A win for Houston a win for MLB, too
HOUSTON — If the Astros win Friday night, then Major League Baseball wins Friday night.
Oh, sure, a Houston pennant, which would be achieved with a victory over the Red Sox in either American League Championship Series Game 6 or Game 7 — both at Minute Maid Park, the latter one Saturday night if necessary — will put the sign-stealing scandal front and center once more, and Rob Manfred enjoys discussing that as much as Kyrie Irving likes vaccine mandates. Though let’s face it: Baseball struggles to produce stories and characters that transcend its (considerable) fan base. And the sign-stealing scandal, for all of the anger and embarrassment it created, clears that high bar.
I’m not intelligent enough to know how that would convert into TV ratings, and besides, Andrew Marchand will send his goons after me if I get too granular on that topic. But as long as people are talking about baseball games (as opposed to, say, baseball labor turbulence — stay tuned on that front), then that is good for baseball. MLB’s best hope at compelling Fall Classic protagonists ended when visually striking behemoths Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton of the Yankees got eliminated after one lousy playoff game. Compelling Fall Classic villains, which the Astros certainly would be, rank as a decent consolation prize.
Who else would benefit from a third Astros World Series appearance in five years? Here’s a list:
2. Dusty Baker. Let’s say the Astros make it to the Series and lose. Such a result would give Baker, 72 and without a contract for next season, this managing résumé:
10 postseason appearances, including eight division titles, with five different teams.
1,987 regular-season wins, 12th all time.
A .534 regular-season winning percentage, sixth among the 13 men with his level of experience (24 seasons) or more. 2 pennants, 0 titles.
Now throw in his playing numbers, with 19 years in the big leagues and 1,981 hits, plus a Gold Glove Award in 1982. Throw in his “integrity, sportsmanship, character,” to borrow the wording from the Baseball Hall of Fame’s election rules, which he exhibits at a platinum level. Should Baker really require a managing ring (he has one as a player from the 1981 Dodgers) to be immortalized in Cooperstown? I say no.
3. Carlos Correa. The man will get paid handsomely this winter. He won’t need the participation of the Yankees if they pass because of the sign-stealing past. If Francisco Lindor got $341 million from the Mets not even as a free agent, how would Correa, a superior player and better suited for scrutiny, not exceed that?
4. Jose Altuve. If he doesn’t embrace his villainy with the same relish as Correa, he nevertheless excelled through a season in which he took the brunt of crowd abuse despite his largely opting out of the sign-stealing scandal (although, let’s be clear, he wasn’t taking a moral stance as much as passing on what he deemed unhelpful counsel). With 21 career postseason homers, third all time, he could catch up to and pass Bernie Williams’ 22, leaving only Manny Ramirez (29) in front of him.
5. Jim Crane. If the Astros’ owner won’t win any popularity contests among his fraternity for a general lack of accountability around the scandal (a stance fully validated by Manfred, for some reason), he sure seems to know how to put together and sustain a winning operation. His selection of the revered Baker to succeed the fired A.J. Hinch as manager has proven to be brilliant, and for the team to advance this far with Gerrit Cole a Yankee, Justin Verlander injured and Zack Greinke minimized (and Lance McCullers Jr. newly injured) is astounding. Correa’s free agency presents his next big test.
6. Reggie Jackson. Whose brand benefits more from being in the World Series than Mr. October’s? Jackson, a first-year adviser to Crane, does not mind hanging out on the field as the clubs take pregame batting practice, nor getting some air time from the stands during the game.