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Jeff Luhnow has done plenty of interviews over the past few years detailing his plan to bring the Houston Astros back into World Series contention. The journalist's job is to find an angle that hasn't been used before and Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports found it.
Jeff Luhnow's car. More specifically his license plate.
Luhnow's license plate reads GM 111, meaning general manager and the number 111 - the amount of games Houston lost during their miserable 2013 season. Here's what Luhnow had to say about what he'd like to see in the future involving the number 111.
"Yes, I want to be reminded every day what really matters is the win-loss record at the big-league level,'' Luhnow says, "and I want this club to go from 111 losses to 111 wins.
"I don't know exactly how many years it's going to take, but that is the goal.''
Alright, cool Jeff, now do that as fast as you can, please.
Even the most casual of fans know that the Astros aren't winning 111 games this year, or next, or maybe ever. There's only been one team to win more than 111 since 2000.
The point here is that Luhnow wants to remind himself of how difficult last year was for everyone who follows and/or is involved with the Astros organization. He definitely doesn't want 2013 to happen again or maybe he just can't wait to shove it in everyone's grill about how smart he is.
Just kidding about the latter. Luhnow doesn't really seem like that kind of guy.
The vast majority of people who follow Astros believe they will be contenders by 2016, or 2015 if they're really bold, but how soon can Astros fans realistically expect a 100-win season?
Two years? Three? Four? Next decade?
I'll leave that question here.