HOUSTON — The Houston Astros fired Manager Cecil Cooper on Monday with 13 games left in another disappointing season.
Third-base coach Dave Clark was named interim manager. The Astros were 70-79 headed into Monday's home against St. Louis.
General manager Ed Wade said the change couldn't wait until the end of the season. He added that more changes could be coming for a franchise just four years removed from its only World Series appearance.
"We're tasked with evaluating all aspects of our situation," Wade said. "At the end of the day, we're going to try to address those off-field issues that exist. We're not walking away from it. The issue we had to address here, in the short term, was the managerial issue and that's why we moved forward today."
The 59-year-old Cooper was hired Aug. 27, 2007, to replace Phil Garner. Houston went 171-170 under Cooper, who was the bench coach under Garner from 2005-2007.
Cooper became the fourth manager to get fired this season, all of them in the National League. Arizona dismissed Bob Melvin on May 7, Colorado replaced Clint Hurdle on May 29 and Washington fired Manny Acta on July 13.
Wade said Clark would be considered a candidate during the search for a new manager. Cooper did not answer calls to his cell phone and his voicemail was full.
Wade, owner Drayton McLane and president of baseball operations Tal Smith met with Cooper in his office Monday afternoon to give him the news.
While Cooper took the blame, he could not be blamed for all the Astros' shortcomings in 2009.
A number of off-season moves fizzled and All-Star first baseman Lance Berkman and pitching ace Roy Oswalt have had subpar seasons.
"It stinks when you know that your performance, that you're responsible for somebody else's job security," Berkman said. "Say what you want, we didn't get it done on the field. The players have to take the full responsibility. Coop never threw a pitch or batted with runners in scoring position."
McLane pointed out that the Astros' payroll - almost $103 million - is among the highest in baseball and that he thought the assembled roster was capable of having a better season.
Cooper's initial contract ran through the 2009 season and the Astros picked up his option for 2010. Houston won 86 games in 2008, a 13-game turnaround from 2007. But this season, the Astros are almost guaranteed their second losing record in three seasons and only the third since 1991.
BLUE JAYS
Scutaro likely done for year
TORONTO - Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Marco Scutaro will likely miss the rest of the season after a magnetic resonance imaging Monday revealed a tear in his right heel.
Scutaro left Sunday's game at Tampa Bay in the sixth inning after he felt something pop in his sore heel while charging a grounder.
Scutaro, 33, has been bothered by heel pain since July. Monday's MRI revealed a tear in his plantar fascia, a band of tissue in the foot.
John McDonald started at shortstop against Baltimore on Monday night, with manager Cito Gaston saying Scutaro was unlikely to return for Toronto's final 13 games.
Playing every day for the first time in his career, Scutaro has posted career highs in average (.282), home runs (12), doubles (35) and walks (90) and has matched his career high in RBI (60). He is eligible for free agency following the season.
GIANTS
Prospect charged with murder
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic - A top prospect for the San Francisco Giants has been charged with murder in the death of a 25-year-old man last weekend at a bar in his Caribbean homeland.
Angel Villalona, who was signed by the Giants in 2006 and received a club-record $2.1 million bonus, wore a bulletproof vest Monday to his hearing at a court in the city of La Romana. He pleaded innocent to the murder charge.
The 19-year-old Villalona could face up to 20 years in prison if found guilty in the Saturday night shooting death of Mario Felix de Jesus Velete.
Sports, Pages 16 on 09/22/2009