Red Sox pitcher defends Houston Astros after Carlos Beltran's recent comments
ASTROS NEWS
04 April 2022
Chris Sale defends Astros. Photo by Getty Images.
Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale joined WEEI's The Greg Hill Show on Monday and was asked about Carlos Beltran's recent comments about the Astos World Series title being tainted in 2017 due to sign-stealing. Sale had a different reaction to Beltran's comments than I believe many were expecting.
“I don’t know, man. Here’s the thing, and I’m going to give you my honest opinion. If the Astros were the only team doing it, then yeah, give it back. Take it back. I know for a fact they weren’t,” Sale said. He also went on to caution people about pointing fingers at teams for cheating. "Make sure that you and your team weren’t doing something..."
And let's be real, Carlos Beltran just took a job working essentially for the Yankees. If he wants to keep that job, he's going to have to toe the company line. And while I'm reading between the lines here, I think Sales' quote about "pointing fingers" is directly pointed at the Yankees. Plus, we know the Red Sox have been punished twice by MLB for using technology to steal signs, so obviously the Astros weren't the only team doing it. And MLB concluded that the Yankees improperly used a dugout phone in 2017.
At this point, we're talking about stuff that happened 5 years ago, and Sale said as much. He feels it's time to move on, and there's nothing we can do now to fix what happened in 2017.
Editor's note: Chris Sale discusses the Astros and Yankees around the 10-minute mark in the video above.
NFL insiders hint at eye-opening future for Houston Texans offense
Dec 7, 2024, 2:38 pm
One of the nuggets that came out of Nick Caserio's press conference this week, was his thoughts on the job Bobby Slowik has done as an offensive coordinator. When asked if the team has considered sharing the offensive play calling, Caseiro responded with an emphatic, “absolutely not.”
Caserio went on to praise the job Slowik has done this year, and to say the team's struggles in the second half this season is due to execution.
This stance is consistent with what we've heard from Texans insiders that believe Slowik will be back next season. As much as many Texans fans believe a change at OC could help CJ Stroud, who's shown regression this year, it doesn't appear Slowik is going anywhere.
To be fair, most teams aren't looking to replace their coordinators when they're leading their division and marching toward the postseason for the second straight year.
Number crunching
When comparing Stroud's stats to last season, there is a clear dropoff in 2024. But a lot of that has to do with the addition of Joe Mixon, especially when it comes to touchdowns.
Mixon is third in the NFL with 11 rushing TDs, while Dameon Pierce and Devin Singletary only combined for 6 over the entire 2023 season. One could argue the passing offense has regressed, but one could also argue the offense overall is more balanced.
Stroud is still Top 5 in passing yards, heading into this week's games. And even if we account for the bye week, Stroud will still be Top 10 after this week's slate of games.
The most concerning number to keep an eye on is sacks. Only one QB has been sacked more than Stroud, who's been sacked 41 times. CJ's protection has gotten better since Juice Scruggs was moved to guard, and Jarrett Patterson was inserted at center.
If Stroud starts getting hit again at a high level, that may be the one factor that could make the front office rethink their plans at coordinator. However, if the Texans do make a change, we expect them to address their o-line coach before any changes at OC.
Be sure to watch the video above for our full breakdown of the Texans offense, the coaching staff, and our thoughts on how the Azeez Al-Shaair suspension will impact the team.
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
