Astros moving to American League

[moochpuppy]

This could cause some interesting changes in baseball.

 

http://eye-on-baseball.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22297882/32677866

[Sammy Sofa]

This is a great day.

[ctcf]

FINALLY! The uneven leagues have been pissing off my OCD for ages.

[bcl412]

I wish a good team from the division would have gone, like the Brewers or something but oh well. The Cubs are going to take over the division anyways so it doesn't matter from that stand point.

[El Duderino]

i'm assuming this won't happen until 2013.

[Rob]

I wish a good team from the division would have gone, like the Brewers or something but oh well. The Cubs are going to take over the division anyways so it doesn't matter from that stand point.

 

Considering the amount of money being paid for the team you'd expect they're going to get a nice payroll bump. Between that and the Friedman rumors, I'm not too torn up over the Astros leaving the division.

 

Still not happy about year-round interleague though.

[manbearcub]

Astros are still a big market team, this is good news.

[SouthSideRyan]

Crane will be a horrendous owner, and may somehow find a way to make that franchise worse. This is bad news.

[BeerHere]

They will be bad for years to come. Keep them in the NL Central for now. If/when them become good, then do the switch.

[Guest]

Crane will be a horrendous owner, and may somehow find a way to make that franchise worse. This is bad news.

 

Word.

 

This is awful news.

[minnesotacubsfan]

cant we send Milwaukee back?

[erik316wttn]

Loving the even leagues and the interleague year round. And it's the Astros, so nothing of value was lost.

 

Will this be in 2013 or will they quick move for next season and re-do the schedule for next year?

[minnesotacubsfan]

did you read the article?

[J.R.]

With this, Selig remedies the unbalanced divisions and nearly completes his wish list.

 

Get me weekend day games in the World Series and I'll help pay for the statue.

[UMFan83]

The thing I would love about this is eliminating unbalanced schedules. I have long hated that we only travel to most of the NL cities once a year. Some years we play a series in April and then the next year don't play there until late September, leaving a 16 month gap beween Cubs games in a city like NY.

[erik316wttn]

The thing I would love about this is eliminating unbalanced schedules. I have long hated that we only travel to most of the NL cities once a year. Some years we play a series in April and then the next year don't play there until late September, leaving a 16 month gap beween Cubs games in a city like NY.

 

In order to win your division I think you need to beat the teams in your division. I have no problem with 18 games a year with the Brewers, Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds.

[UMFan83]

The thing I would love about this is eliminating unbalanced schedules. I have long hated that we only travel to most of the NL cities once a year. Some years we play a series in April and then the next year don't play there until late September, leaving a 16 month gap beween Cubs games in a city like NY.

 

In order to win your division I think you need to beat the teams in your division. I have no problem with 18 games a year with the Brewers, Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds.

 

I'd be fine with something like 12 games against division foes and 8 against the other clubs, but I hate only playing 2 series a year against the other 10 teams in your league.

[Derwood]

The thing I would love about this is eliminating unbalanced schedules. I have long hated that we only travel to most of the NL cities once a year. Some years we play a series in April and then the next year don't play there until late September, leaving a 16 month gap beween Cubs games in a city like NY.

 

In order to win your division I think you need to beat the teams in your division. I have no problem with 18 games a year with the Brewers, Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds.

 

I'd be fine with something like 12 games against division foes and 8 against the other clubs, but I hate only playing 2 series a year against the other 10 teams in your league.

 

I'm the opposite. I don't need the Cubs to play the Padres or Nats more than 6 times a year. It's about winning your division, not your league

[17 Seconds]

Astros are still a big market team, this is good news.

 

Especially considering that it sounds like Friedman eventually ends up there

[jersey cubs fan]

The thing I would love about this is eliminating unbalanced schedules. I have long hated that we only travel to most of the NL cities once a year. Some years we play a series in April and then the next year don't play there until late September, leaving a 16 month gap beween Cubs games in a city like NY.

 

In order to win your division I think you need to beat the teams in your division. I have no problem with 18 games a year with the Brewers, Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds.

 

I'd be fine with something like 12 games against division foes and 8 against the other clubs, but I hate only playing 2 series a year against the other 10 teams in your league.

 

As somebody who lives in NY I probably should hate that, but I don't. And I really don't understand why other people do. The benefits of building up your division rivals and determining your division winner through lots of in-division games outweigh the benefits of getting to fly to Atlanta twice a year.

[ctcf]

I'm assuming the switch has to happen for 2013. If they did it this season wouldn't they have to redo the 2012 schedule (is there any precedent for something like this?)?

[kylescubs23]

I don't mind playing teams in your division 18 times or whatever it is, I just hate playing a series on the road against the Reds for instance, coming home for a series against another team and then immediately playing the Reds again. I understand its difficult making a schedule but I wish they would spread them out more.

[moochpuppy]

I guess the one thing that surprises me is that they are going to move the Astros with their history in the NL. I understand the attraction of having an in-state rival in the same division but I would think it would make more sense to move one of the expansion teams (Arizona/Colorado) to the AL West and then shift the Astros to the NL West.

[SouthSideRyan]

I guess the one thing that surprises me is that they are going to move the Astros with their history in the NL. I understand the attraction of having an in-state rival in the same division but I would think it would make more sense to move one of the expansion teams (Arizona/Colorado) to the AL West and then shift the Astros to the NL West.

 

Then you'd have both the Rangers and Astros traveling out of time zone for all of their divisional games.

[frozenpondblue531]

I understand you guys are all Cubs fans, but if you take those glasses off and look at this from a pure fan of Baseball perspective - this is sad news. Rivalries and traditions the Houston has built up in the National League for 50 years are washed away. This isn't Arizona or Miami with historically little support and not much history. Also a move exploited by Bud because the Astros are being sold - so threaten to block the sale if the new owner doesn't agree to a league switch. Almost no Houston fans want this, and there are many diehards threatening to quit the league. MLB is alienating a great Baseball city, and ALL for Bud's ego. A 15/15 split is not imperative in MLB, especially where Interleague play is lambasted. Not to mention Arizona, Miami, Colorado, and Milwaukee all have less a history and fan attachment to the NL. This is a distasteful move at best, and market annihilation at worst.