HOUSTON — Joe Espada is in an enviable position. Teams with managerial openings are often mired in malaise and ask their new hires to inspire hope. Some new skippers walk into their new surroundings needing to solve problems or shift organizational thinking.
Nothing so seismic will greet Espada, who will inherit an Astros roster readymade for a run at its eighth consecutive American League Championship Series appearance and a clubhouse with a player-driven culture that has carried it through chaos and kept its championship window open.
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Espada’s familiarity with Houston’s infrastructure and the franchise’s six-year journey through tumult to triumph always made him the most logical choice to replace Dusty Baker.
The transition will become official during a news conference on Monday morning at Minute Maid Park, where Espada will be named manager and appear for the first time as the public face of the franchise.
The task before him appears less daunting than what Ron Washington will face in Anaheim or the uncertainty awaiting whomever A.J. Preller picks to run the San Diego Padres, but Espada will still confront challenges unique to the Astros, a franchise with a demanding owner, enormous expectations and one that is approaching a crossroads in its championship life cycle.
Here are four of the foremost hurdles facing Espada as he enters his first season as a major league manager.
Alignment with the front office and ownership
Whether Brown intended it or not, many of his public comments last season underscored the long-simmering disconnect between Baker and members of Houston’s front office.
Disagreements between front offices and field managers are not uncommon across the sport, but allowing it to seep into public view so frequently heightened frustration that lingered all season and throughout Baker’s tenure — which, it should be noted, produced four ALCS appearances, two pennants and a World Series championship.
Brown did not hire Baker, but allowed him to have almost full autonomy with all on-field decisions. It stands to reason that Espada will be afforded that same luxury.
That the team announced Brown — and Brown alone — is scheduled to “host” Monday’s introductory news conference indicates the influence Houston’s second-year general manager had in Espada’s hiring.
Owner Jim Crane has wielded considerable influence in the team’s baseball operations decision-making since the sign-stealing scandal, but in this search, Brown appears to have had full capacity to choose the team’s manager.
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Brown interviewed Espada at least twice during the search process. Perhaps the duo began to form the type of alignment that didn’t seem to exist last season.
It’s incumbent upon Espada to maintain it.
Navigating the first-time manager pitfalls
For six years, Espada’s responsibilities were somewhat limited in scope. Now, everything is under his purview. For the first two seasons of his Astros tenure, Espada was not permitted to give interviews.
Now, he will speak at least twice a day. His duties are about to expand to include far more than just infield instruction or spring training preparation. Managers must bear the brunt of everything that happens in their clubhouse and offer the final word on every decision.
Espada’s familiarity with the franchise probably put him atop Brown’s wish list, but going from bench coach to a first-year manager is the type of massive leap that can’t be overlooked — even in a situation that seems as seamless as this.
Presuming Espada keeps the current coaching staff intact — as Brown hinted would happen earlier this month — he must navigate a sometimes tricky switch from co-worker to boss among that group.
It’s unclear whether Espada will promote a bench coach from the existing staff or hire one from outside the organization. If he chooses an internal candidate, first-base coach Omar López and hitting coach Alex Cintrón are both logical fits.
Because Espada interviewed for so many managerial jobs, it stands to reason he has a blueprint for how his clubhouse and team will function. Working under such a wide variety of managers — Baker, A.J. Hinch, Joe Girardi, Ozzie Guillen and Jack McKeon, to name a few — must have given Espada every possible example of what he could encounter and how to handle it.
The Astros are a player-led clubhouse with a core of veterans setting defined expectations. Most of their team meetings last year did not involve the coaching staff or Baker. This is not a club that requires pep talks or reminders of how to win — and, to Baker’s credit, he allowed that player-driven culture to keep developing throughout his tenure.
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Espada has witnessed it firsthand for six seasons. Now he will oversee it, inviting wonder at how much — if at all — Espada will change his style or demeanor.
Fundamental slippage
Long lauded as one of the sport’s most sound defensive and fundamental teams during its dynastic run, Houston took steps back in both areas last season.
According to Sports Info Solutions, the Astros had not finished lower than fourth in defensive runs saved in any 162-game season since 2018. Entering the season, no club had been worth more outs above average since 2018, according to Baseball Savant.
The 2023 Astros finished 17th in defensive runs saved and 11th in outs above average. Houston still had three Gold Glove finalists — third baseman Alex Bregman, right fielder Kyle Tucker and utilityman Mauricio Dubón, who won the award — but on a team with a smaller margin for error than its predecessors, the defensive downturn was noticeable.
Outfield throws went to the wrong player too often and pitchers sometimes failed to back up bases. Never did it seem more glaring than during an embarrassing late-September loss in Seattle while the Astros’ playoff hopes hung in the balance.
Houston’s pitchers failed to control the running game, too, struggling with the challenges of Major League Baseball’s new pitch clock and rules limiting disengagements. It should be noted, too, that eight of Houston’s pitchers participated in the World Baseball Classic, which prevented them from full spring training participation.
According to Baseball Savant, when starter Martín Maldonado caught last season, base-stealers were 53.9 feet from second base when a pitch crossed the plate. They were 54.1 feet from the bag when backup Yainer Diaz played.
The league average is 56 feet, meaning neither catcher had much of a chance to throw runners out. Diaz will be the team’s primary catcher in 2024, and though he has a strong arm, it would behoove Astros pitchers to give him easier opportunities to showcase it.
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Espada oversaw the team’s infield defense and positioning during his time as the bench coach. He planned every aspect of spring training, too, where most of these fundamentals are hammered home before the regular season begins.
During Espada’s first spring in charge, it would not be surprising to see a bigger emphasis placed on these problem areas.
How does the outfield look?
Brown already acknowledged the Astros “don’t have a ton” of financial flexibility to pursue free agents this winter, meaning Espada may inherit much of the same roster he saw last season.
Brown has prioritized bolstering Houston’s bullpen, adding a backup catcher and perhaps finding some starting pitching depth. He does seem content with Houston’s outfield, which contains a few interchangeable parts for Espada to use.
Provided Brown does not address the position, some combination of Dubón, Chas McCormick and Jake Meyers will play center field. McCormick and Yordan Alvarez could split time in left field, too, with prospects Joey Loperfido, Kenedy Corona and Jacob Melton existing as possible reinforcements from the minor leagues.
Baker’s apathy toward McCormick was well-documented — and perhaps the outfield picture will settle itself if Espada commits to him as the team’s everyday center fielder — but such decisions aren’t likely to come in November.
Espada must balance McCormick’s breakout season with keeping Dubón involved as much as possible and honoring Alvarez’s wishes to play frequently in left field.
(Top photo of Espada: Bob Levey / Getty Images)
