2014 Quarry Unlimited - #12 Houston Astros Part 1

Up next is a team that is one of the biggest risers on the countdown over the past two years, the Houston Astros.  They are proving a theory that I have about my fandom.  No matter how much I dislike a team, if they are bad long enough I will eventually start to like them.  It happened with the Royals, who were close to my least favorite team in the Saberhagen era.  It happened with the Pirates, who I despised in the Bonds-Bonilla years.  Only the Cubs have escaped this theory, but they might be the exception that proves the rule.

Once again the Astros were near the bottom of the league, but it was there off the field activities that made the most headlines.  The Astros failed to sign the overall #1 pick Brady Aiken before the signing deadline which means he is now eligible to be drafted again next year.  This was the first time the overall #1 pick was not signed since the Twins missed out on Tim Belcher in 1983.  Although I am sure some Padres fans wish Matt Bush was on that list as well (sorry Marcus).  The Astros just blundered this draft away and still might have some sanctions coming. 

The Astros are also the first team on the countdown that fired their manager during the 2014 season.  I feel bad for Bo Porter because he was never given a chance to win with the team that the Astros put out over his 1+ seasons.  He might never get another shot at a top job because of the Houston owner's penny pinching.  I also feel bad for the interim manager Tom Lawless.  Over the last month of the season, Lawless took one of the worst teams in the league and got nearly a .500 record out of them.  His reward for that was being passed over in favor of a guy that stunk with the Diamondbacks.  Well I guess the one positive out of this situation is that if A.J. Hinch can get a second chance managing a team, then Bo Porter might get another shot as well.

ASTROS TEAM TRIVIA

Total # of Astros in 2014 - 48

# of new Astros in 2014 - 22

Best score in 2014 - June 8 at Twins 14-5

Worst score in 2014 - July 24 at Athletics 13-1

Border color that worked best with this team - Yellow

Border color that worked least with this team - Green

Position on last year's list - #16 = UP 4

Let's take a look at the first half of the 2014 Houston Astros with the two manager cards leading the way.

PURPLE

GREEN

BLUE

I'll be back tomorrow with Part 2.  As usual, your thoughts are always welcome and encouraged.

Thanx for reading.