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For some reason, Drayton McLane always thinks that players will be loyal to him instead of trusting their agents. Perhaps he thinks that they will all walk away from a lot of money the way Ken Caminiti did. But the fact is that the agents work for the players, while the players work for the owners. Who would you trust, the man you are paying or the man who is paying you?
That said, I still think Houston is about the best place you could play. You never play in extreme heat or cold. You never have to wait out a rain delay. You almost always contend for a playoff spot. And, if you live here, the best part of the year starts right about when the season ends.
So why don’t more players sacrifice a few bucks to play here? Darryl Kile didn’t. Randy Johnson didn’t. Mike Hampton didn’t. Jeff Kent didn’t. Nor did Carlos Beltran. Caminiti is the only premier player I can think of who gave up money to play in Houston. And I think it’s safe to say that money was the least of his problems.
Now the Astros face grim reality. Everyone knows they need a pitcher. If they make a play for the remaining free agents, they’ll have to overpay. If they trade, they will lose some top prospects.
The last time Andy Pettitte was a free agent, the Yankees interest in him seemed rather casual. The Astros took advantage of that. This time the Yankees turned the tables. Houston is a great place to play, but it is not New York. George Steinbrenner can afford to lose a player because he can pay more than the market price to replace him. I’m not sure Drayton can do that. I guess we’ll find out in the next few months.
It’s not over yet. There is still plenty of time to wheel and deal. But the Pettitte news is, at this point, a body blow. If the Astros were starting the 2007 season tomorrow, they would have Roy Oswalt, Woody Williams and three kids in the starting rotation. They would also have Carlos Lee hitting behind Lance Berkman. In the long term, Lee is a more valuable player than Pettitte. But I would just as soon start next year with Oswalt, Pettitte, Williams and two kids, even without Lee.
When the baseball season turns to September, the teams with the best pitching usually prevail. And pitchers are the most unpredictable commodity in the business. Drayton and G. M. Tim Purpura know this.
One way or another, year after year, the Astros have been able to piece together winning team under Drayton’s stewardship. There is no way to deny they can do it again at this point. But it may be useful in the future to remember that the agents usually make the deals. And they don’t care who owns the team. |
