By Breedlove
Editor’s note – This article originally appeared on AstrosConnection.com on February 22, 2001.
“Control your expenses better than your competition. This is where you can always find the competitive advantage. You can make a lot of mistakes and still recover if you run an efficient operation. Or you can be brilliant and still go out of business if you’re too inefficient.” — Sam Walton
Easily the biggest complaint of Astros fans is that Drayton McLane adheres too strongly to the business style of his old partner, the late Sam Walton. They say he runs the Astros too much like a business, with the notion–seemingly outdated in today’s dot-com world–of turning a profit, not enough like a hobby that a “good” owner would sink his millions into. But Astros fans have enjoyed a special benefit from the Walton/McLane business philosophy, and it’s a big part of what makes and keeps them fans.
Whatever anyone thinks of Drayton McLane as an owner, it should begin with an acknowledgement that he has made a sincere effort to keep the Astros customer friendly. It’s an old-school idea — one that has enjoyed a revival in American business with the success of Wal-Mart but isn’t always present around Major League Baseball. It’s questionable whether Drayton McLane was more embarrassed by the Astros’ play on the field in 2000 or by the players, with the way some conducted themselves both on the field and in the media. He’s trying to repair both at once now. The strategy: Short on characters, long on character.
McLane recognizes that the players are the connection to the fans, the reason they come to the games. Controversial players do not wear the open star very long, and the ones fans fall in love with can count on Houston to try to keep them in town as long as they perform. Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Billy Spiers, Tony Eusebio, Richard Hidalgo, Billy Wagner, Shane Reynolds, and even Jose Lima can attest that the money has generally been there for the guys who do their jobs well while adding to the kinship between fans and players.
It’s been with regret that the Astros have said goodbye over the years to some players who fit the mold they are looking for. To McLane’s way of thinking, it’s a necessary compromise in the world of dollars and cents. After the 2001 season he will have to decide whether it makes sense to dedicate the dollars to Moises Alou — which will in some part be based on how well he fits the Astros mold.
At the tail end of a monstrous, MVP-caliber 1998 season, Moises Alou had a slow month heading into the playoffs. Then he topped a 3-for-16 showing at the plate against San Diego in the NLDS with memorably poor play in left field. During the offseason he blew out his knee, reportedly falling off a treadmill, and was lost to the Astros for the 1999 season. Fans raised their hopes for a timely return as that year’s playoffs approached. But Alou re-injured his knee and cemented the absence of his play. Then he did not make the trip to sit in the dugout and cheer his teammates on, and cemented the absence of his veteran leadership.
With that history, Mo Alou does not seem to fit Drayton McLane’s Astros mold. He has a semi-permanent half-smile that comes off as a smirk to those who don’t know him. He can be short, flippant, and sometimes sarcastic. Though friendly with teammates, he is anything but a camera hound and avoids giving interviews when possible, missing opportunities to defend himself — perhaps feeling he should not have to.
Alou’s teammates have defended his choice to not be present on the bench for the playoffs. They understood that after being gone all season he did not feel like part of the team and wouldn’t even know where to sit. They understood that injuries happen, even in the offseason, and did not blame him for that. They know how nasty the Padres pitching staff was in the 1998 playoffs, and they know the lights in left at Qualcomm really are a problem for opposing players. In short, they knew all along he wasn’t mailing it in.
It’s been the fans who haven’t known it, and that’s who McLane wants to connect with. Even after one of the great comebacks in the history of baseball in 2000, the popular sentiment among Astros faithful has been to deal Alou away. Maybe to find a spot for Daryle Ward, maybe to find some pitching, maybe just to find a way to say goodbye to some painful memories. Finally Moises Alou has opened up a little though, and the contrast between he and the Frank Thomas-Sammy Sosa-Gary Sheffields of the world should be apparent.
Attitude:
“Whether I stay here and get an extension or become a free agent, I’m in a good situation.”
Honesty:
“There is nothing else I need to show them, except to stay healthy. I didn’t do that very well last year.”
Grasp of reality:
“If I were (the Astros) I would do the same thing they are doing right now and wait and see what happens. Right now, an extension is not in the back of my mind.”
Humility:
“They took care of the people they needed to take care of. I understand that. Baggy and Biggio are their franchise players. I’m not. I came from another team.”
Desire:
“Everybody knows that I really like it here. Everybody knows what kind of relationship I have with Bagwell and (Craig) Biggio. I get along well with everybody here and this is a good place for me.”
Thank you Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle, who reeled these thoughts in from the most enigmatic presence on the Astros and revealed a full-color picture. Other writers have tried, but they always seem to end up casting Alou in sepia. This must be the man Jeff Bagwell stands behind through thick and thin. This must be the man whose father, Felipe Alou, is among the most respected in the sport. This must be the man Drayton McLane spoke with over the offseason, and this must be why he is still an Astro.
Moises Alou wants to be in Houston; he’s said so repeatedly, says so now in spring training, and even exercised a no-trade clause to remain in town. It’s time for the fans to befriend him, wholeheartedly, because wanting to be an Astro fits the mold. If only they all wanted it so bad.
While McLane keeps his philosophies on running a ballclub in place, it is possible there will never be a World Series winner in Houston. No matter how much business sense it seems to make to the owner, it’s not easy to win on half the Yankees’ payroll. Assembling the cast in an old-fashioned, fan-friendly mold is a good start for a team on a budget though, and if they ever do win, they’ll be among the teams most beloved by their town in history — even Moises Alou.
Besides, he comes cheap for a player with his ability, and you know what Sam Walton said about controlling expenses.
