Drayton McLane, Jr.

The 10 Most Unintentionally Hilarious Business Names in Houston

Gained in translation​Legend has it that back in that glorious half-season when Randy Johnson was mowing 'em down for the red-hot Astros, Drayton McLane thought up what he believed was a brilliant way to part Astros fans from still more money had one of his famous food-service brainstorms. He ... More >>

Rejected Dejected: Astros Waiting Around For MLB To Do Something About Jim Crane

Somebody finalize this deal already​It's known as the Rejected/Dejected shot. The camera focusing on the batter as he walks back to the dugout after having just struck out, usually on a called strike. It's one of those shots that best captures the emotion of the game and helps to bring the v ... More >>

Is Drayton McLane Really the Best Astros Owner Ever?

John McMullen, former Astros owner​Sometime this month the 29 MLB owners will approve the purchase of the Houston Astros by Jim Crane. Drayton McLane, the man selling the Astros, will be referred to as the greatest owner in Astros history. The man who turned the team into a winner. Who took ... More >>

The Astros Curse: They Are The Damned

The Astros have been damned​The following is based on true facts, but names have been redacted to protect the innocent, and not so innocent... The Houston Astros are a bad baseball team this season. They're beyond bad. They're beyond awful. They're closing in on worst team in MLB history b ... More >>

Drayton McLane: Where He Ranks Among Astro Owners

You won't have Uncle Drayton to kick around anymore.​Today's the day: The official announcement that Drayton McLane has found a buyer for the Houston Astros. McLane has been owner of the Astros for 18 years. In that time they've moved to a downtown ballpark (thanks, taxpayers!!), gone to a Wo ... More >>

The Drayton McLane Era -- Asking That One Question

Plus: this. Minus: Tim Purpura​The end of the Drayton McLane Era as owner of the Astros is imminent. With today's announcement that local businessman Jim Crane's purchase of our hometown ball club, we can begin to evaluate the "Houston Astros, version McLane" in full. There are a handful o ... More >>

Forbes: Astros Value Estimated at $474 million

$474 million will buy a lot of oranges.​Back in November, it was widely reported that Astros owner Drayton McLane was looking to sell his major league franchise. Today, Forbes released its annual list of MLB Team Values and it's good news-bad news for McLane. The good news is the team's overa ... More >>

Is Bob McNair Houston's Worst Sports Franchise Owner

Sad McNair is sad​No matter how beloved the owner of a sports franchise may be, there will always be plenty of reasons for fans to hate him. In a city like Houston, with three major sports franchises, there are bound to be times when owners take a beating, particularly when the teams are losin ... More >>

McLane Appears Serious About Trying To Sell Astros

The Houston Astros have set a 2:30 p.m. press conference for owner Drayton McLane to discuss his plans to try to sell the team. Fox 26 and the Houston Chronicle reported that McLane had hired an investment bank to help in any sale, and now it looks like things are going forward. McLane is hoping t ... More >>

Drayton McLane Officially Puts Astros On The Block (World Series Championship Not Included)

Photos by Paul KnightDrayton McLane and Astros: Looking for buyer from Texas? Eh, maybe. Buyer with lots of money? Yes, definitely. ​Astros owner Drayton McLane officially announced this afternoon, in very Texas-y fashion, that he's ready to sell the team. He held up his hand like a pistol and sai ... More >>

Mark Cuban: With Nolan Ryan Out, It's Now Up To You To Save The Astros

Mark Cuban: Houston needs you, desperately​My dream for the Houston Astros was destroyed very, very early on Thursday morning when Nolan Ryan and his business partner, Chuck Greenberg, won the bankruptcy bidding for the Texas Rangers. I've written before that I was hoping Ryan's bid would lose, an ... More >>

Game Time: Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman -- Five Thoughts

Photo by groovehouseActually enjoying a game at Minute Maid?​I know it's only three games. I know they were playing the Brewers. I know my judgment may be clouded by the fact that they actually won all three games, getting great pitching in the process. But I actually enjoyed going to an Ast ... More >>

Drayton McLane: The Myth That He's Not Cheap

Scrooge had his good points, too, but he still was Scrooge​There was an item written over at Chron.com sports last week that I wanted to address -- yeah, I'm a little late, but I just read it. It was written by one of their fan bloggers, and in a decent post about some of the reasons why the ... More >>

Game Time: Watch Me Compare Astros GM Ed Wade To Jennifer Love Hewitt

​The mood in the Astros clubhouse yesterday after the 2-1 loss to the Phillies was about what you'd expect. Michael Bourn tried to stay upbeat, citing that the team is fighting hard and they know they have good players. (Fortunately, unlike many around Minute Maid Park, Bourn sounded like he act ... More >>

Are The Astros Worth What Drayton Is Asking?

