Author Topic: How is this for the next manager of the Houston Astros.... (Read 4399 times)

Noe · « **on:** August 02, 2011, 10:38:30 pm »

Brad Ausmus.

Yes, Bradley "Sufer Dude" Ausmus.... and here is why.

1). He is a former catcher with skills that were high above average to manage a pitching staff. Managers felt they could easily just allow Bradley to run the staff and bring kids along like Roy Oswalt along well enough to trust his acumen (See: Dierker, Larry... who made the mistake of thinking he could get more offense from Mitch Melusky and then realized he wanted Ausmus back... hence the title, the Messiah!)
B) Why not pitching coach? Because I think catchers make excellence managers... like Scoicia or Jim Leyland. (Yeah, I know, what about Brenly? Ahum... *most* former catcher... there, happy now?)
iii) Jim Crane is a former pitcher in college and if there is one thing I know... and only one thing I know, the love/hate relationship between catcher and pitcher is solid. Crane would probably endorse an Ausmus hire. Okay, maybe.... but still I think it could have traction with him.
Quatro) The Astros will be young for a while and what you need beyond just a pitching coach that knows how to handle a staff, you need a manager who knows how to handle a young staff correctly and a pitching coach just won't have the same impact as a skipper.
5) No more "personal conflict" between pitching coach and manager.... I'm sure whoever takes the job as pitching coach under Ausmus won't quibble with his qualifications for saying he wants things done a certain way for young pitchers.
next) The Astros could probably explore how much bump they can get from an Ausmus managerial hire... Bagwell would like it, much fodder for Saturday night commentary for sure (and may entice Baggy to come back as hitting coach... anyone notice the job Baggy did last year has basically gone away when he went away?)
fin) Gerry Hunsicker, same guy who hired Larry Dierker, would probably not mind doing the same thing with Bradley.... yeah, that Gerry Hunsicker!

I know, why did BudGirl's personal interest not make my list? That is peripheral for me... but hey, maybe Pam Gardner will come up with the brilliant idea that this would put woman AIS and they will bring their boyfriends, husbands, significant others with them. Maybe...

Okay... fire away!

OregonStrosFan · « **Reply #1 on:** August 02, 2011, 10:47:38 pm »

I was trying to think of who may be out there that could really manage and teach a group of young kids that could well become the core of the Astros for the next 5+ years. The only person that really came to mind was Ausmus. I eventually dismissed the idea because I can't see why he would want to do it: he is barely removed from his playing days; his kids are still in school (cited as a primary reason he wanted to play close to home or retire); and the Astros could very well be NL Central basement dwellers again next year.

Do I like the idea in principal? Absolutely. I just don't think there is a chance in heck it will happen...

chuck · « **Reply #2 on:** August 02, 2011, 10:57:21 pm »

Bench coach: Geoff Blum.

Noe · « **Reply #3 on:** August 02, 2011, 11:34:57 pm »

Yeah, that is one thing I thought about... the right bench coach for Ausmus. Someone who can help him with late inning machinations. I thought of Jackie Moore, but I don't know if he'd leave ~~Nolan Ryan's~~ Ron Washington's side. Here is an interesting thought... Phil Garner, bench coach/mentor... one year.

Noe · « **Reply #4 on:** August 02, 2011, 11:37:35 pm »

Quote from: OregonStrosFan on August 02, 2011, 10:47:38 pm

I was trying to think of who may be out there that could really manage and teach a group of young kids that could well become the core of the Astros for the next 5+ years. The only person that really came to mind was Ausmus. I eventually dismissed the idea because I can't see why he would want to do it: he is barely removed from his playing days; his kids are still in school (cited as a primary reason he wanted to play close to home or retire); and the Astros could very well be NL Central basement dwellers again next year.

Do I like the idea in principal? Absolutely. I just don't think there is a chance in heck it will happen...

Baseball players don't walk away from the game and their families know that. Ausmus may be different and he probably is... but what if Hun and Crane came calling and Baggy followed up later and said "Dude... ahum... what if...." You'd have to have Ausmus' wife on the phone upstairs screaming "NOOOO!!! Jeffrey Robert Bagwell, you stop that right NOW!"

Rebel Jew · « **Reply #5 on:** August 03, 2011, 12:07:19 am »

I never got to watch Johnny Bench, or any of the other all-time great catchers, but for those of you who have more historical familiarity, how did Ausmus' defensive and 'managerial skills' rank with the all-time greats? People like to compare pitchers' stats before, during, and after they were with guys like Leo Mazzone and Drinkin' Dave as evidence of some magic touch, but I bet you could find some similar evidence with Astro pitchers while Ausmus was catching and after they left the team. If he did become manager I'd be ecstatic. Also, he could bring Tim Redding in as towel boy.

Bench · « **Reply #6 on:** August 03, 2011, 09:31:52 am »

Quote from: chuck on August 02, 2011, 10:57:21 pm

Bench coach: Geoff Blum.

