Astros Encourage Affiliates to Avoid Guaranteeing Wins

Well, Bryn M'Taggare't, you've done it again!!  As I've mentioned in this space previously, I don't seek out Ms. M'Taggare't's work, as its subject matter is not pertinent to this blog.  However, she has once more sent me some information that begs to be published.

Astros Encourage Affiliates to Avoid Guaranteeing Wins in the Future

by Bryn M'Taggare't

The Astros look to avoid future misunderstandings with their minor league affiliates by discouraging them from including one popular promotion on their calendar.  In an announcement released by the team, all the club's minor league affiliates are encouraged to "avoid carrying out any promotion that promises that the team will win a particular game."

Many minor league teams have special nights where a win is promised to all fans in attendance. Traditionally, if the team loses, everyone in attendance receives a ticket or voucher for a ticket to a future game to compensate for the broken promise.

The Astros release on the matter continued, "We appreciate that our affiliates and fans are confident in our abilities; however, we feel a "Guaranteed Win" promotion puts undue pressure on the young men in our organization."

"We have done extensive statistical analysis of this type of promotion in the minor leagues over the last three years. We could not mathematically prove that such a guarantee serves as a jinx to teams. However, after finding that the guarantee is not upheld in nearly half the games, we decided that such a promotion is not a beneficial activity considering our focus on the development of young talent."

"We cannot force our affiliates to adhere to our wishes.  Yet, we are confident that they will cooperate on this matter."

One local media member had an interesting interchange concerning this announcement:

Local Media Member:  Shouldn't a prospect be able to deal with the pressure of playing in a guaranteed win game?  For example, would striking out to lose such a game be a disastrous impediment to a true prospect's development?

Astros:  We would hope in the face of such adversity, our prospect would be able to Shake It Off. However, we don't feel it is prudent to even take such a risk going forward.

One Perspective on Improvement

Evan Drellich recently pointed out via Twitter that improvement is a matter of perspective.  Here's an excerpt from The Gamble, which is due to be available online in October.  In this excerpt one of the characters shares her perspective on the Dukes' improvement as a baseball team.

A “Hot” Start

There aren’t many benefits that a baseball team receives for losing 100 games two seasons in a row.  One of the few positives is that the bar is set low and it is very easy to make the case that the club is improving in season three.  After losing a total of 207 games over the previous two years, the Dukes’ 23 and 32 record through May was a definite improvement.

My oldest sister would laugh at me when I would talk about the Dukes being improved.  “After how bad they’ve been the last few years, how could they NOT be improved?” she would ask me.  “It’s like my boyfriend forgetting Valentine’s Day and my birthday AND not noticing my new hairstyle, then not understanding why I’m not overcome with joy when he remembers to come pick me up on time for a date. ‘Hey, Babe, I’m improving, why aren’t you excited?’”