It was a needed move, that ... may have done more harm than good in the eyes of Bud Selig and the league’s owners due to Crane’s comments about being impatient.

Anybody hoping to purchase an MLB franchise had better not be in anything remotely resembling a hurry. Bud Selig moves at a pace that makes the term "glacial" seem like the trading floor of the NYSE around 3:30 on a Friday.

“The company ended up settling a small group of claims only because the board felt that it was more economical for the shareholders to go ahead and pay out a small number on cases that we could probably have litigated and won,” Crane said. “I didn’t want to pay the claims, but when it costs $3 million to try them and $900,000 to pay them out, it’s a business decision at that point.”

He'll fit in nicely with Jeff Loria and David Glass.

richard justice just went to town with that interview

bout freaking time

interesting how many people believe that because foxsports said the problem is crane refusing to go to the AL, people can't believe it is anything else. in spite of the fact that most of the sale price is borrowed. and in spite of the fact that crane sure looks like a bladder catheter urine bag guys with prostate have to wear

(i'm tired of doosh bag - using some kind of female something to mean ickyness)

Maury has led the way in covering the Astros sale, but I think he's too dismissive of the realignment angle. MLB has two built-in excuses for rejecting Crane -- the amount of debt and the number of partners -- and the fact MLB hasn't used, or even threatened to use, either of them seems to speak volumes.

I'm starting to feel like the Astros sale's version of a birther, but I just can't see MLB passing up a golden opportunity to accomplish a long-desired goal like realignment, especially in the midst of a CBA negotiation in which realignment is also a top MLBPA priority.

(i'm tired of doosh bag - using some kind of female something to mean ickyness)

I, for one, am happy to jump on board your sack of piss Crazy Train.

a bladder catheter urine bag guys with prostate have to wear

take the shortcut to colostomy bag.

I'm starting to feel like the Astros sale's version of a birther, but I just can't see MLB passing up a golden opportunity to accomplish a long-desired goal like realignment, especially in the midst of a CBA negotiation in which realignment is also a top MLBPA priority.

Why is realignment an MLBPA priority?

Stark mentioned the realignment angle in today's column as well:

Sources say MLB officials summoned prospective Astros owner Jim Crane to a meeting recently, for the specific purpose of strongly "encouraging" him to allow them to move the Astros franchise to the American League. And Rumblings has been told that while baseball has other concerns about his ownership credentials, the delay in approving his purchase has nearly everything to do with applying leverage on Crane to change leagues.
...
Increasingly, it appears that the players won't sign off on expanding the postseason to include an extra wild card unless the owners agree to realignment and a more equitable schedule

I like the 15 teams per league idea, but not at the cost of expanding the playoffs.

This is getting strange. Justice, myself, and now Nightengale, have all heard from sources that the AL jump is not the driving factor in Crane's approval. The other reports, especially the one from FOX 26, I could poo-poo, but when it's Jayson.... Something fishy is going on. Media is being pulled in two directions.

Something fishy is going on. Media is being pulled in two directions.

If Stark is right about the Crane/MLB meeting, that would seem to take this beyond the conspiracy-theory stage.

I wonder if the dogs that didn't bark today were noteworthy -- i.e., the lack of an MLB response to Crane or any comments from McLane. Unless MLB decided to play it cool, perhaps Crane's interview yesterday wasn't a surprise to MLB or even occurred with MLB's blessing. Even if Crane switches to the AL West, he'll want/need it to look like he was dragged there kicking and screaming, and yesterday's interview at least partly helped that cause.

I like the 15 teams per league idea, but not at the cost of expanding the playoffs.

I enjoy making my wife happy, but not at the cost of having more sex.

take the shortcut to colostomy bag.

I think "Take the Last Train to Clarksville" sounds a lot nicer, but whatever.

Speculating... It's an out scenario

Speculating... It's an out scenario

How do you mean?

How do you mean?

I think he means that by publicly protesting the move to the AL, it gives Crane a way to walk away from the deal with his head held high, rather than after being formally rejected by the owners or having the deal rot on the vine.

I heard people float this idea over the past 1-2 weeks and it made some sense, but if Stark is right that a formal meeting took place a few days ago, I have a harder time believing that this is all being crafted as a cover story.

Well, you don't want to embarass buyers of teams and you don't want people to be hesitant when it comes to buying teams.

Well, you don't want to embarass buyers of teams and you don't want people to be hesitant when it comes to buying teams.

That's definitely true. It's been a long time since a deal got this deep into the process and was rejected (Royals with Miles Prentice?), and it's not good for MLB for such things to happen.

For a deal that was supposed to be routine if not boring, the back stories on this deal seem fascinating. Last year during the Rangers sale/auction, sources in MLB claimed Crane was "unapprovable." Then, only 7-8 months later, McLane and Crane held a press conference to announce their deal -- a press conference Maury Brown and/or Richard Justice have reported MLB didn't want to happen. Now you toss in the various stories about Crane, the Dodgers and Mets messes, and MLB's desire for realignment, and there are a lot of angles and moving parts.

Just when everyone else seems to be beating the "Jim Crane might not get the Astros" drum, this is from Jon Heyman's Sept. 9 notes:

Jim Crane seems likely now to be approved as new Astros owner. He does not want to move to the American League, but as a new owner, he may not have a choice in the matter. MLB folks are trying to sell him on the AL, where he would have a rivalry with Texas and would benefit from the big gates of the Yankees and Red Sox. Assuming the Astros are coaxed into the AL, an extra wild-card team will be added next year.

It's unclear if Heyman filed this before or after Crane's interview in the Houston Chronicle was published, but it's really amazing how all of these writers are all over the map on this deal.

Anyway, Heyman might not have meant this sentence literally:

He does not want to move to the American League, but as a new owner, he may not have a choice in the matter.

... but it's not necessarily true and it provides an interesting subtext. MLB has some built-in excuses for delaying or even rejecting Crane's bid (debt, number of partners, the EEOC business, etc.), but at some point, the ML Constitution has to count for something. That is, if this remains a stalemate, for how long could MLB get away with telling McLane he can't sell his team unless he finds a buyer willing to ignore the same ML Constitution that otherwise governs the sale process?

Here's Maury's latest on Crane/Astros:

"Are the Conflicting Reports on the Astros to the AL an Exit Strategy for Jim Crane?"

Forget Moneyball: The Movie. The Astros/Crane sale has "Oliver Stone" written all over it.