HOUSTON -- The challenges ahead for new Astros general manager Randy Flores are many, beginning with navigating the aging core of the Major League club while trying to keep the team competitive, the immediate future of shortstop Jeremy Peña and learning the names and faces and the inner workings of the baseball operations staff that he now oversees.
Introduced by owner Jim Crane at a press conference on Monday morning at Daikin Park, Flores made it clear that his No. 1 goal is hiring a manager to replace Joe Espada, whose contract wasn’t renewed after three seasons on the job. Crane admitted Monday that the club has already begun interviewing managerial candidates, believed to include Yankees bench coach Brad Ausmus, who was at Daikin Park to meet with team officials Thursday, a source said Sunday.
The Astros are working toward having a manager in place by the end of the week.
“We need to get started on that and finalize that,” Flores said.
And with that, Flores was off and running as Houston’s 15th general manager. He spoke confidently and eloquently during his press conference, laying out the vision for the future of a franchise with high expectations. The Astros have been to the postseason nine times in the past 10 seasons, but they haven’t slipped in wins each season since their 106-win 2022 campaign that ended with a World Series championship.
Hiring a manager will be job one, but that’s only the start of a larger task for the 51-year-old Flores, a former Major League pitcher who has a master’s degree in postsecondary administration from USC, founded a sports video technology company and has been an assistant GM with the Cardinals for eight seasons (2019-26) after joining the club’s front office as its director of scouting in 2015.
“I'm excited and so thankful to get going here as the general manager of the Houston Astros,” Flores said. “You know, when I first got into baseball, in the front office of baseball, people would ask, ‘Look, did you always know you wanted to be in the front office after you were a player?’ And I'd say something to the effect of, ‘Sure, but I also wanted to be a rock star, an astronaut and Brad Pitt.’ ‘Wants’ is one thing, but I know how hard the road is to have a position of influence in a front office.”
Crane said the Astros interviewed eight or nine general manager candidates. Crane has been in charge of baseball operations since the club parted ways with GM Dana Brown on Aug. 24 after nearly four years on the job. Brown’s responsibilities were handled in the interim by assistant GMs Charles Cook, Gavin Dickey and Connor Huff and senior advisor Jeff Bagwell (Cook, Dickey and Bagwell sat behind Flores’ family at the press conference on Monday).
Flores said it’s too early to say what immediate changes will be made in the front office, if any.
“There's so many conversations to have,” he said. “There's so much trust to build. Baseball ops is more than one person. It's impossibly big. It's impossibly complex. But I believe that when you have the right people in place, from the top to the bottom, it gives players the most chances to meet someone that's gonna help alter the trajectory of their career for the better.”
Crane said Flores has full authority on baseball decisions.
“What I've done in the past is when things needed some help, or I was asked for help, I pitched in a number of times on trying to retain guys, or trying to get a guy to move over at the Trade Deadline,” Crane said. “I'll continue in that area. I'll stay focused on the business side. I'm pretty hands-on in that area. I'll sit in on the meetings and get a feel for what's going on and how things are working. Nothing's changed with what I do.”
Crane expects the Astros to stay competitive next season, admitting the roster will need significant upgrades. Peña is entering the final year of his contract and could be dealt in the same fashion the Astros traded star outfielder Kyle Tucker prior to the ‘24 season -- the year before he became a free agent. The Astros also need some significant upgrades to their pitching staff and lineup, specifically in the outfield.
“I think we've got enough talent to work with, and we've got to make some good decisions and make some changes, and, you know, solidify a better lineup and a better team than we had last year,” Crane said. “We did make the playoffs, which is always the goal, but we have very high standards here, and so I'm sure these guys will get together and make some good decisions, and you'll see some changes made, with the roster, surely.”