In the waning days of Jim Crane’s managerial search, he brought in a beloved former face of the Astros.

Former Houston catcher Brad Ausmus interviewed for the team’s managerial vacancy Friday, a person with knowledge of the search said. Ausmus is the eighth known candidate to meet with Crane as he searches for A.J. Hinch’s replacement.

Ausmus’ candidacy could be complicated. His familiarity with the franchise is obvious. In addition to playing in Houston for 10 seasons, he managed Houston ace Justin Verlander for four seasons in Detroit. That Ausmus managed the division-rival Los Angeles Angels last season suggests he would have a more advanced knowledge of the returning Astros team, too.

What unfolded during his tenure in Los Angeles may give Crane pause. Even with American League Most Valuable Player Mike Trout at its disposal, the team woefully underperformed, winning only 72 games. After the All-Star break, the Angels went just 27-44, wasting a 45-46 start. Ausmus was fired following the season.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Solomon: Crane’s most important decision: who will manage in 2020?

Much of the team’s second-half listlessness stemmed from the opioid-related death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs on July 1. Skaggs, 27, was found dead in a Southlake hotel room prior to a game against the Texas Rangers. An autopsy showed both fentanyl and oxycodone, along with alcohol, in his system. Skaggs choked on his own vomit while under the influence.

According to an ESPN investigative report in September, an Angels employee told federal agents he provided Skaggs with oxycodone for years. The employee, media relations staffer Eric Kay, gave investigators five other names of Angels whom he believed were using opiods, according to ESPN.

A DEA investigation into the situation remains ongoing.

“You read about opioids being an issue culturally and of course post-surgically for athletes,” Ausmus told reporters in the aftermath. “I can’t say I have ever seen it or notice it being a problem, not that I am qualified to recognize the signs. I would say no. I haven’t really seen it.”

When the Astros played in Anaheim last July, a retaliatory action placed Ausmus directly in the Astros’ crosshairs. Ausmus and pitcher Noe Ramirez each incurred one-game suspensions after Ramirez threw at Jake Marisnick’s head — presumed payback after Marisnick’s grisly collision with catcher Jonathan Lucroy earlier that month.

Houston’s players were irate after the game. Former manager A.J. Hinch strongly condemned the placement of the pitch and how the overall act was “handled.”

“It was too high,” Hinch said. “If they’re going to hit guys, they need to hit guys the right way. They don’t need to throw two bulls--t sliders and then throw a guy a neck ball. That’s not right.”

Hinch is gone, fired in the wake of the team’s sign-stealing scandal. Marisnick was traded to the New York Mets in November. Ausmus would inherit a Houston club primed to contend — a situation with which he’s inherently familiar.

In Ausmus’ first season with the Tigers, Detroit rolled out a starting rotation of Verlander, Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello and David Price. Miguel Cabrera and J.D. Martinez hit in the middle of the order. The team did not win a playoff game, undone by a wretched bullpen.

Ausmus never reached the postseason again. He compiled a 314-332 record before he was fired in 2017 amid the team’s teardown, one that included dealing Verlander to the Astros in August.

Before he was traded, Verlander started to find some of what had faded in 2015-16. Getting healthy helped, but so did Ausmus’ suggestion to look deeper at analytics.

“I mean, really, I owe Brad a lot of thanks,” Verlander said this season. “I owe myself for getting back to 97, 98 (mph) that was all my work and body work and just picking what I knew I needed to do. And adding that with some more information and the path he kind of led me down has led to this resurgence I’ve had in my career.”

Ausmus played 10 of his 18 seasons in Houston, winning three Gold Gloves and appearing in the 2005 World Series.

On Tuesday, Crane claimed he wanted to narrow the list of applicants to “three, maybe four” by Saturday. Crane’s listed Feb. 3 as a “target date” for his hire, but acknowledged this week the decision could come earlier, perhaps at the beginning of next week.

Of the eight known interviewees, Ausmus is the fifth to have major league managerial experience. The background is not a prerequisite for the position, Crane said, but his meetings with Ausmus, John Gibbons, Buck Showalter, Dusty Baker and Jeff Banister suggest that could be the direction in which he is focused.

Incumbent Astros bench coach Joe Espada, Cubs third-base coach Will Venable and ESPN analyst Eduardo Pérez have also interviewed.

chandler.rom@chron.com

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