Astros Hire James Click as General Manager

Click was set to be formally introduced by the Astros at a news conference on Tuesday at Minute Maid Park.

“James has had an impressive career,” Crane said in a statement. “He is a respected leader who has progressed in this game across all aspects of baseball operations and he has built great relationships with both front office and clubhouse personnel.”

Click graduated from Yale and wrote for the analytics website Baseball Prospectus for several years before being hired by the Rays.

Click was involved in guiding and overseeing all aspects of the baseball operations department. His areas of focus were research and development, strategic planning and innovation.

Luhnow and Hinch were suspended for a year by Commissioner Rob Manfred on Jan. 13 after an M.L.B. investigation found that the Astros had used electronics to illicitly steal signs during their run to the 2017 World Series championship and again in the 2018 season. Crane announced hours later that Luhnow and Hinch were fired.

The Astros also were fined $5 million, the maximum allowed under M.L.B. rules, and forfeited their next two first- and second-round amateur draft picks.

Alex Cora, the bench coach for the Astros in 2017 and the manager who guided the Red Sox to the 2018 World Series title, was let go by Boston. Carlos Beltran, singled out for his role in the cheating scheme while playing for the 2017 Astros, resigned as manager of the Mets last month before working his first game.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/03/sports/baseball/james-click-astros-gm.html?emc=rss&partner=rss