caulfield12

QUOTE (Cali @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 06:32 PM) Yep. Marquez, Nunez, and Betimit really took this team over the top! Betemit went on to have a decent career after that...Nunez only had an interesting spelling of his first name. But the comparisons with Marquez to Jon Garland or even Greg Maddux were pretty laughable. Of course, Molina and Zach Stewart were hyped up too when they were acquired...even Simon Castro, a little bit.

This is the worst 6-9 in a White Sox line-up I can remember, with the possible exception of some of Ozzie's Sunday Specials. I almost miss the days of Mark Johnson and Royce Clayton at the bottom of the order. Almost.

How did Keppinger get on base? Was it a clean single/line drive? With Dunn hitting 4th, no opposing pitcher will give Rios anything decent to hit. It's almost like the Mike Stanton Experience in Miami.

Bulls in the playoffs isn't enticing anyone...without D. Rose?

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 05:24 PM) Trading our best offensive player doesn't seem like a good way of helping the offense. And you don't trade Reed for something "decent". You only move him if you're blown away. Like the Sergio Santos deal? It's almost like they knew he was going to get injured and figured out their extension was a huge mistake (almost too late). That was one of the weirdest signings/trades in recent Sox history, and confused the heck out of nearly everyone because they were giving John Danks his long-term extension at the same time. It sort of worked out, financially...and Reed was pretty good last year, but we don't have anything to show for Santos, either. I would be pretty shocked if a team was willing to buy "sky high" on Addison Reed unless he was this good for 3-4 consecutive months. He doesn't have a dominant fastball (at least not in 2012) and his slider was very spotty.

And Gillaspie's going to hit well over .300 for most of the year? He's already starting to fall off.

QUOTE (Jake @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 04:39 PM) There is an underlying assumption here that being bad gains you something. It doesn't. There is no reason to give up good players for the sake of doing it. If, in July, we're out of contention, you deal the people that certainly won't be a part of your squad when you expect to be peaking. Paulie, sayonara if that is the case. If Dunn plays well enough to become movable, he'd be gone. Gavin, goodbye. Peavy is signed affordably for the next 2-3 years. You want to be in the playoffs again before that contract ends. Same with Rios. We have money coming off the books with PK and Gavin leaving, a good core of pitching under contract for a while, and a 5-tool OF under contract to build around. Viciedo looks like he should be part of future clubs for years. Alexei is here to stay and appears to be in the midst of a bounceback year. Flowers is probably the C of the next few years and has a decently high ceiling. ADA should be a mainstay, it seems. We have some OF prospects that may come into the fold in the next couple years. Like I said earlier in this thread, it only takes some clever moves to turn you into a contender. We were rebuilding on the fly in '05. We made some savvy moves and won a World Series. A full rebuild that year, which would not have seemed entirely unwarranted, would have made those value pickups moot. IMO, you don't give up good players just for s***s and giggles. "oooo, we could have a top 10 draft pick!" Keep your team as good as you can get it. The key differences are where you big expenditures of money are. You won't sign a Dunn if you don't think you're on the verge of competing; you won't let PK play out this contract if you're not on the verge of competing. However, Rios should be one that stays in the fold regardless. That is, unless you are absolutely blown away in young MLB talent in trade. Then, of course, anyone is fair game. Ramirez and Rios are getting older. You usually don't build a major league team to compete around an extended window when 2 of your top 3 or 4 remaining position players are that age. Rios is great for now, but are we sure that will be the case in 2014 and 2015 (when the team option kicks in)...? I have been one of the biggest Viciedo supporters around, but he still hasn't proven he can hit RH pitching or anyone with a dominant type of fastball, even when he's waiting on it, because of the length of his swing and plate discipline issues (I think he still doesn't have a walk the entire season). DeAza is also going to be getting more expensive soon and he's seemingly been battling nagging injuries in the last year. Not to mention the fact that he's not as comfortable playing CF as LF and has made a number of big mistakes out there which have cost us. I'm actually fine with keeping DeAza if he's going to be in CF (and he can play at least average defense), but he doesn't make sense in our long-term plans as a LFer. In an ideal world, Trayce Thompson would be able to play CF and hit for 25-35 homers and a .240 average, Viciedo would be an everyday player in LF/1B (another scenario which allows DeAza to stay long-term, but you have to have a power-hitting CFer in that situation)....but if Thompson/Mitchell/Walker all flop, then you're having to go out and find another big bat again, and that's going to be expensive.

