A SILVER LINING
How Astros somehow harvested success where MLB planted a crop of excuses, failure
Feb 23, 2022, 1:51 pm
Could the Astros be MLB's saving grace? Composite image by Jack Brame.
You need another reason to admire the Houston Astros as a model sports franchise? You know the Astros, the team that lives within its budget, still puts a fantastic product on the field and wins year after year? And has intelligently built an American League dynasty?
The other day, former Yankee captain and current CEO of the Miami Marlins Derek Jeter was asked, why do you think young people are choosing the NFL and NBA and turning their backs on baseball?
Jeter blamed the kids. He told the Knuckleheads podcast, “Kids nowadays are into instant gratification, right?” Years earlier, he said pretty much the same thing to the Washington Post. “I think some of the other sports are sort of the sexy sports,” suggesting that baseball was a more thoughtful and deliberate game than football and basketball, it takes longer for players to reach the big leagues, and perhaps young people aren’t up to the long-form challenge of baseball.
What he should have said was, “It’s our own fault. Life is passing baseball by.” Like the Pogo comic strip, we have met the enemy and it’s us.
There’s no disputing that the NFL is our national passion and the NBA is surging here and around the world. If you want to know why baseball is reeling, maybe Jeter isn’t the guy to ask. He runs the Miami Marlins. There are 30 teams in MLB, the Marlins finished 30th in attendance in 2021. They averaged only 7,933 fans at loanDepot Park. He blames young people for veering away from baseball? It looks like all ages in Miami want little to do with the Marlins.
While sports fans gravitate to fast paced entertainment, baseball has slammed the brakes on putting the ball in play. Despite a slew of rules designed to speed up the game, the average MLB game sleepwalked to 3 hours and 10 minutes in 2021, the slowest in history. Back in the ‘70s, games lasted 2 hours and 30 minutes.
MLB attendance has fallen five years in a row. Last year’s average attendance hit a 37-year low. TV ratings are down 12 percent from 2019, the last year before the pandemic.
But there is a silver lining, the saving grace for baseball, hope for baseball’s future. It’s the Houston Astros.
Houston may be the only city that has all three major sports – NFL, NBA and MLB – and baseball, clearly and unchallenged, owns the market. Right now the football and basketball team aren’t even putting up a fight.
The Astros have won more games since 2017 than any other American League team. You know the numbers: they’ve been in the post-season five straight years, played in four consecutive ALCS, won four of the last five American League West titles, played in three of the last five World Series, and won the franchise’s first and only championship in 2017.
The Astros haven’t won over Houston by themselves, though. It takes a village, in Houston’s case, village idiots like the Texans and Rockets. If there were a popularity contest between the Astros, Texans and Rockets … the Astros would win by forfeit.
In other cities where the NFL dominates, like Seattle and Green Bay, fans wonder if their quarterback will go to another team. In Houston, fans wonder if their quarterback will go to jail. The Texans trade or release their most popular players and get very little in return. The Texans will be paying three head coaches next season, two of them no longer with the team. They’re one of the teams being sued by Brian Flores claiming racism.
Nobody likes the owner, nobody trusts the general manager after his recent press conference, nobody believes the franchise puppeteer is still here, and nobody believes the new coach was management’s first or second or even third choice.
The Houston Rockets, while not perceived as a halfway house for the dysfunctional, are foundering with a 15-43 record good for last place in the NBA’s Western Conference. The team has no stars and no veterans with All-Star pedigree. Well, they do, but John Wall, is making (not earning) $41 million this year despite playing no games. Wall is not hurt. He wants to play. Before the season started, the Rockets told him to go away and stay there. The team won’t play him and can’t trade him. This is how teams operate in the Bizarro World.
Pro sports these days are driven by star power. Houston loves us the Astros. They’re killers on the field and icons in the community. The team is loaded with shining stars. Yuli Gurriel is the defending American League batting champion. Jose Altuve is the franchise’s GOAT, it’s time to stop that debate. Alex Bregman is poised for a big comeback season and makes one heck of a Breggy Bomb salsa. Kyle Tucker is a budding superstar and Triple Crown threat. Yordan Alvarez hits homers at a historic pace. Michael Brantley is solid as a rock. And Justin Verlander is back! We’re crossing our fingers for the season to start.
The Astros games are fun and tickets are affordable. Rockets and Texans are flatlining duds and tickets are crazy expensive. Let’s see, Texans season tickets or send Johnny to college. Sell the damn team, Cal.
Yeah, baseball is in decline, Derek Jeter blames young people, another labor dispute is turning fans off, and the game is grinding to a stop. The NFL and NBA are dumping all over baseball, all over the country.
Except in Houston.
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How these 3 critical factors could swing battle between Texans and Jets
Oct 30, 2024, 3:06 pm
The Jets host the Texans and their scary defense on Halloween night! Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.
Houston (6-2) at New York Jets (2-6)
Thursday, 8:15 p.m. EDT, Amazon Prime
BetMGM NFL odds: Jets by 2.
Against the spread: Texans 3-4-1; Jets 2-6.
Series record: Jets lead 7-3.
Last meeting: Jets beat Texans 30-6 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Dec. 10, 2023.
Last week: Texans beat Colts 23-20; Jets lost to Patriots 25-22.
Texans offense: overall (9t), rush (18), pass (8), scoring (14).
Texans defense: overall (2), rush (13), pass (3), scoring (15t).
