Let's speculate, he's out of options, officially and finally, so he's no good as a yo-yo for next season. Likely he wont be offered a contract and he'll get work with the Dodgers. At which point he'll begin tearing the cover off the ball. This will lead to complaints that the Astros are no judge of talent.
BINGO! Purpura talked about Jason Lane and Morgan Ensberg. It was because of an astute observation by Justice that the Astros are built as a team that relies on run production from third base and right field. What Purpura said was what his job was in terms of the professional relationship he must have with these players. He is literally with them from February until October almost 24/7. It is a balancing act to keep the professional from the personal. But he has to do it and right now, Lane has very little to show the team in terms of his professional status to allow him another chance. Purpura spoke about him pretty much like Hunsicker spoke of Redding. Same thing was pertinent with Ensberg.
But on the personal side, Purpura does like Ensberg and Lane for their integrity away from the game. But that has nothing to do with what Purpura must do to put together this team. Purpura was told in the offseason by veteran scouts on the team that Lane deserved one more chance because he had the potential to produce 25-30 homeruns and drive in a lot of runs. Purpura then met with Lane and Jason asked for that one more shot to show what he could really do. If Purpura is to be condemned for standing by Lane, the real condemnation should be that he (Purpura) listened to the men he has to trust so he can make the decisions on the team makeup and also for trusting the player to make good on that "one more shot". So this is not to blame the scouts either, they did their job, Purpura did his, Lane did not.
It happens in major league baseball all the time. Sadly, fans don't understand this or in some cases, refuse to acknowledge it because being miserable is something they love to do and be.
