Sunday's collapse was historic and familiar
The Texans are innovative heartache pioneers
Jan 13, 2020, 1:37 pm
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I'm not the best source of consolation after Sunday's disaster up in Kansas City. I might actually be one of the worst. When asked at brunch earlier that afternoon why I wasn't more excited about the Texans' divisional round I calmly explained my relationship with the Texans as loveless, but necessary. I was met with blank stares. We changed the subject.
I've come to realize that the Texans are the embodiment of Albert Einstein's definition of insanity. They are Marvin Lewis' Bengals. They are every Power Rangers episode.
They are the same thing every year. Predictably mediocre with an end result you can see from a mile away.
For everyone that shares my same mindset, this loss was frustratingly validating. There's nothing you can take from it. That's a game film reel that can be tossed in the garbage.
When you look at the Ravens' loss from last week, you can at least look positively on the direction your team is headed. The Texans, however, flew back to Houston with a stack of concerns leading into next season.
To be honest, Rooting for the Texans is exhausting. The Astros are at least either really good or really bad. The Rockets are typically good, always exciting, and generally sputter in the second round. The Texans, however, are true innovators in new forms of heartache.
This year was a historic collapse after an overtime victory. Last year they overcame an 0-3 start to clinch the division, only to be unceremoniously steamrolled by the Colts in round one. The year before? A rookie quarterback showing flashes of brilliance only to be lost early on to a freak ACL injury in practice.
The only way to break out of this perpetual cycle is for the franchise with no GM to have a good draft that they won't participate in until day 2.
I'm not trying to do a deep dive into the offseason woes the Texans are facing, there will be plenty of those articles coming down the pipeline. It's just hard to see the same team that has done the same things do anything different without some sort of substantial change made on the sidelines.
I lost what remaining confidence I had in Bill O'Brien in August of 2017 when he declared "Tom's the starter." Anyone who thought that Tom Savage had any business getting in the way of the development of Deshaun Watson was out of their mind in my opinion. O'Brien's production has remained mediocre while his influence on football operations has only increased. What about that formula suggests a breakout from what we've all grown accustomed to?
Personally I don't know what would be a worse scenario: having a terrible, mismanaged team that cycles through coaches, or a mediocre team that flashes potential that will seemingly never be achieved due to owner complacency? At least the terrible teams get good draft picks. In the meantime, Texans fans will always have their division championships to brag about I suppose. It doesn't seem like there will be much beyond that to celebrate anytime soon.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.