New Astros GM Randy Flores has an ironic connection to sordid Cardinals hacking scandal

For years, the Houston Astros have had a strangely complicated connection to the Cardinals. Not only did Houston hire disgraced former general manager Jeff Luhnow from St. Louis in December 2011, but that connection also led to a hacking scandal in which Cardinals scouting director Chris Correa accessed the Astros' scouting database and was sentenced to almost four years in prison after he was caught.

However, most thought that scandal was behind us. Luhnow has been gone for years and is now dabbling in running soccer teams, while Correa served his sentence and seems to be trying to rebuild his life away from baseball. What fans may not know is that not only did new general manager Randy Flores work in the Cardinals' front office for years, but he actually got his start in St. Louis in the wake of Correa's arrest.

Astros continuing a long-time connection to the Cardinals' front office, for better or worse

For those who are not familiar, Correa was convicted of using a password gained from a former Cardinals employee's laptop (presumably Luhnow or someone Luhnow brought over to the Astros) to access the Astros' protected scouting and personnel database. After accessing and/or downloading multiple files, Houston discovered the intrusion, and the investigation led to Correa's arrest.

St. Louis obviously fired Correa and ended up hiring Flores to be their new scouting director. Flores had played for a few seasons with the Cardinals and had impressed during his post-playing career with his analysis and ability to use technology the advancement of scouting strategies. Flores then eventually worked his way up to assistant general manager before Jim Crane tabbed him to be the Astros' next general manager.

He may not have been the Astros' first choice, but there is something fitting about Flores’ hiring. Not only does he fit the mold of the type of executive Crane seems to like to hire, but it has also allowed a dark period in the histories of both franchises to come full circle. One just hopes that this hire goes significantly better than the last time Crane tabbed a St. Louis exec to run his front office.

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