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The Astros recently hired Dusty Baker as field manager for the 2020 season. In the meantime, Jim Crane was also in the process of interviewing various general manager candidates, including, but not limited to, former Giants GM Bobby Evans, MLB exec Peter Woodfork, Royals director of scouting/special assistant Gene Watson, and Rays vice president of baseball operations James Click.
Now the wait is over.
Welcome to Houston, #Astros GM, James Click. pic.twitter.com/vOi7q6GWuq
— Houston Astros (@astros) February 4, 2020
The hiring of Click, 42, marks the unofficial end of the most turbulent offseason in Astros’ history. The former Rays exec will now take over for former GM and president of baseball operations Jeff Luhnow, who was fired along with former manager A.J. Hinch in the wake of the sign-stealing scandal in early January of this year.
Click, a Yale grad and former Baseball Prospectus writer, will look to build on the analytics framework infamously established in Houston under Luhnow and his front office. Of course, it’ll be interesting to see how the front office is possibly restructured in the coming months under Click’s leadership.
Here is more information about the hire in the words of new GM Click and Crane (h/t to Mark Berman of Fox 26).
“New #Astros GM James Click in a statement released by the team: pic.twitter.com/dHiQipzjbr
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) February 4, 2020
Jim Crane on hiring James Click as the #Astros GM: “We interviewed a bunch of people. We really zeroed in on this guy. He comes from a team that does a lot of things like we do. I think he can teach our guys a lot. He’s smart. He went to Yale. He is the right guy.”
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) February 4, 2020
Jim Crane on hiring James Click as the #Astros GM: “After we visited with him he knew exactly what we were doing. He was very impressed with what we had. He felt he could add another dimension to it. It just was a match. He is the right guy at the right time.”
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) February 4, 2020
Jim Crane on new GM James Click coming from the Rays, team that has had success with lowest payroll in baseball: “I told him if u can do that well (now) u got about triple the payroll. So you oughta really be good.” (How did James respond?) “He said that’s gonna be a nice luxury”
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) February 4, 2020