Sustained success by the Astros has put Houston fans in an unfamiliar position

Dear Astro Fan: Quit whining and embrace your inner villain

Dear Astro Fan: Quit whining and embrace your inner villain

"You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain." – A quote by Harvey Dent in The DarkKnight.

Since the playoffs began there has been a constant rumble among Astros fans about the perceived bias by the national media against the team. This includes more than one "accusation" that pitch tipping by opposing pitchers has artificially augmented the Astros' success. I duck as I say this, but Houston fans have a proclivity to whine - often - about the coverage their teams receive by national outlets; and when it comes to criticisms by those outsiders, well, Houston fans aren't necessarily the toughest bunch. Whether the "hate" in these playoffs is real or just simply perceived it is something Houston fan needs to come to grips with. So with a best in the majors 107 win team still alive and kicking in the playoffs I ask of Houston fans: Why So Serious?

The time has come for Houston fan to embrace the role of the villain

Having a team occupy the villain role in the national discourse is uncharted territory for Houston sports fans, because honestly none of the Houston teams have had serious shots at a championship for multiple years in a row before. Sure you can argue the Rockets have had good stretches but they have never been the odds on favorite to win the title for 3, 4, 5, or more years in a row. Even in the years they did win back-to-back championships they are more or less remembered nationally as the placeholder champions for the years Michael Jordan decided to be a baseball player.

Now with a World Series title, multiple consecutive 100 win seasons, three consecutive ALCS appearances, and a championship potential window that looks to be open for at least a few more years the Astros aren't so beloved outside of Houston anymore. Sure in 2017 they were national darlings as they were a young likable team who were the end result of a long painful losing process. But now people outside of Houston are tiring of their domination. If the Astros are able to move on to the World Series this year I can promise you very few people outside of Houston will want to see them win. The Nationals will be the scrappy team of Avengers and the Astros will be Thanos. But hey, don't worry – Thanos wouldn't be Thanos if he didn't do a whole lot of winning.

The great thing about having your team be the villain though (not including vilification for off the field issues) is that unlike movie villains, sports villains win, and win a bunch. A team only comes to occupy that "bad guy" role among those outside of its fan base by consistent winning. Think of how hated the Yankees, Patriots, Warriors, and Crimson Tide are. Well guess what, their fans are slurping it up and it's time for Astro fan to do the same.

Going back to the Harvey Dent quote at the beginning of this article - the Astros didn't die as heroes in 2017, they have lived long enough with sustained success to become the villain. So next time the Astros get disrespected, whether its from A-Rod, Joe Buck, or an anonymous twitter egg, relish in it, channel your inner villain and think of this:



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Astros beat the Twins 9-7. Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images

Jose Altuve drove in the go-ahead run with a single in the 10th inning after Yordan Alvarez tied it with a two-run homer in the ninth and the Houston Astros rallied from an early six-run deficit to beat the Minnesota Twins 9-7 on Sunday.

Altuve's single off Twins reliever Louis Varland (1-1) scored automatic runner Brendan Rogers from third base.

Jake Meyers then stole home on a double steal to make it 9-7.

Josh Hader (1-0) retired all six batters he faced to earn the victory.

The Twins led 7-1 after four innings, but the Astros came all the way back by scoring twice in the ninth off Twins reliever Griffin Jax to tie it at 7. Isaac Paredes led off with his fourth single of the game and Alvarez hit Jax's next pitch for his first home run of the season.

Matt Wallner had four hits and Trevor Larnach drove in three runs for Minnesota.

The Twins scored three runs in the first, a rally keyed by Ryan Jeffers' two-out, two-run double. They added three more in the fourth, with Byron Buxton and Larnach's back-to-back doubles driving in the runs as Minnesota took a 7-1 lead.

Key moment

With two on and two outs in the sixth, Alvarez sliced a sinking liner to left field off reliever Danny Coulombe. Harrison Bader charged in and made a diving catch to preserve Minnesota’s 7-5 lead.

Key stat

The Astros (.565) and Twins (.551) began the day ranked 29th and 30th in the league in OPS, but combined for 24 hits in the game.

Up next

Astros: Begin a three-game series at Seattle on Monday with RHP Hayden Weseneski (0-1, 5.40) starting the opener.

Twins: Send RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (0-0, 4.50) to the mound Monday when they open a four-game series at Kansas City.

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