Astros News & Notes: Arnsberg Fired, Realignment Talk, Lyles

The Astros have fired pitching coach Brad Arnsberg and have named Doug Brocail a temporary replacement, according to Alsyon Footer (twitter). We're awaiting further comment via Ed Wade press conference at 4:00PM today.

Why now? When asked via an email interview, David Coleman of Crawfish Boxes offered the following:

"...because Houston is really bad. That's all. They needed a scapegoat and have already fired one hitting coach and lost another in Jeff Bagwell who just didn't want the job. Arnsberg's pet project Brett Myers isn't performing as well, so he must have lost his ability to coach, right?"

Other warning signs were there, too. Coleman also said, "More seriously, I think the "philosophical differences" may have more to do with things. Brad Mills made a pretty controversial decision to send Jordan Lyles back out in the seventh inning of his start Saturday against Braves. That's despite Lyles having already thrown 104 pitches in the game. Arnsberg has been known to be a pitcher's defender of sorts in his role as pitching coach, so I could see him getting into it with Mills and that leading to his firing."

The bigger question is what this means for the team going forward. Coleman pulls few punches:

"I think this is the beginning of the end for this management team. With the losses mounting and results few and far between, everyone currently employed by the Astros has to be worried about their job. Heck, even the new potential owner, Jim Crane, should be worried about getting his job with the new allegations at Business of Baseball. There is nothing to like about this major league team, especially after Arnsberg is gone."

Other Astros News & Notes:

• MLB Realignment: Brad Mills would prefer the Astros stay in the NL, but acknowledges that no decision is imminent regardless of Houston's team being mentioned as a possibility for realignment.
• MLB Realignment: David Coleman thinks a Houston move to the AL is a bad idea, and cites the Brewers as a better candidate since they were more recently in the other league.
• Jeff Fulchino was optioned to Triple-AOklahoma City to make room for Wandy Rodriguez's return from the DL.
• Aneury Rodriguez has moved to the bullpen and Jordan Lyles, Houston's top prospect, will make his fourth Major League start on Thursday against the Pirates.
• The Astros signed second-round pick Adrian Houser, the right handed high school pitcher out from Oklahoma.