Jets offense: overall (24), rush (30), pass (13), scoring (25).
Jets defense: overall (4), rush (17), pass (2), scoring (11t).
Turnover differential: Texans plus-4; Jets minus-3.
Texans player to watch
RB Joe Mixon. He has carried Houston's offense in the three games since he returned from an injury and could be even more important this week after wide receiver Stefon Diggs tore the ACL in his right knee last Sunday and is out for the season. Mixon ranks third in the NFL by averaging 100.6 yards rushing a game and has had at least 100 yards rushing and a TD run in three straight games.
Jets player to watch
Edge rusher Haason Reddick. After ending his lengthy contract holdout early last week, Reddick made his Jets debut and played 26 snaps on defense with two quarterback pressures while working mostly on third downs. His snaps might increase a bit Thursday and he could help the Jets get after C.J. Stroud, who has been sacked 22 times this season — tied for third most in the NFL.
Key matchup
Jets offensive line vs. Texans' pass rush. New York has had issues this season with injuries, consistency and protecting Aaron Rodgers. The Jets will face a tough test Thursday night against the Texans, whose 27 sacks are third in the NFL. DE Will Anderson Jr. is tied for third in the league with a career-high 7 1/2 sacks, including at least one in his past three games. DE Danielle Hunter has 5 1/2 sacks and DT Tim Settle has four, powering a formidable defensive front for Houston. Hunter leads the league with 51 quarterback pressures and Anderson is fourth with 39, the only teammates in the top 15, according to Next Gen Stats.
Key injuries
Diggs' injury leaves Houston without its top two receivers. Nico Collins, who leads the Texans with 567 yards receiving, is out for at least one more game after being placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. ... S Calen Bullock was limited in practice Monday and Tuesday after injuring his shoulder Sunday. … LBs Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and Henry To’oTo’o (concussion) both missed the Colts game, but could return this week. … S Jimmie Ward could miss a fifth straight game with a groin injury. … LG Jarrett Patterson is in the concussion protocol and is likely out. … RB Dameon Pierce missed practice this week with a groin injury. ... Jets LB C.J. Mosley suffered a stinger in his neck during pregame warmups at New England and was meeting with neck and spine specialists this week. ... RG Alijah Vera-Tucker (ankle), WR Allen Lazard (chest), DL Leki Fotu (knee) and safeties Tony Adams (hamstring) and Ashtyn Davis (concussion) all missed the game vs. the Patriots and their availability for this week was uncertain. ... K Greg Zuerlein was placed on IR. Riley Patterson and Spencer Shrader were signed to the practice squad, and one will be promoted for the game.
Series notes
The Jets have won the past two meetings. ... New York won the first five meetings, including the first game between the franchises in 2003, when LaMont Jordan's late 8-yard touchdown run helped lift the Jets to a 19-14 victory. ... Zach Wilson threw two touchdown passes in the most recent meeting, a 30-6 rout by New York during which Stroud left with a concussion.
Stats and stuff
The AFC South-leading Texans have won four of their past five. ... Stroud is 2-0 with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in two career starts in prime time. He had 285 yards passing last week for his ninth career game with at least that many yards passing, which is tied for second most in the NFL since 2023. ... WR Tank Dell had a touchdown reception last week and has a TD catch in two of his past three games. ... TE Dalton Schultz had a season-high 52 yards receiving against the Colts. He has two TD receptions in each of his past two Thursday night games. ... Hunter has 10½ sacks in eight career Thursday night games. … LB Neville Hewitt, who spent the 2018-21 seasons with the Jets, forced a fumble last week. … Rookie CB Kamari Lassiter had a career-high three passes defended last week. … S Jalen Pitre had his first interception of the season last week. ... S Eric Murray had seven tackles and a season-high three passes defended last week. ... New York is trying to snap a five-game skid. ... Jeff Ulbrich is 0-3 as the Jets’ interim head coach since replacing the fired Robert Saleh on Oct. 8. Ulbrich, also the team's defensive coordinator, said earlier this week he'll continue to call plays on defense. … Rodgers snapped a streak of three consecutive games with an interception. He has seven in eight games, six shy of his single-season career high set in 2008 in his first year as Green Bay’s starting quarterback. ... Rodgers hasn't passed for 300 yards since throwing for 341 against Chicago on Dec. 12, 2021 — a span of 30 regular-season games and 31 overall, including one playoff game. ... WR Garrett Wilson leads the NFL with 84 targets, 11 more than the Giants’ Malik Nabers. Wilson’s 51 receptions are second in the league behind Las Vegas’ Brock Bowers, who has 52. ... WR Davante Adams had four catches for 54 yards, giving him seven receptions for 84 yards in two games since being acquired from the Raiders. ... Second-year WR Xavier Gipson caught his first career TD pass last Sunday. ... TE Tyler Conklin has a TD catch in consecutive games after not having one since catching two TD passes in Week 8 of the 2022 season against New England. ... RB Breece Hall has 316 yards receiving, the most among NFL running backs. ... Edge rusher Will McDonald has eight sacks, second in the NFL to the Giants’ Dexter Lawrence (nine). … The Jets have only six takeaways, ranking among the fewest in the league. Backup CB Brandin Echols has New York's only two interceptions.
Fantasy tip
Houston wide receiver John Metchie is coming off a career-best three-catch game and could see more targets — and perhaps his first NFL touchdown — with both Diggs and Collins out. Might be worth a stash as a potential WR3.
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