Jim Fregosi's genius is subtle. It's not in knowing how to craft a lineup or when to remove a pitcher from a game.

In fact, it's not in anything that has to do with strategy or things that can be measured. That stuff is overrated anyway.

Baseball's best managers aren't the ones who have the X's and O's figured out. They know they can hire people to help with that stuff.

The best managers are the ones who gain the trust of their players, create an environment in which the team comes first and get a good effort from their players every day.

And good managers enforce rules, but they enforce them with the proper touch, with a touch that won't humiliate or embarrass the player. In other words, good managers are a lot like good bosses in every line of work.

Players enjoy being led by people like Joe Torre, Bobby Cox and Mike Scioscia. Fregosi has that knack, too.

He's not the only competent person the Astros are going to interview. He has a longer résumé and probably is held in higher regard inside the game, but a case could be made for Manny Acta, Don Baylor, Bob Melvin, Ned Yost and others.

It's just that Fregosi brings so many things this franchise badly needs. First, there's his mere a presence, a calming presence, a confident presence.

His oversized personality fills up a room and has the power to sweep others up and to make them believe good things are possible.

He brings something else the Astros desperately need. That's his professionalism, and more importantly, his intolerance of those who do not care as much as he does.

If Lance Berkman doesn't run hard to first base or if Carlos Lee gets himself stupidly thrown out on the bases, they will hear about it.

“We need a guy that will get the best from our veteran players,” Drayton McLane said Friday. “We haven't been getting that.”

Been there, done that

Fregosi played 18 seasons in the big leagues and was a six-time All-Star. As he once said, “They're not going to try anything I didn't try myself.”

He has the ability to play cards with his players, to golf with them, to drink with them and to laugh with them. Yet he knows how to draw that line.

He's the boss, always the boss, and no one crosses him. In some vague way, he's able to let players know he cares about them, but that in the end, he's the final word on everything.

Darren Daulton might owe his career to Fregosi. First, Fregosi helped straighten out a flaw in his swing, and then when that was done, he took him out for a round of golf and several rounds of beers.

He convinced Daulton he had to be the leader of the Phillies, that he should be more than just another guy with a uniform.

If you ask the Phillies how the 1993 National League champions were constructed, Fregosi's magical work with Daulton would rank high on the list. Fregosi understands the dynamics of the clubhouse.

He's tough on young players, but once they show him they're willing to work and they care, he'll go to the wall for them.

Let's say right up front he would absolutely love Hunter Pence in much the same way he came to love Mickey Morandini. As for Lee and Berkman, it would be interesting to see how he handles their lapses in concentration.

If Astros general manager Ed Wade had the lone vote in the process, I'm guessing he'd go for Fregosi. He almost rehired him three years ago when he fired Larry Bowa and hired Charlie Manuel.

I'm not sure he can sell him to McLane. Fregosi was interviewed in 2001 when the Astros hired Jimy Williams, and the chat apparently didn't go well.

According to baseball gossip, McLane asked him: “Do you still have a fire in that big old belly?”

Fregosi assured him he still did have a fire.

“What would you do if I hit in you in that big old belly?” McLane is said to have asked.

“Well,” Fregosi apparently told him, “first, I'd laugh, and then I'd knock you on your (bleep).”

I asked Drayton if he remembered the conversation going that way.

“It may have,” he said. “I don't remember that happening, but it could have.”

Fregosi might be a little too opinionated and a little too profane for our man Drayton. This is no knock on Drayton.

There are dozens of good people who would love to have the job, and McLane should get the man with whom he's most comfortable.

Besides, Fregosi does have baggage. He's 67 years old and hasn't managed a game in the big leagues in nine years.

When he last managed, his players were so devoted they'd follow him off a cliff. Who knows if this generation feels the same way.

Another negative is that he has a losing record in 15 seasons as a big league manager.

Acta has inside track

My guess is Acta will be the next manager of the Astros, and he'll probably do a tremendous job. He has spent most of his professional career with the Astros and has a passion for the franchise that rivals anyone in the clubhouse or management.

But Jim Fregosi is worth a long look. He's what the Astros need in terms of credibility, confidence and leadership. Players need a guy who believes in them, and they need someone with the guts to hold them accountable. Fregosi isn't the only candidate capable of doing this, but none of the others would do it better.