QUOTE (Cali @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 12:24 PM) Yeah that would be their highest point, but a lot of it comes from non-fans, which would also be the case for the Yankees. More style than substance. Jersey sales would be more accurate, since it's a lot easier to just toss on a hat of a team you're not a fan of than spend $90 + on a jersey. Yep. Just watched Oblivion...Tom Cruise sporting a classic, 20's/30's style Yankee cap in that one while on another planet. (Well, to be more accurate, one of the moons of Saturn).

Finished with another K. 6 1/3, 3 H, 1 BB, 9 K's... Oh, and I forgot, Saladino yet another struggling/disappointing Sox hitter after a decent start. Seems like he's hit a wall in the last year...not sure if he will emerge on the other side or not.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 12:10 PM) That extra $25 million is a joke. Everyone gets that. It doesn't help the Sox at all, because everyone is getting the same amount. And as has been posting a million times before, bad teams hurt revenues other places, such as advertising and TV contracts. Average teams that are veteran filled, underachieving, that almost nobody in the fanbase believes in 100%, with no interesting players or superstars and on the cusp of losing its last "franchise" player in Konerko... That's not a recipe for just a bad team, that's a recipe or formula for a team NOBODY cares about...and apathy is the worst possible result for management. If you're going to be average or below average, at least make the summer interesting SOMEHOW.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 12:10 PM) That extra $25 million is a joke. Everyone gets that. It doesn't help the Sox at all, because everyone is getting the same amount. And as has been posting a million times before, bad teams hurt revenues other places, such as advertising and TV contracts. How is it a joke when it would allow us to make the same amount of money even if we lost another 25% of our fanbase, and that's assuming we don't also cut payroll, which surely will be the end result of this year being similar to 2007/2009/2011. (And that's another huge assumption, that we would automatically go down to 1.5 million in any type of rebuild). Besides, have you ever thought the fans might send the message to management that what they're doing RIGHT NOW isn't working and that 1.5-1.6-1.7 million in attendance in 2013 is a legitimate possibility already with the slow start? You're also assuming that all of those other teams out there will put that $25 million back into operating expenses and signing free agents. That's not going to happen. The bottom 4-5-6 teams will do what they always do, which is sit on those profits.

QUOTE (Cali @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 12:03 PM) Let's be honest, the White Sox are just not a popular team. They're not going to lose so many of what their aren't a lot of to begin with. I wish there was some sort of smart guy algorithm that could tell you how popular all the MLB franchises are nation or world wide. Something that takes into account attendance per game/year, TV ratings, Hat/Jersey Sales, National Coverage, Pop Culture relevance etc. I would guess that the Sox would wind up around 20+ on that list. Just for fun, I would guess the Top 5 would be: 1. Yankees 2. Red Sox 3. Dodgers 4. Cubs 5. Cardinals There is a list...although with our hats, we're fairly high on the merchandising side, thanks to all the celebs/rappers, haha. You're forgetting the Giants and the Rangers....they're both top ten franchises now, as well. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, with all that star power, huge attendance and LA market. You can't forget the Mets, simply because of the NY market, but they're definitely down now, despite the new stadium...plus all the financial issues with the Madoff/Wilpon connection. In the end, you can make a credible case for the Sox as high as 14-15-16 and as low as 24-25. The value of the franchise is closer to 12th....and our ticket prices, at least before this season, were averaging around 4th-6th highest in baseball. Had we made the playoffs and finished last season strongly, it would be a completely different picture and feeling, IMO.

