Astros' cockamamie outfield plan could (and should) cost Dana Brown his job

It was nice knowing you, Dana. That will surely be the sentiment throughout the Houston Astros fanbase if Dana Brown's harebrained idea to fix the team's outfield shortcomings blows up in his face.

Heading into the 2024-25 offseason, the Astros seemed poised to have an outfield comprised of All-Star right fielder Kyle Tucker, defensive stalwart Jake Meyers, and Chas McCormick; a player who is just one year removed from a 3.6 bWAR season.

But instead, the Astros appear to be headed into Opening Day with an outfield of Meyers, Jose Altuve, and Cam Smith (maybe). The Houston faithful are hopeful that this alignment will produce positive results, but if it doesn't, the move could cost Brown his job.

Moving Jose Altuve and accelerating Cam Smith's MLB debut could cost Astros GM Dana Brown his job

No one is going to beat up Brown too badly for trading Tucker. This trade has been rehashed ad nauseam, but with no long-term deal in sight, Houston made the unpopular, but logical, choice to part ways with Tucker. In return, the Astros received a backend starter (Hayden Wesneski), starting third basemas (Isaac Paredes), and a top prospect (Smith).

Had Brown pulled off that trade and used some of the payroll savings to sign a mid-tier outfielder, most fans would've been in agreement with the franchise's direction. But instead, Brown has moved Altuve from the only position he's ever known and shoved him into the outfield — based on Thursday's failed attempt to catch a fly ball, that's not going to well.

However, Brown then doubled down and decided to move Smith, who has 32 minor-league starts (none of which are in the outfield), and throw him to wolves in right field. This has the potential to go off the rails, and quickly. What in the world is Brown thinking?

Has the war of attrition finally caught up to Brown and the Astros? Maybe. Over the past few years, Brown has done a fantastic job of assembling competitive rosters despite some reluctance on the part of Astros' ownership to match the spending of some of baseball's best organizations. But the Astros' top decision-maker may have bitten off more than he can chew this year.

This whole offseason has proven to be a hodgepodge of transactions without a lick of direction, and while Astros fans are hopeful, hope is not a strategy. With less than two weeks before Opening Day, it's not as if Brown can hit the reset button. He's made his bad, and now he has to lie in it.

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