A collision in short right field with the bases loaded and two out in the ninth inning of a 4-4 game in Pittsburgh Friday night gave the Houston Astros’ newest executive a glimpse of the circus he had joined only hours earlier.

But like any kid who wants to run away and join the circus, Reid Ryan is ready to accept whatever he encounters in his new job, especially because what happens on the field won’t be his direct responsibility. The Astros’ dreadful daily performance, however, will make Ryan’s job more difficult.

Ryan, son of Nolan, is the Astros’ new president of business operations, although not everyone reported it that way. MLB.com, for example, ran this headline Thursday before Ryan’s appointment was announced:

Source: Reid Ryan to be named president of Astros

This was the headline after Friday’s news conference announcing his appointment:

Reid Ryan introduced as Astros president

Making matters worse, MLB.com identified Ryan in a picture caption as Houston’s “new president of baseball operations.”

However, MLB.com was not alone in exaggerating Ryan’s title. ESPN.com joined in before:

Reid Ryan to take over Astros

and after:

Reid Ryan takes over the Astros

Ryan is not taking over the Astros, either as their president or anything else. The headline on the news release announcing his appointment makes that clear in 18-point type:

HOUSTON ASTROS NAME REID RYAN PRESIDENT OF BUSINESS OPERATIONS

In the interest of honesty, however, the release quotes the owner, Jim Crane, in much smaller type, as saying, “We are thrilled to have Reid as President of the Houston Astros,” Maybe Ryan should ask for a raise.

There is a major difference between president and president of business operations. And before anyone says I’m quibbling, ask Reid’s father about titles.

Keep reading...

The Boston Red Sox fired Bobby Valentine as their manager after their disastrous 2012 season, but it seems that their exorcism might not have been incomplete. The sins of the devil incarnate apparently live on imbedded in Fenway Park’s Green Monster.

To be sure, the Red Sox won 20 of their first 28 games with winning streaks of seven and five fueling their strong start, and they led the American League East from April 13 to May 7, two-thirds of the season to that point (24 of 36 days).

But it has become a different season for the Red Sox. Entering Wednesday night’s game, they had lost 9 of their last 11 games, a .182 winning percentage compared with .714 previously, and they had tumbled 3 games behind the New York Yankees.

Those were the Yankees who were playing without more than half of their regular starting lineup and were not expected to keep up, though neither were the Red Sox. Boston, in fact, had unintentionally contributed to the Yankees’ early success.

Keep reading...

But for the move of the Houston Astros to the American League this season, Major League Baseball could celebrate a development last seen on Aug. 6, 1999.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that was the last date the two teams that call themselves Los Angeles, only one of them legitimately, were in last place on the same day.

The Dodgers, a $216 million last-place team, plunged to the bottom of the National League West last Monday and has maintained their grasp on the position since.

The Angels, whose $142 million payroll is seventh highest, has been next-to-last in the A.L. West since April 28. Last Wednesday their margin over the Astros fell to a precarious game and a half.

These positions were not what the two teams had in mind when they lit up the trade and free agent markets late last season and in the off-season. They spent millions on free agents and committed millions more in dazzling trades. Having made those dramatic moves, they were the popular choices to win their division titles.

Keep reading...