Astros HOF Index: The Community Chest
A different theory of allocating resources
One thing has always bothered me about the way that the Astros do business. This is a team that has been to the playoffs eight out of the last nine years, won four pennants, and two World Series titles. Obviously, not much should bother us about those results. However, even if you go back to the Drayton McLane days, they have handled negotiations with stars like they are off the books.
It all gets baked into the same payroll. As a mere school teacher, I am not likely to be a billionaire at any point, but if I were and I owned a team my likely strategy would be to tell my general manager what his budget is at the beginning of the offseason and let him build the best roster he can with it. In other words, if I am willing to spend say 25 million a year on Alex Bregman then I should be willing to spend that same amount elsewhere.
Now, obviously we can get into the nuts and bolts about where that money should go. You could extend other guys on your roster to avoid this kind of crunch again. You could spread it around to two or more different guys. You could also sign a similar player (assuming one were available) for a similar amount. This is what economists call opportunity costs.
I am here today to present two such possibilities. Admittedly, these suggestions have major drawbacks. I fully admit this out of the gate. Obviously every move comes with a certain amount of risk. I will likely come back and present different options at another time, so I am not married to any one proposal. I am simply pointing out options.
