“Winning Fixes Everything”

[crowmst3k!]

Every encounter I've had with Mike Elias and his wife have been great.  Really nice, respectful people.  

Granted, people can be different than they present, but the allegations of personal misconduct would be quite shocking to me.  

 

Regardless: things like politics and personal life are just noise. 

 

I care about the Orioles and their progress on the field, and I've been very impressed with the turnaround the franchise has had thus far under Mike Elias.  By that metric, I don't think his job is in jeopardy. 

[Yardball85]

1 hour ago, Frobby said:

Couldn’t care less about his politics.   Why that would even be addressed in a book about the Astros is beyond me.  

Agreed.  While I don't like hearing about the cheating on his spouse, Elias has given me every reason to like him as a baseball fan.  And that is what I care about. 

[Yardball85]

1 minute ago, crowmst3k! said:

Every encounter I've had with Mike Elias and his wife have been great.  Really nice, respectful people.  

Granted, people can be different than they present, but the allegations of personal misconduct would be quite shocking to me.  

 

Regardless: things like politics and personal life are just noise. 

 

I care about the Orioles and their progress on the field, and I've been very impressed with the turnaround the franchise has had thus far under Mike Elias.  By that metric, I don't think his job is in jeopardy. 

This is what I have heard too from friends who have met him at Oriole games. 

[Oriole1940]

I am believing that this attempt to  cast doubt about Elias is just another example of Losers trying to tear down those who have worked hard and are successful.  You see it every day that dawns now a days.  

 

[Just Regular]

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/HOU/HOU201208180.shtml

8.18.2012 - the book's account is Rookie GM Jeff Luhnow fired Brad Mills after the game when he failed to heed TTOP the second night in a row.    Jordan Lyles had pitched four good innings, was let to try the 5th, and lost it big time.

Keuchel had let in two 5th inning runs after opening with 4 shutout innings the previous game.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/8281693/mlb-worst-houston-astros-fire-manager-brad-mills-two-coaches

[Moose Milligan]

Just purchased it and downloaded it.  I'll report back with any findings.

Elias's political leanings and accusations of cheating on his wife are disappointing but it doesn't make me like him any less.  He's here to do a job and by and large he's done it well.  In addition to having built a good system and getting the Orioles back on the right track, he's been accessible and personable.  I'm not excusing his alleged behavior in the book but I get the notion that a lot of people in high falutin' positions are cheating on their wives and like tax cuts.  Looking at it from that perspective, this shouldn't be surprising.

I'll also say this about the title "How Baseball's Brightest Minds Created Sports' Biggest Mess,"  is a bit of hyperbole.  Even though I just purchased the book (this doesn't mean much, I like to read and I like to read about baseball) I think the Astros scandal is overblown and exhausting.  I don't think it's the biggest mess in sports.  

Edited February 20, 2023 by Moose Milligan

[Going Underground]

2 hours ago, Yardball85 said:

This is what I have heard too from friends who have met him at Oriole games. 

 

2 hours ago, crowmst3k! said:

Every encounter I've had with Mike Elias and his wife have been great.  Really nice, respectful people.  

Granted, people can be different than they present, but the allegations of personal misconduct would be quite shocking to me.  

 

Regardless: things like politics and personal life are just noise. 

 

I care about the Orioles and their progress on the field, and I've been very impressed with the turnaround the franchise has had thus far under Mike Elias.  By that metric, I don't think his job is in jeopardy. 

Yes,Steve Garvey was fawned over by the media as a great guy and future Senator or some other political aspiration. He was not how the media portrayed him.I have met Elias a few times and seems like a nice guy and a nice family 

[Just Regular]

Before 2014, there's an account the Luhnow front office separated George Springer from his agent, and brought him to Houston "for an eye exam", during which Luhnow tried to sell Springer on the Club's lowball contract offer.

Crane and Luhnow had had a "Springer call-up cost analysis" presentation, likely developed by Brandon Taubman who was the economic specialist type guy.

Springer debuted 4.16.2014 ala Kris Bryant - Drellich got a quote from then bench coach Dave Trembley "Springer should have made our club, there's no question".

[Frobby]

2 hours ago, Explosivo said:

The fact that Elias is a trump guy makes me like him more. The fact that Drelich throws politics in a book about baseball makes me like him less. The fact that Drelich insinuates Elias cheats on his wife is kind of despicable without proof. I will not be reading his work but I do appreciate the summation by all of you. Glad to have Elias aboard!

