Astros: James Click hired as the new general manager

The Houston Astros have announced the hiring of James Click as their new general manager, replacing the deposed Jeff Luhnow.

Just a few days ago, Astros owner Jim Crane had expressed that there was no rush in hiring the new GM after just completing a thorough search for their manager. He indicated they would be interviewing a lot of candidates and it could take until the middle of spring training to complete the process.

Well, the situation has taken a quick turn with the hiring of James Click, the former VP of baseball operations for the Tampa Bay Rays. The official announcement and introduction will take place tomorrow morning at 10:30 in Minute Maid Park.

Click was one of four candidates that were known to have interviewed for the position. He ultimately won out over Kansas City’s director of scouting Gene Watson, Giant’s GM Bobby Evans, and MLB’s senior VP of baseball operations Peter Woodfork.

“I am excited to join the Astros family,” said Click. “The Astros are a progressive and innovative organization with a deeply talented group in the front office. I am grateful to Jim Crane and the Astros for giving me this opportunity to help lead this team to more championships.” via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle

The 42-year-old is a graduate of Yale University. Click has spent the last 14 seasons on the staff of the Tampa Bay Ray’s starting out as their coordinator of baseball operations. He got in on the ground floor as an intern with their front office in 2005. Prior to his stint with Tampa, he was a writer for Baseball Prospectus.

Tampa’s principal owner, Stuart Sternberg, has already announced the departure of James Click wishing him and his family well in their new adventure. But, he also expressed the difficult situation that it puts their front office in, now having to search for his replacement right before the start of spring training.

Now with James Click in as the general manager and Dusty Baker set to lead the players in the dugout, the Astros can concentrate on getting this team on track to face the season ahead. Everyone knows there are going to be some big hurdles to climb in 2020, and I feel these two have the experience to keep the players’ eyes looking straight ahead and concentrate on one goal, another championship ring.