The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Brian T. Smith Discusses The Disappointing End To Astros Season

Episode Date: November 1, 2019

Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle joins Matt and Ross to discuss the Astros Press Conference and the disappointing end to the season

is the Matt Thomas Show. Here we go, the final hour, the Matt Thomas show from New York City. We're tonight the Rockets will take on the Brooklyn Nets. We'll have the Rockets launch pad Rossi. Is that at 5 o'clock? Is that correct? Yes, sir, with yours truly. You mean to tell me that Adam and Adam are going to work two hours again today?

It's going to be a tough haul for him, Maddie. I'm doing three hours with you and then pregame. and post game and you're calling the game and look at these idiots. You and I, I mean, you make like three cents on the dollar than what those guys make and they're working three, like they're not even working. It's just, it's embarrassing how much money they make for the little work that they do.

Agreed. Sports RV follow them on Twitter. Let's get him a 10,000 Twitter party. Maybe you have a go fund me a camera. Hey, we're closing in. I'm almost at 9200. There you go. Hey, our good friend Brian T. Smith is with us from the Houston Chronicle, a Friday contributor to the show.

BTS, you are at the press conference today with A.J. Hinch and Jeff Leno, and take us through your observations of what the experience was like, some of the questions that were answered and asked, and you're just general interpretations of the event earlier today. It is very clear that A.J. Hinch is still dealing with processing in the second stage of the game 7 hangover. It's going to last, Matt. We'll get in a free agency, and things will start to move, and optimism will return, and everyone will remember that this Corps isn't going anywhere, that you still have Burlander,

very 99% likely have Grinky. But it's going to take a while. There's no hyperbole, no exaggeration. Historically, and in the just the overall sense, that was the most painful. the most heartbreaking, the most disappointing playoff run in Astros history, and more importantly, that's the toughest loss of this franchise has ever been through. I mean, I was speaking with several people before the game about what was at stake, and they can recover. They will win another world series in the next few years. I have no doubt.

But when you think of the fact that this would have been two championships in three years, when they would have won it at home, they would have had the start of a true dynasty on and on and on. And the flip side is not just losing the World Series, but the way they lost it, pulling Grinky, being in the seventh inning up 2-0 at home, and then that's celebrating your own field. And I think ultimately the kicker of all this is they lost every home game during the World Series, and this was the best home team in baseball.

It's still hard to process that. So it's going to take months for them to get over it. And I think for A.J. Hinch, more than anybody, more than the fans, more than the media, it's going to take A.J. Hinch a while to let this one go. Yeah. I totally agree. This is one of those situations. Yeah, when you think of the all-time hurtful moments in Astros history, you think of the 98th series against the Padres, 86 with the Mets, with Mike Scott and unable to throw in game seven.

That trumps it because this is 107. I mean, that's the thing is that we don't tend to look at that right now because we're still staring at the bitterness of a game seven, but this is a hundred and 17 wins between regular season and postseason. And an American League pattern is a wonderful thing, BTS, but the difference between that and raising the banner

and having the commissioner's trophy here, it feels like it's a thousand miles away. Yeah, it really does. And I'm not trying to be rude here. I have respect for everyone's opinion. This is America. I laugh when, I see people say or write or do or tweet, and they'll compare it to, you know, 05 or 86 or 80,

or they'll say that Jose Al-Tuvres, you know, game six, ALCS walk off with the greatest moment. Like, whatever it's going to be, this is a World Series. This was a 107-1 team. This was the best Astros team in history before game seven. you cannot compare the division series to anything that happened in the World Series, especially when you have home field advantage and you won 107 games, and you have Burlander and Cole and Grinky. It doesn't mean doom and gloom.

It doesn't mean they won't mean they won't win 108 next year and win the World Series. But Matt, more than the media, more than the fans, they've created this. And I don't mean that in a bad way. They've been so damn good. So when you're that good and you rebuild that hard, you make blockbuster trades for Verlainter and Grinky and Cole and you do all these things, there's only one way else to go. And this is the same way it is in Boston, and this is the same way it is in New York with the Yankees.

And this is the same way it is with the Dodgers. I will always say, why should the Astros be any different? And they aren't any different now. I like it. And it takes a while to get over it. Yep. And by the way, I don't think I'll ever, ever, and at least in baseball, I'll never, Brian ever bring up home field advantage again because we've just seen it how it doesn't matter.

doesn't make a difference. No, and, you know, the one thing, other than, you know, the fact that they lost and it's incredibly painful, the one thing that I'm going to hate dealing with moving forward is every time we're in April or June or August and we're talking a hitching in a dugout or it's posting, whatever it is, like, there's going to be the whole field advantage question and the best record in the AL and all these things. And, man, like, there's going to be another filter to this now because it doesn't matter. they had it and it didn't do a damn thing for them.

All right. So what about Jeff Leno, anything out of his mouth today that struck you as, oh, that's interesting? I mean, he wasn't going to say a whole lot because obviously they keep things close to the vest. Anything that just kind of caught you off guard at all by one thing he said today? Absolutely nothing. Look, I mean, when you're at this stage, there's nothing that, there's nothing that can say. They're not going to tip their hand.