Well, right now the description of what’s in the book is like third hand information.  I’d need to know exactly what it says, and in what context, to have an opinion of whether it was appropriate to include it.  Offhand it seems unnecessary to whatever points the book is trying to make.

[owknows]

2 hours ago, Just Regular said:

Will be diving in, but two notes off the top.    Sig in the Index looks like he has about double the Elias mentions.    In the podcast, Drellich on Astros player procurement habits said, "Sig is the guy who just doesn't want free agents and only wants to promote from within."

 

I approve of this message

[geschinger]

4 hours ago, Just Regular said:

Will be diving in, but two notes off the top.    Sig in the Index looks like he has about double the Elias mentions.    In the podcast, Drellich on Astros player procurement habits said, "Sig is the guy who just doesn't want free agents and only wants to promote from within."

 

A quote from the book about that reference:

Quote

“Once Jeff started having to make decisions of, ‘Should we sign this free agent? Should we trade for Verlander?’ Sig started pushing back on him a lot on those sort of things,” a different executive said. “Sig was never able to switch gears. He wanted to hoard every single, not even prospect-prospect, but like, org piece that we had. He didn’t like spending free-agent money; he didn’t like trading for established players. I think he really thought that building through the farm and staying with those players was the way to build a ball club.”

 

[Too Tall]

And yet we got Frazier - so there ya go??????????????  Sorry, couldn't help myself. Back to my meds!

[OriolesMagic83]

2 hours ago, Moose Milligan said:

Just purchased it and downloaded it.  I'll report back with any findings.

Elias's political leanings and accusations of cheating on his wife are disappointing but it doesn't make me like him any less.  He's here to do a job and by and large he's done it well.  In addition to having built a good system and getting the Orioles back on the right track, he's been accessible and personable.  I'm not excusing his alleged behavior in the book but I get the notion that a lot of people in high falutin' positions are cheating on their wives and like tax cuts.  Looking at it from that perspective, this shouldn't be surprising.

I'll also say this about the title "How Baseball's Brightest Minds Created Sports' Biggest Mess,"  is a bit of hyperbole.  Even though I just purchased the book (this doesn't mean much, I like to read and I like to read about baseball) I think the Astros scandal is overblown and exhausting.  I don't think it's the biggest mess in sports.  

I don't approve of whatever cheating happened in the Astros organization, but if the Astros are the biggest mess in sports, I want the O's to be the 2nd biggest mess in sports if it means going to the playoffs every year.

[Sports Guy]

2 hours ago, Moose Milligan said:

Just purchased it and downloaded it.  I'll report back with any findings.

Elias's political leanings and accusations of cheating on his wife are disappointing but it doesn't make me like him any less.  He's here to do a job and by and large he's done it well.  In addition to having built a good system and getting the Orioles back on the right track, he's been accessible and personable.  I'm not excusing his alleged behavior in the book but I get the notion that a lot of people in high falutin' positions are cheating on their wives and like tax cuts.  Looking at it from that perspective, this shouldn't be surprising.

I'll also say this about the title "How Baseball's Brightest Minds Created Sports' Biggest Mess,"  is a bit of hyperbole.  Even though I just purchased the book (this doesn't mean much, I like to read and I like to read about baseball) I think the Astros scandal is overblown and exhausting.  I don't think it's the biggest mess in sports.  

It was much ado about nothing imo.  I love when MLB, its teams and its players get on their high horses about how cheating is wrong and doesn’t happen in the sport.  

[Moose Milligan]

2 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

It was much ado about nothing imo.  I love when MLB, its teams and its players get on their high horses about how cheating is wrong and doesn’t happen in the sport.  

I don't want to downplay it and say it was much ado about nothing.  You know as well as I do there's some accepted ways to cheat in baseball (old fashioned sign stealing), some other ways that are frowned upon but still romanticized and folksy (Gaylord Perry is in the Hall of Fame) and a group that are outright terrible (funny sounding chemicals we can't pronounce being injected with needles and electronics/technology to steal signs).  

There are levels and nuances to this.  And while I do think the Astros sign stealing scheme was pretty bad, I don't think it was the worst thing ever, certainly not the biggest atrocity in sports.  It pales in comparison to something like the Black Sox scandal, keeping an entire race of people from playing in the best league in the world and the owner's collusion in the 80s (in my eyes, the worst scandal that no one talks about and has been quietly swept under the rug).  

But to your point, yes, to see teams cry foul against the Astros and then get busted for their own cheating is very hypocritical and no one likes a hypocrite.