QUOTE (pittshoganerkoff @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 11:02 AM) Alright. My first game thread this season, and hopefully the first of many as the Sox begin a winning streak tonight. Young Dylan Axelrod takes the hill against a guy the Sox hitters couldn't figure out last time around, Justin Masterson. It's time to end this offensive slump and this terrible start to the 2013 campaign. Finally, Spring-like conditions will greet the teams as they battle it out at The Cell. I think you mean for the last year, pretty much. Maybe he had one loss in there, but his ERA career-wise against the Sox is in the mid 2's, and that's with most of his bad starts against the Sox in the beginning of his career, much like Verlander. Supposed to feel like 60-54 degrees throughout the evening...no sign of showers until late.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 11:44 AM) Which means, based on baseball history, you would be in the middle of it when your TV contract comes up. Not too smart. JR has all the leverage. He owns/controls 40% of ComCast, and has the Bulls, most importantly... There's nothing to prevent the White Sox from creating their own RSN, bundling the Sox and Bulls together...at some point. 2019 is a LONG way from now, anyway. If that's the primary reason for NOT rebuilding, they should change to a different business strategy ASAP.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 11:42 AM) Go back and look at White Sox historical attendance. It can go a LOT lower. But then you're getting offsets from the IFSA and taxpayers. That's true, there's a scenario we lose another 25% from our attendance...and go all the way down to 1.5 million, or, as keeps getting pointed out, 1.3 million with "The Kids Can Play" days. Back then, 50-60% of revenues were derived from ticket sales. Now it has been cut in half, around 25-30%. And a 25%, super dramatic, oblivion-esque fall in attendance would STILL be offset by the $25 million in additional revenue from the new national broadcasting deal. Rising waters float all boats, as they say. MLB.com subscriptions will continue to increase around the world as the game becomes more and more global, etc. Sure, they might have to decrease payroll...but they need to do that anyway. They could be a MUCH better team if you subtracted Dunn, Danks, Floyd, Thornton/Crain and changed out Ramirez as well. The problem isn't our spending AMOUNT. It's HOW we are spending that money, and misallocating it. 2005's payroll proved that a team could still probably get by with a $75-95 million payroll in this day and age and still win it all.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 11:38 AM) Jeff Keppinger has a sub.200 BABIP over the first 3 weeks of the season. He's making decent contact but it's constantly right at someone. It really isn't smart to project his season when that's the case. But we do know SOME things.... 1) He's striking out much more frequently than he did last year. 2) His line drive percentage and power is down, even from last year. 3) He's having to play everyday against some very unfavorable pitching match-ups. 4) His defense will never measure up to Beckham's at 2B. Even if he improves 50%, he's still a complementary player...he doesn't kill a playoff team, but he has to be in a line-up where there are 4-5 other big boppers. Right now, we only have Rios and an aging Konerko to rely on. Theoretically, that other bopper could be Dunn, it could be Viciedo (assuming he's 100% healthy and actually can figure out righties and fastballs over 90 MPH), it could be Flowers, but those three and Beckham being out and DeAza trying to do too much, it's adding up to a bad mixture of a line-up. Now Gillaspie's starting to come back to earth, and Rios won't be an MVP candidate all season long...at least we can't quite count on that happening, can we? It's like whack-a-mole, solve one problem in the line-up and 2-3 others spring up to take its place.

Johnson off to another solid start so far. 6 K's in 4 IP. That's more than you can say for Walker, Thompson, Wilkins, etc. Semien's done well, but we need superstars, not fringy middle infielders or utility guys. And Miguel Gonzalez is hitting over .300 about 4 years too late, lol.

I think the "freaking out" is more than anything based on Dunn's regression to 2011 form... And the fact that Konerko's just not likely to be the same hitter he was 2-3 years ago. Then Beckham and Viciedo out...you can have the best pitching in the AL, and I'm not 100% certain we would still make the playoffs with the line-ups we've been putting out there the last two days. And watching Flowers' "all or nothing" approach, which is great when it works, but maddeningly frustrating. And knowing Gillaspie won't hit over .300 month after month. Yes, Keppinger and DeAza SHOULD get better. But, there are just a ton of question marks right now. Alexei is Alexei...you know what you're getting with him. I just wish we'd see more walks/patience at the top of the order. Part of it is simply "bad luck" with Keppinger, but everyone expected him NOT to be the same hitter he was in 2012 if he was exposed to playing every day, against all types of pitching. It's just like buying a mutual fund that returned 72% last year and expecting the same result again this year when last year was likely to be the outlier or anomaly.

