They have done that with Cristian Javier, Jose Altuve and, to a lesser extent, Yordan Alvarez. Altuve, in particular, has been vocal in his belief that Bregman should and will return to a roster that absolutely needs him in the lineup.

    By all accounts, Crane and GM Dana Brown will make a sizable offer to their third baseman. The average annual value (AAV) of the deal will likely be in line with some of the highest paid third basemen in the league. The question is will they offer enough years?

    Matt Chapman, a player who is better defensively and has very similar numbers to Bregman, but doesn’t have the same playoff resumé, got six-year $151 million deal from San Francisco this year. That will be the starting point for negotiations between the Astros and Bregman’s super agent Scott Boras (who also represents Altuve).

    Would, for example, five years, $160 million get it done? That’s $7 million more per season than Chapman, but one fewer year of the deal. If they Astros went to six years, would $180 million be enough to bring Bregman back or could he get more on the open market?

    The truth is, if the Astros give Bregman a fair offer with a high AAV and he still opts to leave for more money or more years (seven or eight seasons?), no one in Astro world (pun intended) should hang their heads. The Astros had the third highest payroll in baseball this year and it was still almost $55 million lower than the Yankees and more than $60 million lower than the Mets.

    By comparison, the A’s spent just over $63 million in total payroll in 2024.

    The Astros and Crane spend money and they will continue to be willing to do so. But there are factors beyond Bregman. A much bigger free agent year awaits them after the 2025 season when Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez (among others) enter free agency. Tucker will be worth more on the open market than Bregman. And none of this takes into account the fact that the Astros really don’t have an every day first baseman on the roster or in the minors.

    Everyone wants Alex Bregman back in an Astros uniform, but if he doesn’t sign in Houston, it won’t be because the Astros were cheap. It will be because the market it ridiculous and even with the third highest payroll in baseball, there are limits to what Jim Crane can spend.

    [ad_2]

    Jeff Balke

    Source link

  • Five Key Decisions Ahead for the Astros

    Five Key Decisions Ahead for the Astros

    [ad_1]

    The Astros closed out the symbolic first half of the season with a pair of losses to the Texas Rangers in Minute Maid Park. Fortunately, the Mariners also stumbled into the All-Star break leaving the Astros just one game back in the division with a head-to-head series in Seattle next week after the week off.

    With the All-Star break this week and the trade deadline looming just weeks away, the Astros, who have had a near complete reversal of fortunes after their rocky start, have plenty of questions to be answered as they get deeper into the summer. Here are five key decisions they will need to make in the next month.

    What to do about Rafael Montero?

    The Astros have clearly been working around the struggling reliever. When he finally did get an opportunity on Sunday, he gave up his eighth homer of the season, essentially putting the game out of reach. Montero is in the second year of a huge three-year deal that made him the highest paid no-closing reliever in baseball. He has not come close to living up to that money. Now, the Astros are actively having to work around his spot in the bullpen begging the question: Should they just cut him? It would be the second such move after Jose Abreu, another signing prior to the hiring of GM Dana Brown but after former GM James Click was fired, was released earlier this season. Montero is taking a spot that he doesn’t deserve. It may be time for owner Jim Crane to eat another contract for the good of the team.

    Should Lance McCullers, Jr. shut it down for the season?

    McCullers has not pitched since game three of the 2022 World Series when he gave up seven runs in four-and-a-third innings. He had only played in eight regular season games that year. In his career, he has pitched more than 150 innings just one, in 2021. Prior to that 162.1-inning season, his career best was 128.1 in 2018. After rehabbing from another surgery this offseason, he was expected to make a comeback this year, but had a setback that has pushed him back until at least August, maybe later. At what point do the Astros just shut him down entirely? That will be most of 2022 plus all of 2023 and 2024 lost to injury. It will also mean that nearly three of his five-season extension he signed before 2021 will be paid despite him not throwing a pitch. He will be a free agent after the 2026 season.

    click to enlarge

    The Astros All-Stars in 2024, but do they need help?

    Photo by Sean Thomas

    Do the Astros go big at the trade deadline?

    No doubt Astros fans would love to see them swing for the fences before the deadline. Names like Pete Alonzo and others have been floated. The problem is the team has few assets to be able to dangle in a serious deal, particularly if they are unwilling to unload major league roster talent to land a player. And they still must consider the fact that Alex Bregman is a free agent this year and Justin Verlander may very well be if he cannot reach the 140-inning threshold that triggers another contract year. That sets aside both Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez, free agents after next year. It puts owner Jim Crane and GM Dana Brown in a very tough spot as the deadline approaches.

    How do they rebuild the farm system?

    In the first round of the MLB draft on Sunday, the Astros took a catcher from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville. The team has said their plan is to take the best players available regardless of position because they may eventually play at the big league level or they might wind up in a trade. With most draftees several years off from even considering pro ball, it makes sense, but the Astros still have some monumental holes in their minor league system that need filling. They lost their second round pick as compensation for the Josh Hader signing, but hopefully they can add depth in additional rounds.

    How can they balance rest and still winning?

    This is a team that has had to expend a ton of energy through the first half-plus of the season, particularly in the bullpen thanks to a poor start. They have had to prioritize winning over giving guys days off and they could clearly use the rest this week. But how do they manage those minutes going forward? We’ve seen Joe Espada give days off to players even when the team seemed to struggle, but if the race continues deep into August and September, will they wear their guys down — particularly the young players and rookies who have never worked this much — ahead of the postseason?

