Every-Thing Sports

Bleep it! Go full heel turn!

Astros World Series
photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images

I've listened to all the bull bleep and crap spewed after Jim Crane allowed Rob Manfred to clip his manhood and put them it a glass case with the heavy handed punishment in regards to the Astros sign stealing scandals. He then bowed down even further by forcing his players to publicly apologize at Spring Training. It was despicable. In the first hour of Late Hits, Patrick Creighton and Jayson Braddock laid out how many times throughout history teams were caught stealing signs and how they were doing it. This crucifixion of the Astros as if they're some sort of lone bandit is sickening!

All the people bitching and complaining, the frivolous lawsuits, the blatant ignorance, the spreading of baseless accusations...This should all serve as fuel to the Astros and their fans this season. They got caught. They thumbed their noses at the whole apology thing, especially Alex Bregman (shot out to Justin Verlander for wearing the "Nobody Cares" hat at the golf outing). Bleep it! Let's go full heel mode! The heel turn is complete.

First Things First

A heel turn is a wrestling term used to describe a good guy (a babyface or face) turns into a bad guy or heel. The Astros were the fun-loving bunch of homegrown talent of a franchise that endured tanking in order to restock their minor leagues. That paid off in a major way in 2017 when they won a World Series. It was extra sweet considering Houston was hit by Harvey that August. Most of the world fell in love with them. They were the John Cena of baseball. They were beloved by most, and still hated by a good amount of folks for their antics.

Scandals Tear Away At Their Image

Sign stealing was the straw that broke the camel's back. When they signed Roberto Osuna, there was a ton of backlash and understandbly so. He was suspended amid a domestic violence incident and they traded for him anyway. That lead to another incident in which former GM Brandon Taubman was fired for causing a stir in the locker room for being obnoxious about the Osuna trade towards some female reporters. Top this bleep cake off with thew fact that former GM Jeff Luhnow created a toxic work environment, and you have the making of a heel turn.

Heel Mode: Activated

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Back in 1996, Hulk Hogan turned heel when he joined the nWo. The wrestling world was turned on its ear. Everyone actually thought WWE sent them to take over WCW. Fans were shocked to see their hero of the last 10-plus years turn heel. This is how Astros fans must feel right now. Their beloved team got caught stealing signs. Now what? Bleep it! Go with it. Yeah they got caught. No they weren't the only ones. Sure the punishment is harsh. And yes, the trolls and piece-riders in media and other fan bases are annoying AF, but embrace it!

Relish The Role

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You know what happened to the nWo? They ended up becoming the hottest act in wrestling. Stone Cold Steve Austin did something similar. Both were supposed to be heels, but were so good at it and so cool, people ended up liking them. They were cheered, sold a ton of merch, and drove ratings through the roof. So much so that WCW actually beat WWE in the ratings for over a year. This is what the team and fans need to do. I don't give a flying flip that they cheated! "If you aint cheatin you aint tryin!" and my other favorite line "It's only cheatin if you get caught!" Become the cool heels. Celebrate homeruns and big hits by simulating buzzers and banging trash cans. Have a trash can bobblehead giveaway. Pretend to talk into fake buzzers and devices in the dugout. Fans: wear "Steal It Back" shirts and create other parody paraphenelia to thumb your noses at the crybabies from other teams.

I don't give a damn what people may think. If they stink, do it anyway. Do it more if they're mashing the ball and leading the division. During the All Star festivities, keep it going by pretending to steal signs and bang trash cans. That World Series win isn't going anywhere. It's history, it happened and they can't undo it. Ignore the dumbasses online and in the media. They're going to say all kinds stuff to keep this going, so don't feed them MLB can pretend to investigate other teams all they want, but we all know they want this to go away faster an unwanted rash in their nether regions. So let's go full heel Houston! Screw them! It's us versus all yall mentality from here on out!

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The Clippers host the Rockets on Wednesday night! Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Houston Rockets (52-27) at Los Angeles Clippers (46-32)
Wednesday, 10:30 p.m. EDT | Inglewood, CA
Line: Clippers -6.5 | O/U: 219

The Houston Rockets head west to face the Los Angeles Clippers in a high-stakes Western Conference matchup between two teams hitting their stride at the right time.

What’s at stake:
With both teams locked into the top half of the playoff picture, Wednesday’s showdown could carry big implications for seeding. The Rockets have won eight of their last 10, surging into second place in the West. The Clippers, winners of five straight, are looking to secure home-court advantage in the first round.

Team comparisons:
Houston enters with a 31-18 mark against the Western Conference and has leaned on defense and rebounding, ranking fifth in the league in defensive boards per game (34.0), thanks largely to Alperen Sengun.

The Clippers, meanwhile, are 26-23 within the conference and have outscored opponents by 4.5 points per game on the season. They're averaging 112.6 points this season. And shooting a strong 50.9% from the field over their last 10 games.

Key players to watch:

  • Rockets: Jalen Green continues to lead the scoring charge, averaging 23.4 points over his last 10 games. Sengun, who is day-to-day with a back issue, remains central to Houston’s identity with 19.2 points and 10.4 rebounds per game.
  • Clippers: Ivica Zubac has been a steady force inside with 16.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, while Kawhi Leonard (20.4 points over the last 10) remains a game-time decision due to rest.

By the numbers:

  • Both teams are red-hot offensively, with the Rockets averaging 119.1 points and the Clippers 119.0 over their past 10 contests.
  • The rebounding battle could be key—Houston holds a slight edge (49.5 to 44.8 per game, over the past 10 contests).
  • Both defenses are holding opponents under 108 points per game during that span.

Injury watch:
Houston may be without Jabari Smith Jr. (groin), Fred VanVleet (ankle), and Sengun (back), while the Clippers could be without Kawhi Leonard, Amir Coffey, and Patty Mills.

Bottom line:
This could be a playoff preview, and with both teams in form, the game may come down to execution late. If the Rockets can control the boards and match LA’s shot-making, they’ll have a shot to leave Inglewood with a big win.


*ChatGPT assisted.

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