Crane: No extension talks with Espada and Dana Brown

Astros manager Joe Espada and GM Dana Brown are entering the final seasons of their respective contracts. It will be Espada’s third season in the role and Brown’s fourth straight year as a baseball player.

Many clubs prefer not to have their manager and front office heads on lame duck contracts. Astros owner Jim Crane has been more willing to do that than most of his counterparts, and it appears both Brown and Espada may have to work on expiring deals in 2026. Crane said Monday morning that no extension talks have been held with the GM or skipper, and the owner didn’t seem interested in doing so this offseason.

“I think we’ll go through this year like we always do, evaluate it and then make a decision at the end of the year,” Crane said (link via Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle). “We probably won’t do any expansions right now. But I’m not saying that’s impossible. We haven’t talked about it yet. We’re focused on getting what we need to compete next year.”

That doesn’t necessarily indicate any dissatisfaction on Crane’s part about the team’s direction. Dusty Baker managed the Astros on a series of one-year contracts before retiring after the 2023 season. Houston also kept former general manager James Click working through the end of his contract in ’22. That was partly caused by personal disagreements between Click and Crane, which led the Astros to move on from him even though the team won the World Series. There is no such issue between Crane and his current staff.

The Astros narrowly missed the playoffs last season, breaking an eight-year streak of postseason appearances. Their 87-75 record was only marginally worse than the 88 win, which was enough to claim an AL West title a year earlier. Houston was in control of the division at the All-Star Break last year, but they played at a pace just under .500 in the final three months of the season. That was enough to not only fall behind the Mariners but fall to the Guardians, who rode a hot streak to an unlikely playoff berth to knock Houston off the field in September.

Houston’s focus this winter has been on the rotation with Framber Valdez hit free agency. They added Mike Burrows And Tatsuya Imai as mid-rotation arms behind ace Hunter Brown. The roster is likely close to what they will have on opening day, but they are looking for a backup who can accommodate an upgrade Yainer Diaz and could try to land a better left-handed outfielder then Jesus Sanchez.