In Houston, Jake Kaplan notes the Astros' projected Opening Day payroll of more than $120M marks only the "second time the franchise has exceeded" even $100M. Since "bottoming out" with their $24M payroll in '13, the Astros under Jim Crane's ownership group have "gradually increased spending each of the last four years." But Kaplan wonders how much room the Astros will "have to add" to the '17 payroll "during the season." Crane: "I don't think there's a ton there, but if we need to add one or two more key guys and it's the right trade, I leave that up to [GM Jeff Luhnow]" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/23).
NO ONE SAID IT WAS EASY: White Sox Senior VP & GM Rick Hahn discussed the club's noted effort to rebuild the roster heading into this season, saying the club had those conversations "over a number of years." Hahn: "We've been at this pivot point, so to speak, previously. And obviously in the past, we made the decision as a group not to head down this path. When the decision was finally made this year to head down the rebuild route, [Chair Jerry Reinsdorf] felt the same frustration that all of us had." Hahn said Reinsdorf's "competitiveness and impatience are a constant presence through this in that he hopes it's done right and hopes it's done quickly" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 2/23).
NO TIME TO LOSE: In Ft. Worth, Stefan Stevenson noted Rangers manager Jeff Banister on Tuesday "reminded the players of the meaning of the '86400' and 'The Game Knows' slogans on the front and back of the workout shirts he had made up." The "86400" slogan refers to the total number of seconds in a day, with Socrates’ famous quote “'An unexamined life is not worth living' as inspiration." "The Game Knows" is a "reminder to the players that they’re 'all in this game together'" (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 2/22).
