Astros zeroing in on stealing Brewers exec for GM role as contract details remain in flux

The Houston Astros have been a focus of the baseball world ever since they decided to fire former general manager Dana Brown. Whenever a front office vacancy opens up, fans and experts monitor the search to fill it very closely; not only to get clues to the direction of the organization, but also to see if the hire costs another organization valuable executive talent.

After a search that has seen several names emerge as potential candidates, it looks like the Astros may finally have their top choice.

While other names have been floated, including Brad Ausmus and former Washington Nationals GM Mike Rizzo, it has been clear for a while that current Milwaukee Brewers assistant general manager Matt Kleine was on Houston's short list to run their front office. Now, after a report from The Athletic's Chandler Rome, the Astros' GM search may be close to ending if they can come to terms with Kleine.

The deal is not done, but it sure sounds like Matt Kleine is the Astros' top choice to be their next GM

Importantly, Rome made it clear that nothing with Kleine has been finalized, so Astros fans may not want to celebrate just yet. It is possible that there are still sticking points in negotiations, although it is more likely that the Brewers' World Series appearance is the biggest cause for delay at this point. Rome is not the kind of reporter to put his name on a rumor like this unless it is very well-sourced, so you can bet that Houston is, at minimum, pushing hard to lock Kleine up.

One can't fault the Astros for their choice, because Kleine has pretty close to a perfect résumé outside of having never run a front office before. After nearly two decades with the Brewers, Kleine has extensive experience with scouting, trade negotiations, roster construction, and enforcement of league and team rules. Basically, if a baseball team does it, Kleine has had a hand in it with the current World Series champions.

Rome's report also mentioned other candidates that were under consideration, including Rizzo, Chicago White Sox assistant GM Josh Barfield, and former Philadelphia Phillies general manager Matt Klentak. Rome also went on to mention how similar the career paths were between Kleine and former Astros GM James Click, although one really, really hopes that Kleine works out better than Click did if Houston does end up hiring him.

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