Scorched Earth in Houston
Last Saturday night, the Houston Astros hosted the Cincinnati Reds. They lost by seven runs and failed to score. When they take the field tomorrow the players will be a week older and the season a week closer to ending, but that is true of all teams. What makes the Astros’ week so special is the all but guaranteed absence of their most well known players. Roy Oswalt started that game, and so did Lance Berkman. Now, it appears, neither will be a member of the only organization they have known. Oswalt is the Phillies’ newest addition and making his debut tonight; Berkman is on the verge of heading to the Yankees.
Reportedly, the return in the Berkman deal is minor with the Astros essentially dumping his salary while giving him the chance to participate in a pennant race. For their part this week, the Astros will walk away with Brett Wallace, J.A. Happ, Jonathan Villar, whatever may come from the Yankees and without Oswalt, Berkman, and the $11 million sent to Philadelphia. Their payroll sat at more than $90 million entering this season and now the Astros appear ready to shed the following contracts:
- $10 million of Roy Oswalt
- $2 million buyout of Lance Berkman
- $5.5 million of Kazuo Matsui
- $4.5 million of Pedro Feliz
- $3 million of Brian Moehler
- $1.5 million of Geoff Blum
- $0.8 million of Jason Michaels
Some players will be signed and others given raises, but that’s nearly $30 million off the books for a team that should have a low payroll based on the lacuna of elite talent. You can debate the quality of the returns and question whether Drayton McLane is setting this franchise back even further by meddling into Ed Wade’s responsibilities. Those are legitimate concerns. What is worth pointing out is that there was never going to be a panacea. Never a magic bullet. The term “salary dump” has an ugly connotation but sometimes salary dumps are legitimately fruitful moves; especially when applied to erase mistakes.
Berkman and Oswalt are fine players and put in commendable service with Houston during the glory years. On this team, though, on this 2010 team their salaries and presences were nothing shy of onuses. By having those two, McLane forced himself and his management alike into thinking they were fringe contenders when they were nothing of the sort. Some ill-timed hot streaks catapulted the Astros into a state of naivety on their own limitations.
This is painful for Astros fans and it may only get worse. The team has lost its face in one brisk swoop. A deck sealer company used to rain commercials about a torture test. That is exactly what McLane is about to endure. Can he exercise better judgment and see this process through or will he venture for a scapegoat and keep his franchise locked in the jaws of mediocrity. This is the first cut; more will come because more have to come.
As for what’s next; the most obvious question is whether McLane will put the team up for sale. Beyond that, the Astros should try like heaven to move hell – Lee’s contract – even if it means engulfing the disaster for next season in order to free up cash for 2012. Wade is by no means a great General Manager, but one has to feel sympathy for him. He’s performing with the sword of Damocles overhead.
Note: And moments later Buster Olney tweets that the Astros are picking up a lot of money owed to Berkman. So much for a salary dump.
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Lacuna? You are a wordsmith Mr. Anderson!
Uh oh. Satiate and ameliorate Mr. Anderson’s sonorously diaphanous desiderations and “lacuna” shall merely be the punctilious antecedent to an enfilade of supernumerary words to your freaking mind!
What’s sad is that local press and fans will likely get mad at McLane for blowing things up, as if he’s now causing the problems, rather than simply reaping what he previously sowed.
I’ll wait until I see what prospects are included in the Berkman trade before I judge the decision to pick up some of his salary. Olney isn’t exactly a prospect maven.
If they don’t also trade Myers…
It’s too bad for Houston’s sake that they didn’t realize that this fire sale should occur a year or year and a half ago. This team’s been heading downward for some time and the Astros’ front office has had a severe case of denial. Had they embarked on this strategy 18 months ago, they might have gotten better prospects from their trade partners.
Amen to that. Better late than never though. At least if they put together some prospects they have a chance to rebuild.
sword of Damocles
lacuna
onuses
awesome. who cares about the analysis. Cant we compare laboring for McLane to some Sysiphian task or Hurculean labor just to round out the article?
Seriously, is there any GM stupid enough to take on Carlos Lee and his $40M?
Do you think we could get him for Ethan Martin and Dee Gordon? I’ll throw in Matt Kemp if need be.
No, no, we’ll give you Kila Ka’aihue, Eric Hosmer, and Mike Moustakas. If you throw in Brandon Lyon we’ll include Zack Grienke.
I have to look up how many games remaining against HOU that StL and CIN have.
Glad to see Berkman get the hell out of the NL.
Except for Lee’s $19M for 2011 and 2012, they’ve pretty well cleared the books now. Brandon Lyon’s under contract through 2012 at about $5M, which isn’t a good contract but isn’t a killer. They can keep the payroll around $80, which even with Lee is enough to field a competent team. For a while, Ed Wade was managing to make the Astros worse and older at the same time. Now, at least he’s making them younger.
So they don’t get salary relief, or good prospects?
Looks like Ed Wade is a bit upset he wasn’t included in the contest of Moore and Minaya.
They get some salary relief and decent mid-level prospects. It was the best they could have done in this market, given Berkman’s projected performance (he has no surplus value over contract) and how much he’s getting paid.
Couldn’t you have said this pretty much any day of 2010… and for that matter, for quite some time before that? The Astros’ only saving grace is having the Pirates plumbing the depths ahead of them.