While Astros owner Drayton McLane was celebrating the settlement that averted a player's strike, the challenges his team face in a competitive market are becoming increasingly clear.
As [McLane] celebrated the successful completion of baseball's labor talks Friday, he made sure to have catcher Gregg Zaun, the team's union representative, by his side.
McLane meant to demonstrate the cooperation between management and labor that averted a players' strike. And, indeed, both men were optimistic that the deal struck Friday can help bring economic reform to baseball.
But, as McLane spoke of how baseball's 2002 season had been saved, another challenge to the sport's place in Houston was staring him in the face.
Zaun, you see, was wearing a Houston Texans cap.
So were a lot of other people Friday night. As McLane, his front-office employees and several players gathered outside Minute Maid Park to welcome fans to Friday night's Astros-Dodgers game, other fans were driving toward Reliant Stadium for the Texans-Buccaneers NFL exhibition game.
The Astros drew 30,046 fans for their game against Los Angeles, winning 8-4, another in a series of critical late-season games in their drive toward a playoff spot. The Texans drew 68,371 for a relatively meaningless exhibition against Tampa Bay, losing to the Bucs 17-13. And, if the Nielsen ratings hold true to form, the number of people watching the football game on television will be three times higher than the Astros' TV audience.
Competition from the Texans, the Rockets and other forms of entertainment is just one of the challenges facing McLane and the Astros front office. And even labor peace isn't enough to lift the team's bottom line out of the red.
But, for the time being, the fact that baseball avoided another strike was solace enough for the Astros owner.
"We are very glad that we're going to be playing baseball tonight," McLane said. "The fans wanted to see a continuation of the season. The Astros and Cardinals are in the middle of a great playoff race, and this could become a focal point for baseball for the rest of the season."
Friday night's Minute Maid Park crowd came on the heels of three crowds this week that averaged only about 23,000 as fans anticipated the possibility of a strike.
Now the real work begins- convincing the fans to come back. With the Texans about to start their season, and the Rockets season just around the corner, McLane's Astros are about to lose their monopoly on Houston's collective sporting consciousness. There are only so many entertainment dollars out there. With the Rockets still rebuilding, and the Texans being a first-year expansion team (meaning MAJOR suckage is guaranteed), you would think the Astros would be in good shape, and they may well be. Still, the Astros always seem to find a way to shoot themselves in the foot. Let's hope that maybe, just maybe, they've made their mistakes and will be able to take advantage of this opportunity.
