Tuesday Morning Hot Links

*Richard Justice thinks the Astros should try to sign Adrian Gonzalez. Or Matt Adams. Or Lucas Duda. Or Curtis Granderson. Or anyone who is apparently old and left-handed. If those are the only two requirements, might I suggest that Luhnow call my agent (my wife).

*Jose Altuve is one of nine finalists for the Dallas Morning-News' Texan of the Year.

*Never forget.

2017 Ninja Award, Best Performance of a Curveball in a Leading Role. Lance McCullers (24 straight Curveballs to send the Astros to the WS). 🏆😷 pic.twitter.com/5kwMPi2pUQ

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) December 17, 2017

*Looking for something for that special Astros fan in your life? Might I recommend Astros Strong, published by the Chronicle. It's a wonderful ride back through the season that ended with, wait for it, yes, a World Series championship. Filled with articles, recaps, and interviews from the 2017 season, I really enjoyed reading it. And it's a good way to remember just how crazy Game 2 was. Maybe I've read it a couple of times. Okay, sure, it's in the bathroom right now. Get it in print or on Kindle.

*Check out this podcast with Corpus' Myles Straw.

*Cole Hamels donated his 32,000 square-foot mansion plus 100 acres of land to a camp for kids with special needs. You don't have to like him, though.

*The Gun Hunters of Hurricane Harvey.

*Deliverance from 27,000 feet.

*Can baseball turn a 27-year old into the perfect manager?

Adrian Gonzalez doesn't want the Padres to mess up the team

Good read from the San Diego Union-Tribune on what the Padres need to do to preserve their divisional lead. Adrian Gonzalez isn't interested in sideways moves.

Gonzalez:
“I think we’re good enough right now to win the division. But do we want to be satisfied with that? Do we want to be happy with just getting there?”

If not, Gonzalez believes the Padres need to add a player or two — another bat and a pitcher. But he also believes the Padres should cautiously advance in that direction. Not every player coming available on the market will be the right piece for the Padres.

“You can’t think you are making things better by messing them up. A sideways move is a negative move. We need to keep this group of guys together and add to it. We believe in each other. That’s why we are where we are.”

The Padres are said by Bill Center (author) to be interested in moving Berkman to left field.

Okay. This is odd.

The Port Arthur News' Bob West has this in his column:

Word out of the winter baseball meetings was that a handful of teams, including the Boston Red Sox, were asking about Astros first baseman Lance Berkman. Word out of Houston, however, is that hell will freeze over before Astros owner Drayton McLane agrees to deal his overweight fan favorite, despite the fact Berkman's coming off a subpar season that suggests he might be on the downside of his career.

If you followed the Winter Meetings fairly closely, you know the Red Sox are hot for Adrian Gonzalez, which isn't going so well. If you had the opportunity to trade Berkman to the Red Sox, would you do it, and who would you want in return?