From 1997-2006 the Houston Astros and Oakland A’s were successful franchises, with the A’s twice cracking 100 wins and the Astros advancing to the World Series. But both teams hit hard times in 2007. The two teams took different approaches coming into 2008 and have continued those opposite tracks during the season. Here’s why it’s better to be rooting for the A’s than the Astros.

The Houston Astros and Oakland A’s are teams that share similar backgrounds - small to mid-market teams that have been very successful in the recent past but which fell on hard times in 2007. The two teams approached 2008 in different fashions and have continued to espouse different operating theories at the halfway point.

The A’s decided to build for the future following their 76-86 finish in 2007. They dealt stars Dan Haren and Nick Swisher for prospects. Pundits predicted the A’s to challenge 100 losses. Instead they were over .500 and in second place in the AL West. Yet a week before the All-Star break, Oakland opted to trade Rich Harden for still more youngsters. Relievers Huston Street and Alan Embree seem destined to move on to greener pastures and no one would be surprised if Joe Blanton was dealt, too, although his trade value is much lower now than it was during the off-season.

Meanwhile, the Astros decided to gear up for a playoff push in 2008 after going 73-89 last year. In the off season they added free agents Kaz Matsui and Ty Wigginton (a mid-season acquisition who re-signed with the club) at second and third base and Miguel Tejada at shortstop, who was acquired one day prior to being named in the Mitchell Report.

The Astros also traded closer Brad Lidge to the Phillies for center fielder Michael Bourn and acquired Diamondbacks closer Jose Valverde for three players. Houston made other moves acquiring proven veteran talent such as Geoff Blum, Shawn Chacon, Darin Erstad and Chad Paronto, among others.

The Astros hoped that adding Tejada to a solid nucleus of hitters with Berkman, Hunter Pence and Carlos Lee would make for a solid offense that would make up for a suspect starting rotation. The gamble did not pay off. While the Astros pitching was just as bad as expected (13^th in the NL with 4.87 runs per game) the offense managed just 4.35 runs per game, which left it tied for 11^th in the league.

All that adds up to a 44-51 mark at the break, 13 games behind the Cubs and in last place in their division. But instead of actively shopping veterans looking to improve for the future, a report in Sunday’s Houston Chronicle had general manager Ed Wade asserting that the team was not going to be active sellers.

“I don’t think fire sales work,” Wade was quoted in the article. “I think a lot of that works for cosmetic purposes, but it’s sort of a ‘panic button’ approach that leads you to a course of mediocrity.”

If anyone should recognize a course of mediocrity, it’s Ed Wade, the Phillies GM from 1998-2005. The club finished second three times, third four times and fifth one time during his reign and never once made the playoffs. In his first year with the Astros, the team seems destined to finish in the bottom half of the six-team NL Central.

By not chasing the playoffs like the Astros, the A’s now have pitchers Brett Anderson, Faustino De Los Santos, Dana Eveland, Sean Gallagher, Gio Gonzalez and Greg Smith along with hitters Chris Carter, Aaron Cunningham, Josh Donaldson, Carlos Gonzalez, Matt Murton, Eric Patterson and Ryan Sweeney in their system.

Five of those players have already played for Oakland this season (Eveland, Carlos Gonzalez, Murton, Smith and Sweeney) with Gallagher likely to get his first start in the initial week following the All-Star break.

Brett Anderson went 9-4 at Hi-A Stockton with 80 strikeouts in 74 IP before a promotion to Double-A. Anderson is 1-0 with 16 strikeouts in 11 IP for Midland. Gio Gonzalez has limited PCL hitters to a .239 average and has 110 strikeouts in 102.2 IP. Chris Carter has 46 extra-base hits in 325 at-bats, including 24 home runs at Stockton. Aaron Cunningham is batting .302 with a .386 on-base percentage and a .468 slugging mark in Double-A.

The A’s have restocked their farm system while improving on their record from a year ago in the big leagues. Their decision to sell stars for prospects looks good at this point, further proving that rebuilding is not a dirty word.

And here’s how the Astros’ off-season moves have panned out:

Michael Bourn - .218/.273/.291 batting line proves the old adage that you can’t steal first base.

Kaz Matsui - .283/.344/.365 batting line shows more OBP than expected but less SLG. Has been slowed by injuries.

Miguel Tejada - .275/.316/.423 batting line somehow gained him an All-Star berth. Clint Hurdle and others did not look to see that away from the Juice Box that line drops to .242/.290/.371

Jose Valverde - pitching line of 4-2 with 24 saves and a 3.80 ERA. Not quite as dominating as he was in 2007 but has pitched as well as should have been expected.

Ty Wigginton - .282/.368/.470 - solid production from the veteran although with a .926 home OPS and a .729 road OPS.

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The past two seasons the NL Central champion has emerged with 85 and 83 wins, so it’s hard to fault the Astros for their decision to go for a playoff spot this year. But a good organization should be able to read the writing on the wall and see that it’s just not going to work for the Astros in 2008. The Central fields the top three records in the National League and there is simply no way the Astros can contend for a playoff spot this year.

Unless the Astros go on a spending spree for pitchers in the off-season, the team as currently constructed simply will not contend in the immediate future. Houston has shown a willingness to spend money, as the $100-million Carlos Lee deal proves, but will they pay more than that to import the pitching the club so desperately needs? The team needs two starters, and this is assuming that Roy Oswalt can come back.

The Astros should be listening to proposals for any players not named Berkman or Pence. This becomes all the more important as coming into the 2008 season Baseball America ranked the Houston farm system as the worst in all of baseball. Enjoy the Ed Wade era, Houston fans.