Astros: Jeff Luhnow gave haunting defense of Roberto Osuna in 2018

Former Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow will have a tough time finding another job in baseball.

When the Astros acquired Roberto Osuna in July of 2018, they put all morality to the side for the sake of improving their bullpen. While we all knew this, it’s shocking to see it in writing.

An excerpt from Andy Martino’s book ‘Cheated‘, suggests that Luhnow was the mastermind behind acquiring Osuna despite opposing voices from his own front office.

https://mobile.twitter.com/martinonyc/status/1400929303538417672

“I don’t want your moral opinion. I want your baseball opinion.”

What a line. Look, baseball teams acquire troubled players all the time, including those with a checkered past of domestic violence. However, the recent nature of the allegations against Osuna — then just months old — makes Luhnow’s actions here deplorable.

MLB news: Jeff Luhnow’s comments on Roberto Osuna are deplorable

Luhnow was given a one-year suspension along with Astros manager AJ Hinch for the sign-stealing scandal. Seeing how they managed success in the first place, however, suggests that punishment might not be enough.

The Blue Jays traded Osuna to the Houston Astros for pitchers Ken Giles, Héctor Pérez, and David Paulino. Brandon Taubman was eventually fired for yelling, “Thank God we got Osuna,” in the direction of female journalists. However, per Martino it looks like he wasn’t in favor of the acquisition to begin with.

Osuna was arrested by police and charged with the assault of the mother of his child, who refused to press charged and remains in Mexico. MLB suspended Osuna 75 games in June of 2018. He remained on the Astros roster until October of 2020 after undergoing Tommy Joh surgery.