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Celebrating the Astros: World Series giveaways this weekend

The celebration will continue this weekend. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

The big homestand for your World Champion Astros continues this weekend with probably the two most important giveaways of the season: the replica trophy on Friday and the replica ring on Saturday. If you haven’t made it to the initial home games this season you can start planning to attend this weekend and score some sweet memorabilia.

If you plan on finding your way out to the games this weekend you should take my advice and get to a parking lot early for tailgating. My friends and I showed up at 2 p.m. for a 7 o’clock game on Tuesday for an afternoon of fun. We got a corner spot at Franklin and Chenevert, set up a canopy, lowered the tailgates and set up the cornhole boards. We drank beer for about four hours before heading in for pre-game ceremonies. Because of that we didn’t have to buy more than one $13 beer.

I had a great time in the middle of the week with a non-capacity crowd at fever pitch. Every Astros hit was an eruption that rocked the building. I can only imagine what I missed at Monday’s home opener. What I didn’t miss was the ring ceremony before the game. I watched as the Astros showed what a class act they are by giving rings to the organization’s only two Hall of Fame players, Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell. It was touching to see the reactions of the players as they accepted the jewelry that serves as an individual trophy for their accomplishment. Saturday, you can get your own versions of what they took home that night. These are the best giveaways so the crowds should be large. Get in line early enough to grab your souvenirs because each one is limited to the first 10.000 fans.

It’s a weekend series with the Padres, so there is potential for a lot of offense from the home team. Everyone loves offense. The weather might not be perfect outside but that’s no reason shun a day downtown enjoying the great amenities of Minute Maid Park, neighboring bars, or your own personal tailgate party.

If you find that you can’t make it out to the Friday or Saturday games, there are other opportunities to get souvenirs related to the World Series. Sunday’s game will give the first 10,000 fans a commemorative poster. Wait a week and you can get a George Springer World Series MVP Bobble head on April 14. Wait three weeks and you can get a Jose Altuve MVP bobble head on April 28.

No matter what you do, now is the time to go to an Astros home game. It’s a long season where anything can happen. Better that you see a game now and take advantage of some great home crowds and free stuff.  

 

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With so much on the line for the Astros this past weekend, they couldn't possibly get swept by the Royals, could they?

That's exactly what they did thanks to some poor pitching, and an inability to get timely hits with runners in scoring position.

The Astros are currently clinging to the last wild card position as they head to Seattle to face the Mariners, with Justin Verlander on the mound for the 'Stros.

Starting pitching has been the biggest issue for the club as of late, with Hunter Brown looking unusable moving forward. Brown has given up, wait for this, 6 earned runs or more in 3 of his last 4 starts. His ERA for the season is now over 5.

So how will the rotation look over the final stretch of games? We know for the Mariners series the team is rolling out Verlander, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez.

The club is off on Thursday, and they head to Arizona for a 3-game series with the Diamondbacks that starts Friday. We predict JP France will pitch Friday, with Justin Verlander likely taking the ball Saturday.

Then all bets are off for Sunday. It could be Framber on 3-days rest, or all hands on deck for a bullpen game.

Of course, with the division race being so close, things could change on a daily basis. There's even a scenario where Arizona secures their wild card, and the final two games of the season don't matter for them.

The other big factor will be the outcome of the 4-game Rangers-Mariners series that finishes off the season.

Be sure to watch the video above as we examine all the scenarios leading up to the end of the regular season for Houston, and much more!

Watch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) every Thursday on SportsMap Houston's YouTube channel.

And listen to ESPN 97.5 and 92.5 FM for Houston's best sports talk.

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