But one of our best hitters this season, Alexei Ramirez was coming up next... It didn't make any sense in that situation. How many times have singles been hit where Rios couldn't score from 2B? I get the fact that there could be a wild pitch or passed ball, but that's happened what, 2 times this year so far with a runner on 3rd? You always have a WIDE OPEN throwing lane with Dunn in the LH batter's box. And Rios has never been AS GOOD stealing 3B as 2B.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 09:21 AM) I believe the Sox TV deal goes through 2019. I'd rather not be in 60/70 win territory when that happens to come up. We have a lot of leverage in those negotiations, since we own 40% of the network itself. Screw over the Sox, they run the danger of losing the Bulls. Who even knows at that time what the RSN landscape will look like, and how many bidders there might be...? Live sports are always going to be an attractive option compared to sitcom programming.

Yes, but that extra $25 million coming in next year from the new national network contract might help ease the pain a little bit. There's always the chance that if they did lose some of their traditional advertisers, a new tier of opportunities would be opened up for companies that have never done any advertising or promotions with the Sox. Every coin has two sides, as they say. The White Sox have already gone through this before, losing a lot of the dollars they picked up from the World Series title when the team tanked in 2007 and the 2008 global financial crisis hit. And, when the Sox got back into contention, a lot of fans and advertisers would be back on the bandwagon. The White Sox tv ratings were up significantly last year, and that definitely helped ComCast as they could charge more for advertising during Sox games...and ComCast is 40% controlled by Reinsdorf, et al.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 02:19 AM) It's early and a lot can change, but Detroit's going to have their hands full with KC this season. I'm sure Ned will f*** it up, but they are a very good team. If Hosmer and Moustakas ever get their s*** together, things could get interesting. Right now, their main weaknesses are the end of the rotation (I'm not convinced that Santana will ever be anything close to what he was 4-5 years ago with the Angels)...then 2B, CF (Cain needs to stay healthy for one full season) and Francouer in RF. As you said, if those two get going, along with Gordon/Butler/Perez/Escobar (needs to repeat 2012's success), then you have a VERY dangerous team, capable of getting hot offensively and knocking anyone off. Their bullpen domination is well-documented, despite Herrera's 3 homer debacle, it has been their area of strength and depth for 2+ years now, even without Soria.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 02:02 AM) Great post for discussion -- welcome. I'm with you, give Hahn a chance on his own terms. You've been grooming him for this, lets see what he can do. Part of me always hoped that Dave Dombrowski would find his way back to the white sox, but those days are gone. Like La Russa, Hawk f***ed that one up too. But I don't like the idea of rebuilding by trading everything of value so you can run out a roster like Houston's. Even the cubs couldn't get away with that for long. I don't think you have to be so bad for so long to suddenly be good. The teams you mentioned like KC, DET and PIT, were plagued by poor management and a lack of talent in the front office making decisions. I don't think the Sox are in that predicament. I think the fan base would absolutely support a young team that shows promise, even if it means taking your lumps and enduring say one 70-win season. As long as there is improvement and fans can clearly see what they're trying to build. And the Sox do have some enticing pieces to trade with JP, Gavin, Rios, and Ramirez, to name a few. You won't get a Greinke haul but I imagine if you packaged JP and Rios to a team in July who was contending and had those specific needs, you'd do all right. Who knows, you might even get a legitimate 3B prospect....imagine that. They might also have to include either Reed or Jones to make that blockbuster trade...or Lindstrom/Crain/Thornton for a team needing veteran relievers for the stretch drive. Pedro Alvarez would be an obvious choice for "change of scenery." Then you have Sano (Twins) and Castellanos (Tigers) not going to the Sox. That leaves: Mike Olt--TEX Anthony Rendon--WASH Nolan Arenado--COL Kaleb Cowart--LAA Jedd Gyorko--SD Matt Davidson--ARZ Trevor Story--COL By the way, the Astros have the #13, 27, 37, 50 and 99 prospects in the Top 100 for Baseball America. We have one, in Courtney Hawkins (54), but possibly none in 2014 unless Erik Johnson makes it. Supposedly, Carlos Sanchez was in the 100-125 range, definitely Top 150.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 02:02 AM) Great post for discussion -- welcome. I'm with you, give Hahn a chance on his own terms. You've been grooming him for this, lets see what he can do. Part of me always hoped that Dave Dombrowski would find his way back to the white sox, but those days are gone. Like La Russa, Hawk f***ed that one up too. But I don't like the idea of rebuilding by trading everything of value so you can run out a roster like Houston's. Even the cubs couldn't get away with that for long. I don't think you have to be so bad for so long to suddenly be good. The teams you mentioned like KC, DET and PIT, were plagued by poor management and a lack of talent in the front office making decisions. I don't think the Sox are in that predicament. I think the fan base would absolutely support a young team that shows promise, even if it means taking your lumps and enduring say one 70-win season. As long as there is improvement and fans can clearly see what they're trying to build. And the Sox do have some enticing pieces to trade with JP, Gavin, Rios, and Ramirez, to name a few. You won't get a Greinke haul but I imagine if you packaged JP and Rios to a team in July who was contending and had those specific needs, you'd do all right. Who knows, you might even get a legitimate 3B prospect....imagine that. They might also have to include either Reed or Jones to make that blockbuster trade...or Lindstrom/Crain/Thornton for a team needing veteran relievers for the stretch drive. Pedro Alvarez would be an obvious choice for "change of scenery." Then you have Sano (Twins) and Castellanos (Tigers) not going to the Sox. That leaves: Mike Olt--TEX Anthony Rendon--WASH Nolan Arenado--COL Kaleb Cowart--LAA Jedd Gyorko--SD Matt Davidson--ARZ Trevor Story--COL By the way, the Astros have the #13, 27, 37, 50 and 99 prospects in the Top 100 for Baseball America. We have one, in Courtney Hawkins (54), but possibly none in 2014 unless Erik Johnson makes it. Supposedly, Carlos Sanchez was in the 100-125 range, definitely Top 150.