    [ad_2]

    Jeff Balke

    Source link

  • How Houston Astros Owner Jim Crane Built Baseball’s Latest Dynasty And His Own $1.6 Billion Fortune

    How Houston Astros Owner Jim Crane Built Baseball’s Latest Dynasty And His Own $1.6 Billion Fortune

    [ad_1]

    Jim Crane is a champion once again.

    After a historic World Series that featured a no-hitter and what was believed to be the largest legal sports betting payout in history, the billionaire owner of the Houston Astros collected his second championship on Saturday as his club secured a 4-1 Game 6 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. For the Astros, it marks the latest entry in an arc that saw the club go from the darlings of baseball, since defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2017, to the sport’s biggest villains following a protracted cheating scandal outed in 2019.

    Controversy aside, the Astros have been a prudent investment for Crane. The self-made billionaire bought the club and a minority stake in a newly created regional sports network for $680 million in 2011. Crane later got the price down $70 million by agreeing to move the Astros to the American League. The team itself is now valued at $1.98 billion, more than quadruple what it was at the time of the deal and now 15th in MLB.

    Baseball as a business continues to boom. The average MLB club is worth $2.07 billion, a 9% increase from a year ago. Commissioner Rob Manfred said league revenues are expected to be just shy of $11 billion, back to what they were pre-pandemic. Crane’s estimated 40% stake in the Astros today amounts to roughly 40% of his $1.6 billion fortune.

    “I think he has built [the Astros] in his image,” says Martin Conway, a professor at the Georgetown University Sports Management Institute. “Which is as a sort of ruthless entrepreneur, win-at-all-costs business person.”

    While baseball has always been a central component to Crane’s life—as a kid he caddied for St. Louis Cardinals players and parked cars at the team’s stadium, and later became a successful college pitcher at Central Missouri State University—his path to billionaire status started in another industry.

    In 1984, after working jobs in insurance and freight-forwarding, a 30-year-old Crane took a $10,000 loan from his sister to start what would become Eagle Global Logistics in Houston. At the start, he handled things like loading and trucking himself. He sold the company to Apollo Global Management
    APO
     in 2007, netting more than $300 million in the deal. A year later, Crane founded another logistics business, Crane Worldwide; it now does an estimated $1.6 billion in revenues annually and accounts for 50% of his net worth.

    Meanwhile, Crane made his first run at MLB ownership in 2008 when he had a handshake deal to buy the Astros, but he backed out, according to The New York Times, reportedly incensing then-owner Drayton McLane Jr. and former baseball commissioner Bud Selig. Crane went on to make unsuccessful efforts to buy the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers.

    McLane eventually agreed to sell it to Crane in 2011, i. Although, it took months for MLB to clear the Astros’ new owner due to an investigation by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that accused Eagle Global, and Crane himself of racial and sex discrimination in the 1990s. The company settled for $8.5 million, and $6 million was later returned when an arbitrator ruled only 10% of the claims were valid.

    The Astros were one of the worst clubs on the field when Crane took control, posting back-to-back seasons of more than 100 losses and facing criticism for losing to stockpile draft prospects. But if that was the plan, it worked. By 2014, the Astros had one of the best farm systems in the league, later developing stars like World Series MVPs George Springer (2017) and Jeremy Peña (2022). The club won its first World Series title in 2017, adding an American League pennant in 2019.

    The success story was tarnished following a report from The Athletic in 2019 that accused the Astros of using cameras and other technology to steal signs from other teams. MLB found the cheating allegations to be true. As punishment, the league suspended former manager A.J. Hinch and former general manager Jeff Luhnow each for a year, fined the organization $5 million and took away its first- and second-round picks in 2020 and 2021. Manfred absolved Crane of any blame or involvement, saying in a statement that the Astros owner was “unaware of any of the violations of MLB rules by his Club.” Crane fired Hinch and Luhnow in the aftermath.

    Even under the scrutiny of the entire baseball world, the Astros never missed a beat. The club won the American League West in 2021 and returned to the World Series, before losing to the Atlanta Braves. This season, the Astros won an AL-best 106 games. Crane’s club has made the playoffs in seven out of 11 chances during his regime.

    “He seems to be willing to, almost in the way that his business empires grew, do virtually anything to maintain that success,” Georgetown’s Conway says, citing examples like the hiring of legendary manager Dusty Baker in 2020. “In a business where you’re punished, whether it’s drafting or other things, for your success, the game tries to find ways to balance out talent and balance out opportunities. So, a tip of the cap in that regard in an era right now where it’s difficult to [find success] the way the game is set up.”

    [ad_2]

    Justin Birnbaum, Forbes Staff

    Source link

  • Astros Credit World Series Win To Subject Of Future MLB Investigation

    Astros Credit World Series Win To Subject Of Future MLB Investigation

    [ad_1]

    HOUSTON—Following their victory over the Philadelphia Phillies to clinch the title, the Houston Astros credited their World Series win to the subject of a future MLB investigation. “We couldn’t have done it without the tactics that will be at the center of a wide-ranging probe by MLB officials roughly 18 months from now,” said Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, adding that his teammates would always recall the thrilling series as another stain on the franchise’s legacy. “There’s no feeling like this in the world, to know that you’ve won it all, and it’s all thanks to a clandestine system developed by our bench coach and put into action by a few players who will be the subject of rumors beginning in a few months, with everything coming to light just before the 2024 season. Ultimately, we couldn’t have done it without numerous violations that will result in the suspension of multiple players and coaches, and nobody can take that away from us, even though there will be calls to vacate our championship after this all gets out in the open.” At press time, Astros owner Jim Crane reportedly congratulated the team for carrying out the subject of the investigation in such a way as to keep him immune from punishment.

    [ad_2]

    Source link