Bagwell taking over as Astros hitting coach

Baseball Betting Lines

07/11/2010 -

HOUSTON (AP) -Former Astros All-Star Jeff Bagwell is taking over as Houston's hitting coach after the team fired Sean Berry on Sunday.

Berry became ``a victim of circumstances'' as the Astros' offense has sputtered this season, general manager Ed Wade said. Still, Wade believes the offense can do more and hopes Bagwell can help that happen.

``We know we can get better, but we also know there are players here that should be better and hopefully with a different voice in Jeff Bagwell, they'll recognize the measure of accountability that they have in this whole process so we will get better,'' Wade said.

The move gives Houston hitters a chance to work with one of the most beloved and successful players in franchise history.

In 15 seasons with the Astros, the former first baseman set franchise records with 449 home runs and 1,529 RBIs. Bagwell was the National League rookie of the year in 1991, the NL's most valuable player in 1994 and a four-time All-Star.

Berry, who has been the hitting coach for the past five seasons, was given a chance to remain with the franchise in a development role. He hadn't yet decided if he'll accept that opportunity.

Wade knows great players don't necessarily make good coaches, but believes Bagwell will be successful after what he's shown working with the team as special assistant to the general manager since retiring in 2006.

``He's very levelheaded,'' Wade said. ``He communicates very well, particularly with regard to the nuances of the game. We've seen him have a significant impact on some of our minor league hitters with the information he's able to convey. So he's got the interest and the passion in doing this and we think it's appropriate to give him the opportunity to see if it works or not.''

Bagwell was not in uniform for Sunday's game against the Cardinals and will join the team Thursday in Pittsburgh for a workout before the start of Friday's series with the Pirates.

``Fans love Bagwell so that's the first thing. He's a legend here,'' center fielder Michael Bourn said. ``(He) did a lot of damage here so of course he knows how to hit. So I'm pretty sure he has some (things) he could point out to us and he's probably been seeing some things from up top. So we'll see what it does for us.''

The Astros entered Sunday's game with the second worst batting average in the majors (.237), the worst on-base percentage (.295) and are tied for 28th with just 57 home runs this season. Only Seattle and Pittsburgh have fewer hits than the 691 Houston has managed this year.

Star slugger Lance Berkman entered Sunday's game hitting .252 and cleanup hitter Carlos Lee is batting .238. Each has 12 home runs apiece. Second baseman Jeff Keppinger has the best average in Houston's starting lineup at .279.

Berkman said it stings to know the struggles of the offense cost Berry his job.

``I haven't hit and Carlos hasn't hit like he can and others haven't and it's not Sean's fault,'' Berkman said. ``It's one of those things that when things aren't going well with the players, you have to shake something up and the most expendable pieces a lot of times are the coaching staff.''

Though he was disappointed to see Berry leave, Berkman is looking forward to working with Bagwell.

``Jeff has always been one of my mentors in the game and I'm excited that he's going to be around more,'' Berkman said. ``I told him (Saturday) that he helps me more than anybody even when he's not around just from all the things that he told me during the time that we played together. So it will be great to have him around and have his expertise available.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

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