Photo by verndogs​So Drayton McLane has made it known that he's really, really willing to sell the Houston Astros. And as his price, he's asking for $650 million.I'm sure the potential buyers are putting every aspect of Drayton's baseball empire under the microscope, but I thought I would pr ... More >>

With Drayton, Astros' Manager Search Is Sure To Suck

​For some reason, Astros fans appear to be more concerned about the transfer of Jose Cruz from one useless job to another useless job than they care about whether the team actually gets a decent manager. Believe it or not, the manager of a team is far more important to the team's success than Jose ... More >>

Oh, The Changes I'd Make To The Astros

Photo by Aaron M. SprecherIf Ed Wade were gone...​The Astros Fan Blogger at Chron.com had an interesting post  late last week.The gist of the post was that Drayton McLane had just fired Ed Wade and that he'd made the reader the general manager, then he wanted to know the first five things one ... More >>

Astros Spring Training Not Without Its Ups and Downs

You might not realize this if you've only been watching ESPN or paying attention to the national sports media, but the New York Yankees aren't the only team with players reporting to spring training, and Alex Rodriguez isn't the only player in baseball. So I thought I would help out and fill you i ... More >>

Astros Spring Training Not Without Its Ups and Downs

You might not realize this if you've only been watching ESPN or paying attention to the national sports media, but the New York Yankees aren't the only team with players reporting to spring training, and Alex Rodriguez isn't the only player in baseball. So I thought I would help out and fill you i ... More >>

Top Ten Houston Sports Moments of 2008

10. I never really followed the Houston Comets, who folded several weeks ago. By the time they came on the scene I was getting pretty sick of professional basketball. So I never became invested in the team, and I can't feel any real loss behind their demise. Still, unlike the Rockets and Astros ... More >>

Top Ten Houston Sports Moments of 2008

10. I never really followed the Houston Comets, who folded several weeks ago. By the time they came on the scene I was getting pretty sick of professional basketball. So I never became invested in the team, and I can't feel any real loss behind their demise. Still, unlike the Rockets and Astros ... More >>

Bayousphere

Ten Reasons Drayton McLane Might’ve Rejected Bud Selig’s Plea to Get Out of Town

Astros-Marlins: John Whitmire Falls for Drayton McLane's Bull

Astros-Giants: Bad Calls from Cecil Cooper and Richard Justice

Astros Farm Coach Stubby Clapp Denied Permission to Play in Olympics

Steroids and Roger Clemens: Lanny Breuer's On Deck

Why John McMullen, Not Drayton McLane, Is the Best Owner in the History of the Astros

Best Franchise Owner

Sage Advice

Tackling the team spirit

We'll Pay the Filing Fee...

NASA & Houston v. McLane, Dieker, and "Baseball Team"

Sporting News

Astros losing more than just games

Stadia Watch

Sacrifice Flies

Storm Damage

The Killer-est B

Forget Biggio, Bagwell, Bell. Move over, Barkley. The sports figure of the decade is...

Up-in-the-Air Ball

The scale model of the proposed baseball stadium is in place, but not much else appears to be

Sports Afield

The Harris County-Houston Sports Authority is a parody of a public body. But who's got time for the niceties of democracy when you're trying to keep Drayton McLane happy?

Stadia Watch

No Competition, Please

The Insider

Champions!

Fanned

There's a reason the public has to subsidize so much of a new stadium: Houston's a lousy baseball town

Drayton Steals Home

Stadia Watch

Stadia Watch

Stadia Watch

Stadia Watch

Letters

Born to Win ... or Lose?

Can Drayton McLane bring Houston a World Series champion on a budget? Can Houston support major-league baseball to Drayton McLane's satisfaction? It's time to find out.

Wanna Buy a RoboDome?

The city's sports tycoons maneuver for inside position, and the questions mount: Who needs it? Why? At what cost?