HARVEY RELIEF
Denver Broncos star returns home to Houston to help with Harvey efforts
Marcy de Luna
Oct 12, 2017, 3:12 am
Story originally appeared on Culture Map/Houston.
Denver Broncos wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders recently touched down in Houston to contribute to hurricane recovery efforts.
The Texas-native, who played high school football in Bellville, and college football at Southern Methodist University, has family and a residence in the Bayou City. Thus, the destruction caused by Harvey hit home for the two-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl 50 Champion, where he was the leading receiver in Denver's win over Carolina.
According to the Denver Post, Sanders solicited at least $40,000 from his Broncos teammates through the Emmanuel Sanders Foundation to help with relief efforts, with part of the funds going towards 10,000 diapers that were donated to local families in need. Another portion went to food, water, and supplies for Houstonians.
Sanders flew to Houston on a bye week to contribute another $10,200 of the money raised to the Houston Community ToolBank. The tool lending program, a nonprofit organization, puts high-quality tools in the hands of volunteers who are working to repair homes and roofs, as well as restore public spaces.
During his trip home, he met with the media and toured the ToolBank’s facility to see first-hand where the funds are going. “It was important for me to show up and show my face and see who was going to be handling it (the donated funds)," he said. "Now that I’ve seen it, I know that it’s going to a great place and a great cause. I like what the ToolBank is doing, it’s amazing.”
Sanders told reporters it’s been four months since he was last home and was out of town when Harvey hit. He recalled watching the devastation on TV and feeling helpless. “It looked like it was Photoshopped. I thought, ‘That can’t be I-10. That can’t be 59. How is that possible?’ It was definitely devastating to see,” he said.
Sanders also noted that he was grateful to have come out nearly unscathed from the hurricane. "My family came out well. My house got a little leakage in the roof … other than that everybody is good. God is good.”
But Sanders suffered his own misfortune upon returning to Denver. He sprained his ankle late in the third quarter of the Broncos' 23-10 loss to the New York Giants on Sunday and will miss this weekend's game against the San Diego Chargers.
Coming off the opening series win over the Mets, there's a lot for the Astros to be excited about. The starting pitching led the way in all three games, and Houston's high-leverage relievers delivered when it mattered most.
Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader closed the door on the Mets in games 1 and 3. Bryan King has also looked impressive, and it appears he'll be counted on in the seventh inning to hand the lead to Abreu and then Hader.
If Ronel Blanco and Hayden Wesneski can deliver consistent performances similar to the other starters, the Astros will have one of the most feared rotations in baseball.
Plus, more help could be on the way with Lance McCullers making another step in his rehab pitching for Sugar Land over the weekend.
As good as the pitching has been, there are some legitimate concerns about the offense. Their struggles to hit with runners in scoring position in 2024 are still an issue through the first series of 2025.
Newcomers Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker have yet to do much with the bat, and the only extra-base hits this season (2) have come from Jeremy Pena and Yordan Alvarez.
As far as the learning curve in the outfield, Jose Altuve and Cam Smith are off to a decent start. And despite the shakeup at second base, the team is still getting zero production from Mauricio Dubon and Brendan Rodgers.
It appears Joe Espada's plan in the Mets series was to get everyone some playing time, which seems like a smart strategy early in the season. However, the game plan didn't pay off on Saturday, with Zach Dezenzo, Victor Caratini, and Dubon combining for zero hits.
Polarizing bats
Finally, how are we feeling about the Torpedo bats sweeping the league?
While the Yankees aren't the only team with players sporting these new sticks, their results have been the talk of MLB with the Bronx Bombers mashing 15 dingers over just three games.
With the Astros sitting at one homer on the season, why not give them a try? One thing is for sure, don't be surprised if players opt to use these new bats to break out of a slump at some point this season.
We have so much more to cover. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday live right after the game. Click here to catch!
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