For the Astros, general manager Jeff Luhnow is the man with the plan Posted on October 27, 2012 at 11:35 pm by Brian T. Smith in Astros, Astros/MLB, General E-mail | Print Houston Astros General Manager Jeff Luhnow working in his office at Minute Maid Park Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, in Houston. Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow was an architect. A painter. A peerless designer with grand plans that never stopped unfolding. A big-money business executive who’d outwork and outthink competition that prided itself on crushing outsiders. How do you fix Houston’s Major League Baseball team? How do you save, revive and rebuild the Astros? How in the world do you turn 213 losses over the last two seasons into a clubhouse loaded with consistent winners, a youth movement fans actually want to buy into, and a franchise that eventually can do more than just scrape to stay off the American League’s bottom floor? Luhnow has a vision. A team that is part Oakland Athletics and Tampa Bay Rays, part Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Dodgers. A club that grows and develops its players but can spend when it needs to thanks to increased revenue from a new television deal. He laid out the plan in full last week, openly discussing the Astros’ unpredictable future the same day new manager Bo Porter evaluated the depth of the team’s 40-man roster and everyone from newly hired Moneyball-like analysts to old-school sales coordinators chiseled away at the organization’s public image. The initial steps of Luhnow’s mission are complete. Since last December, when he traded eight years’ worth of annual success in St. Louis for a full-on rebuild at Minute Maid Park, the Astros’ propensity for losing games has been rivaled only by the franchise’s intent to clean house. Familiar names are gone. New uniforms will be officially unveiled Friday. A Minute Maid upgrade awaits. Everything is being planned and orchestrated in the name of positive change. As the Astros’ major league roster hit financial and statistical rock bottom, a once-depleted farm system was being restocked. An energized and enthusiastic Luhnow envisions more wins, more development, more progress. He sees an Astros organization that again resembles a major league franchise. “We’d like to (watch) it go as fast as it can without making promises on any time frame,” he said. “This city deserves a baseball team that they’re not only proud of, they’re excited to come to the ballpark and watch. And I don’t think we’re that far away from being able to deliver.” The pipeline Many can be credited for the post-millennium success of the Cardinals, who in the last 13 seasons have made nine playoff appearances and won two World Series. Tony La Russa, Albert Pujols, Walt Jocketty and Bill Dewitt Jr. all played crucial roles. So did Luhnow. His importance was brought to light during St. Louis’ recent National League Championship Series battle against San Francisco via an e-mail from DeWitt, the Cardinals’ owner. Eight of the nine players in one of the Cardinals’ lineups were procured under Luhnow’s watch, DeWitt said in the message, and the ninth — Matt Holliday — was acquired in a trade. “(Luhnow) never drafted at the top of the draft in St. Louis, and he wasn’t in the position to be the most aggressive spender … and in his early drafts, he drafted more players than anybody who eventually became major leaguers,” Astros president George Postolos said. “The difference between what we yielded in the ’05, ’06, ’07 drafts and what Jeff yielded is (huge).” Luhnow is attempting to plant the same deep roots in Houston. The growth already has begun, highlighted by prospects including Jonathan Singleton, George Springer, Jarred Cosart, Carlos Correa and Delino DeShields. Throw in young pitchers such as Mike Foltynewicz and Vincent Velasquez, and a system that spiraled downward in recent years could crack Minor League Baseball’s top 10 in the near future. Since Luhnow took over, the Astros have emphasized improved player promotion — moving a prospect upward only when his play and development merited reward — reconfigured roles and departments, and blended new-age evaluation gurus (Sig Mejdal, Mike Fast, Kevin Goldstein) with traditional player analysis. Leading the charge: scouting