The Astros named Jeff Bagwell to a new position as senior advisor to ownership and baseball operations, MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart writes. The title can be read as a sign of Bagwell’s increased influence within the organization. He had previously been working as a special assistant within the baseball operations department.
Bagwell explained to McTaggart that his new role will come with few new duties, meaning that the Hall-of-Famer will continue to work in a broad capacity, with his various assignments ranging from meeting with Major League to offering advice to minor league players to working with owner Jim Crane to even acting as a recruiter for the team. (Bagwell joined bench coach Joe Espada and assistant GM Bill Firkus on a trip to Miami to help land Jose Abreu in free agency this past offseason.)
“All I’m trying to do is help the organization be the best it could possibly be, so there’s no such thing as a window [of contention] here and we just continue to maintain winning,” Bagwell said. “Part of that is the big league stuff, making sure we get the right players that fit our organization and what we do — great pitching, great defense and we don’t strike out. Taking that and bringing it all the way down to the minor league system.”
Though all teams have front office advisors working in some capacity, the exact nature of the job varies greatly from team to team and employee to employee. It is common for former players and franchise legends to appear in these roles, in part to create a past link to team history and naturally because there is plenty to be learned from players such as Bagwell, who have achieved great heights on the baseball diamond.
In the Astros’ case, however, Bagwell’s role has come under some scrutiny, with his more old school approach seemingly clashing with the philosophy of former GM James Click. Though the Astros were consistent winners during Click’s three years as general manager -- even capturing the World Series last fall -- rumors have swirled for months that the Astros would part ways with Click after the season, championships notwithstanding. Crane only offered Click a one-year contract extension in November, which Click understandably declined before later joining the Blue Jays in the role of vice president of baseball strategy.
Despite the Astros’ success, Bagwell said last November that he felt the team had become too reliant on analytics. “There are so many things about this game the numbers can’t tell you. The type of person, what he means in our clubhouse, his desire, how he goes about his business,” Bagwell said. “Those are the intangible things I can see when I talk to somebody more than just the numbers. This game is played by humans, man, it’s not played by computers.”
It certainly seemed as though Crane agreed with Bagwell’s stance and the hiring of Dana Brown -- who has a deep background as a cross-checker and scout -- as Houston’s new general manager seems to reflect the organization's turn towards a more traditional evaluation approach.
In the larger picture, past reports have suggested that Crane took a more personal role within baseball operations in the wake of the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, thus allowing for ownership advisors like Bagwell and another legendary name in Reggie Jackson to have more of a voice in the front office.
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