They're not going to say, especially this or. organization with Jeff running things the way he does. And they've been as successful as they have. I mean, nobody was saying the day before they're going to trade for Garrett Cole, they were going to trade for Garrett Cole. Nobody was saying the day of trading for Zach Grinky, they were going to trade for Zach Grinky. I mean, yes, he mentioned we want to upgrade a catcher, not a knock on their current

catchers, the fact that both of them will be free agents coming at us all peace. And so whether it's Will Harris, whether it's Garrett Cole, whether it's Kyle Tucker in Wright Field, whatever, you know, maybe finding a way to pull off another major trade and to replenish the rotation, Forrest Whitley, Lance McCullors, whatever it is, they didn't say anything today that was newsworthy. They're just processing the breach.

Were you in the clubhouse when Garrett as a contractor decided he wanted to speak to the media? Yes, I can't be everywhere, but I try to be everywhere as much as possible, and I was there. Yeah, I just thought it was a... An ugly would be too strong of a term, but everybody was hurting,

and I just think it was just a kind of a way for him to walk out of that clubhouse because I'm convinced there's no chance to come back. So it was, look, Garrett, Garrett, it's a damn shame. And we've all, we've all made mistakes, right? You have, I have, Ross makes a lot of mistakes. Ross makes a lot of mistakes. A lot of mistakes.

Nick Lowe makes, Nick Lowe makes no mistakes. But we've all made mistakes. That was a total mistake by Garrett Cole. And I believe he knew it that night. He obviously knew it yesterday when he issued his social media statement. You can say you've worn a Boris Hap 4. Of course, no one cared or noticed before. You've got Jose Altuve basically rolling around on the ground.

Michael Brantley was inside a locker, Matt. He wasn't inside his lock. He was inside somebody's locker sitting down like a five-year-old who just found out that, you know, blah, blah, blah, blah. The Easter Bunny, kids aren't listening. Or, you know, somebody, some fictional figure doesn't exist. Alex Bregman was a freaking zombie. And Cole was put in a weird spot, and maybe it wasn't handled that well. multiple people, but ultimately, he's a big guy.

He knows what's going on. He's making $13 million a year. Garrett Cole was fantastic to deal with this year. I actually think out of everyone in that clubhouse, he may have been the best considering everything, but it was very poorly handled. It was a mistake. And if he leaves, Astros fans aren't going to remember the statement. They're going to remember they lost game seven, and Garrett Cole was wearing a Scott Boris

hat, and he said he was no longer an employee of the team. That's not going to sit very well at all. moving forward with Astros fans if he ends up leaving. Yeah, it will sting. I'm not going to let one poor choice of PR relations ruin what I thought was an amazing season for him. It's just going to be something that's going to stick for a little while, especially, Brian, if he starts pitching for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim coming about six months from now. Could you imagine if Garrett Cole had done that in Yankee Stadium, you know, or, you know,

the Yankees lose the walkoff to the Astros, and Garrett Cole's pitch up for the Yankees, and he's wearing a Boris hat, and he says, I'm not an employee for the team. It would have been front-slash-back-page news across every paper, and it would have been blown out for two weeks locally on SportsCenter, right? So he screwed up. I believe that he knows it. It should have been handled better by multiple people. But Garrett Cole ended up as the best pitcher in baseball, other than Strasbourg this season.

And in October, he was absolutely fantastic for this team. It's a shame that that had to happen, and that's probably going to be the last that we see it here at Cole, unless something miraculous happens with a free agency. All right. Last question. We've got a short time here. I don't like the fact that Deshawn Watson's going to wear a mask,

and I'm more importantly, way more concerned about that Texans defense against Jacksonville offense that got their mojo back last week. Yeah, it's a rough game. I mean, in many ways, the Texans are absolutely banged up. And the secondary, you lose, I mean, Jay-J. I mean, J.J. Watt, being lost for the season for the third time in four years, is completely somehow falling on the radar, thanks to the Astros in the World Series. Deshaun Watson is, he's not the leading MVP candidate, but he's an MVP candidate right now.

You're having to fly to freaking London, which just feels like a waste in so many ways, and it's all about the NFL and not about the Texans or the Jaguars. This is a rough game for them. So, you know, if you can be six and three, Matt, and going into the buy and get healthy, and then you've got a really big game of Baltimore after the by week, no matter how they get it. It can be as ugly as time management plagued. Watson can get scratched on both eyes, whatever it is. If they can find a way to win this game in the land of Boris Johnson and Brexit, kudos to the Texans.

They will be six and three, and they've dealt with a lot this year. If they lose it, they're, you know, five and four, and we feel a lot different going into the by week. Have a great weekend, my friend. We'll talk to you next week. All right, take care, Matt. Thank you. You got it. Brian T. Smith from The Chronicle with us here every Friday on Sports Talks, 7.