Astros Ax Colleague Cooper

On Monday, the Houston Astros fired Manager Cecil Cooper. “We're tasked with evaluating all aspects of our situation,” said General Manager Ed Wade. “At the end of the day, we're going to try to address those off-field issues that exist. We're not walking away from it. The issue we had to address here, in the short term, was the managerial issue and that's why we moved forward today.”

During his tenure, Cooper accrued a 171-170 record. In 2007, he was 15-16. In 2008, he was 86-75. Upon his firing, the Astros stood 70-79. “We haven't been to the playoffs in four years and it seems like we've been on a gradual downward spiral,” said Lance Berkman. “You can't just point to one thing, I think there are several factors involved in that. But, if there was an environment for sweeping change or reform, this would be it.”

Cooper was never the correct hire. He was not an impact hire. He was simply a convenient solution. The Astros are a vanishing franchise. They should have never considered him.