Gonna be a pretty big mark against whoever was making Houston’s decisions this offseason if they let Verlander walk only to trade for him 6 months later and give up several top prospects AND pay him.
No, Crane is definitely involved in the negotiations and money involved. This is ALL Crane. Brown is talking to other teams about other players.
Most of the Astros moves were planned out before Click even left. Montero was something the front office and owner wanted. Abreu was the top choice for Click and after Click. Verlander was always a Crane decision - it was the third year.
Maybe it’s straight teamwork and as soon as it became apparent days ago that Verlander was available, Crane told Brown “You fix the bullpen and see if you can find a bat. I’ll get you Verlander.”
Similar things were said in 2017. There was interest, no interest, trade was close, trade was off, then boom, the trade was done. So everything that’s being said by the “insiders” is likely smoke and mirrors. They are just mouthpieces for management and won’t get the real story until something is done or not done.
Maybe… especially since it boils down to money and not necessarily prospects. I still don’t think Crane bends too much on this… but if he would bend for anybody, its JV (although he didn’t bend last year… )
Crane has had success in the past talking to Verlander directly and working things out. Obviously Crane cannot speak to Verlander but he handles the purse strings and can quickly get approval from minority ownership group… so I think that is why he is working on it. It will be interesting to see how Brown responds if Crane trades away several prospects for Verlander. If Verlander ends up in Houston for something like Drew Gilbert or Chas McCormick - don’t be surprised if someone claim collusion between Crane and Verlander. Of all teams, the White Sox people are grumbling about it.