director Mike Elias, who spent five years working with Luhnow in St. Louis. “One of the things that we’re doing here — and I think we’re going to do exceptionally well — is linking everything together so there are no (breaks),” Luhnow said. “The guy who runs international feels like he’s connected to the front office. … Everybody has their area of expertise. But the more we can be sharing experiences and collaborating on things, I think the more we can be better as a team.” Is the next Mike Trout, Stephen Strasburg or Bryce Harper lurking somewhere? Unlikely. Is the Astros’ farm system already deeper and richer during 11 months under Luhnow than it was in the previous five years? Unquestionably. Luhnow compared the enterprise to annually managing $20 million in raw materials that eventually should be worth $80 million in assets. By fully developing the raw product and maximizing its worth, proceeds can be funneled back into the pipeline at the same time the Astros’ on-the-field product noticeably improves. “We are in a zero-sum game at the end of the day. A win for us is a loss for someone else,” Luhnow said. “There (are) certain things where the industry gets smarter and better as a whole. But we’re still competing with one another on a daily basis, so our advantage needs to come at someone else’s disadvantage. … You can gain an edge in 50 different areas that add up to a meaningful edge.” The Show Harvesting a deep annual crop of prospects loaded with playable and tradeable talent is one thing. Translating the proceeds into major league victories and regular playoff appearances is another. “It’s developing from within your organization, then being able to make a trade or sign a free agent that will make a difference on your ballclub,” Texas Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan said. “If you look at our ballclub and where we are, we built more off trades and free agency than we have from within our system. But what has happened is, our system allowed us to make some trades.” The Astros’ immediate fortune belongs to Porter. Specifically hired for his inner drive and intelligence, Porter has as his primary tasks teaching and inspiring. Backed by a revamped coaching staff that includes former Baltimore manager Dave Trembley, Porter must instill a major league mentality in a team that fell apart 45 games into 2012 and finished 42 games out of first place. “Discipline is going to be pretty good in the Bo Porter environment,” said Luhnow, who’s considering giving Porter a top-floor office at Minute Maid to help him blend in with the executive ranks. “Because he’s going to have high expectations, he’s going to be very clear about what he wants and how it needs to be done. And he’s also going to be very proactive in disciplining players who aren’t performing to his expectations.” Free-agent veterans are expected to provide additional leadership. Luhnow hinted there’s a chance the Astros will “hit the jackpot” during the offseason, bringing in a couple big names who could power up a porous offense while putting fans back in Minute Maid’s empty seats. The Astros will truly begin to spend owner Jim Crane’s millions once the farm system begins to regularly produce MLB-ready talent. Increased revenue from a new television partnership with Comcast and improved gate receipts, combined with Houston’s big-city allure, are wrapped up in Luhnow’s vision. The Astros of the future: a team combining the A’s energy and GM Billy Beane’s inside-baseball vision with the Rangers’ annual power. How long will the rebuild take? Two years? Five? What if the blueprint fails and the Astros — the worst team in baseball for two consecutive seasons — become the next Pittsburgh Pirates? “You compare our roster to the Rangers, we’re not there yet,” Luhnow said. “But will we be in five years? I hope so. Will our payroll be up in the range where it can compete with the Rangers? I hope so. But for now, we’re not even close. So we know we have our work cut out for us. “I think what’ll be fun for our fans is to experience the cycle on the way up. Our fans have gone through the painful experience of the cycle on the way down, from the World Series in 2005 to basically two 100-loss seasons in a row. This is as far down as it goes. From here going forward, it goes up.”