LANCE TALKS TURKEY

Astros fan favorite pitches in to help needy locals for Thanksgiving

Astros fan favorite pitches in to help needy locals for Thanksgiving
Houston Astros ace Lance McCullers Jr. handed out turkeys to local families. Photo by Nelson Venegas

This article originally appeared on CultureMap.

On a crisp Saturday morning, Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. happily posed for photos, shook hands, and passed out free turkeys to needy locals at the Big Brothers and Big Sisters Greater Houston headquarters near downtown. In all, some 150 turkeys were delivered to families who otherwise would've missed out on a Thanksgiving main course.

"We're glad to hand these out to people who work hard — they deserve a stress-free holiday," McCullers told CultureMap at the event. "I consider myself a Houstonian. I've lived here for four years. My daughter is about to be born here. This city has embraced me and my family — everywhere we go, people couldn't be more gracious to us."

Hoping to give back ahead of Thanksgiving, McCullers approached Big Brothers Big Sisters about lining up families who otherwise might not afford the single biggest expense on the traditional Thanksgiving dinner table: the turkey.

According to a 2018 study by the United States Department of Agriculture, 14.3 million Americans were food insecure throughout the year, a situation made all the more dire on a local level when the Houston Food Bank was forced to throw out nearly two million pounds of food worth $3 million, contaminated from an ammonia leak in one of its coolers. The turkeys were provided by ThrIVe Drip Spa.

For McCullers, the giveaway is all part of his belief in paying it forward, no matter how grand or modest the gesture. "People have a lot of things going on in their lives — work, family, stresses," he said. "You'd be surprised what a little can do. People really appreciate a little effort: hold the door for someone or just ask, 'Hey, how are you doing today,' smile at somebody — just give a little bit of grace."

Continue on CultureMap to read about McCuller's busy offseason.

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The Angels beat the Astros, 4-1. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Oswald Peraza hit a two-run single in the ninth inning to help the Los Angeles Angels snap a three-game losing skid by beating the Houston Astros 4-1 on Saturday night.

Peraza entered the game as a defensive replacement in the seventh inning and hit a bases-loaded fly ball to deep right field that eluded the outstretched glove of Cam Smith. It was the fourth straight hit off Astros closer Bryan Abreu (3-4), who had not allowed a run in his previous 12 appearances.

The Angels third run of the ninth inning scored when Mike Trout walked with the bases loaded.

Kyle Hendricks allowed one run while scattering seven hits over six innings. He held the Astros to 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, the one hit coming on Jesús Sánchez’s third-inning infield single that scored Jeremy Peña.

Reid Detmers worked around a leadoff walk to keep the Astros scoreless in the seventh, and José Fermin (3-2) retired the side in order in the eighth before Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless ninth to earn his 24th save.

Houston’s Spencer Arrighetti struck out a season-high eight batters over 6 1/3 innings. The only hit he allowed was Zach Neto’s third-inning solo home run.

Yordan Alvarez had two hits for the Astros, who remained three games ahead of Seattle for first place in the AL West.

Key moment

Peraza’s two-run single to deep right field that broke a 1-1 tie in the ninth.

Key Stat

Opponents were 5 for 44 against Abreu in August before he allowed four straight hits in the ninth.

Up next

Astros RHP Hunter Brown (10-6, 2.37 ERA) faces RHP José Soriano (9-9, 3.85) when the series continues Sunday.

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