I promise to do whatever he tells me.

subnuclear · « **Reply #7 on:** August 03, 2011, 09:37:45 am »

I think to be a manager you have to have to have a reason to put up with all the bullshit. You need a chip on your shoulder, or be a no-life obsessive or really have a lot of energy and no where for it to go. It also helps if you didn't make a lot of money in your baseball career. I think Ausmus is like Bagwell, while they may like baseball, why bother with all the stress.

remy · « **Reply #8 on:** August 03, 2011, 09:39:36 am »

It's no crazier than Kirk Bohls' prediction the other day of Biggio.

subnuclear · « **Reply #9 on:** August 03, 2011, 09:46:46 am »

Quote from: remy on August 03, 2011, 09:39:36 am

It's no crazier than Kirk Bohls' prediction the other day of Biggio.

I would believe Biggio before Ausmus. Biggio has that crazy edge to him.

S.P. Rodriguez · « **Reply #10 on:** August 03, 2011, 10:52:07 am »

Quote from: subnuclear on August 03, 2011, 09:46:46 am

I would believe Biggio before Ausmus. Biggio has that crazy edge to him.

+1

Will also add, of the three (Bagwell, Ausmus, and Biggio) I rank them in the following order of preference (fwiw):

Ausmus
Bagwell
Biggio

just my 2 cents

Lurch · « **Reply #11 on:** August 03, 2011, 11:13:24 am »

When did Mills get fired?

roadrunner · « **Reply #12 on:** August 03, 2011, 11:16:21 am »

Quote from: Lurch on August 03, 2011, 11:13:24 am

When did Mills get fired?

When he decided to stop playing the kids over the aging legends (Jason Michaels) and guys in their primes (Matt Downs).

EasTexAstro · « **Reply #13 on:** August 03, 2011, 11:18:04 am »

Quote from: Lurch on August 03, 2011, 11:13:24 am

When did Mills get fired?

Fired? I'm more expecting spontaneous combustion.

BudGirl · « **Reply #14 on:** August 03, 2011, 01:41:52 pm »

Quote from: OregonStrosFan on August 02, 2011, 10:47:38 pm

I was trying to think of who may be out there that could really manage and teach a group of young kids that could well become the core of the Astros for the next 5+ years. The only person that really came to mind was Ausmus. I eventually dismissed the idea because I can't see why he would want to do it: he is barely removed from his playing days; his kids are still in school (cited as a primary reason he wanted to play close to home or retire); and the Astros could very well be NL Central basement dwellers again next year.

Do I like the idea in principal? Absolutely. I just don't think there is a chance in heck it will happen...

+1

Don't forget he's a special assistant with the padres.

Duman · « **Reply #15 on:** August 03, 2011, 02:26:50 pm »

Tim Bogar -

2004 Appy League Championship in managerial debut, Appy Manager of the year (rookie ball) ( MLB Players - Towles, Patton, Paulino, Gutierrez)
2005 SALLY League best record, Sally League Manager of the Year (Low A ball) (MLB PLayers - Pence, Patton, Towles, Zobrist, Sutton, Paulino, Gutierrez, Maysonet, Gervacio, Reineke)
2006 Akron Aeros to Eastern League (AA) best record, lost league finals Eastern League Manager of the Year, ID as best big league managerial prospect in Eastern League by baseball america
2007 returned to Akron - lost in league finals again. 3rd best record in Eastern League
2008 Tampa Bay Rays quality assurance coach (new position that sat in the stands and evaluated the players and the decisions made by coaches)
2009 1st base coach for Boston Red Sox
2010 3rd base coach for Boston Red Sox
2011 3rd base coach for Boston Red Sox

Was interviewed for job when Mills hired but was deemed not ready yet (IIRC). He will be managing somewhere soon.

Noe · « **Reply #16 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:06:47 pm »

Biggio was a catcher as I remember, but not on the same level as Ausmus. Here is the bottomline for me:

You're biggest investment is pitching. You need pitching to win games. If you're going to go with *young* pitching, you need someone who knows how to handle such a staff (managerial, not pitching coach).

That smacks of Brad Ausmus to me.

Navin R Johnson · « **Reply #17 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:17:57 pm »

Bogar would be the 3rd BoSox coach in 8 years.

Twoniner · « **Reply #18 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:27:19 pm »

I kind of question his enthusiasm for this gig.

geezerdonk · « **Reply #19 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:29:48 pm »

The fact that Bogar has shared provenance with Millsie moves him several notches down the list.

Arky Vaughan · « **Reply #20 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:48:18 pm »

Quote from: Twoniner on August 03, 2011, 03:27:19 pm

I kind of question his enthusiasm for this gig.

Doesn't he reportedly prefer Southern California to Houston?

Lurch · « **Reply #21 on:** August 03, 2011, 04:43:53 pm »

Quote from: remy on August 03, 2011, 09:39:36 am

It's no crazier than Kirk Bohls' prediction the other day of Biggio.

Does he have a role with the Astros? Hanging out with them today.

Noe · « **Reply #22 on:** August 03, 2011, 05:07:30 pm »

You know I forgot one thing about my Ausmus point:

Numero lastly) He can help Jason Castro... a lot!

Author Topic: How is this for the next manager of the Houston Astros.... (Read 4399 times)

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