THE HERO WE NEED
How this Houston Astros star does his most heroic work off the field
Aug 16, 2022, 11:33 am
THE HERO WE NEED
Saturday, August 13 marked the successful, long-awaited, faith-restored return of a real-life Houston hero — who happens to pitch for the Houston Astros.
Lance McCullers Jr. threw a baseball in earnest for the first time since Game 4 of last year’s American League Divisional Series. He was sidelined for 305 days with a right flexor pronator strain (a body part I never knew existed. If you can’t pull it out with a tweezer in the game Operation, it’s not part of the human anatomy.)
It took him that long, forever in baseball terms, to return to the Astros and Minute Maid Park. How’d he do?
He struck out five, allowed only two hits over six innings, received three standing ovations from 34,000 fans, and got the W in the Astros 8-0 victory over the (for some odd reason) pesky Oakland A’s on Hall of Fame Weekend.
“I was a little bit anxious before the game,” McCullers said after his win. “Everybody’s been so supportive and really have helped me get back to this point. I’m talking about the guys in the clubhouse and they were all excited for me to be back today.”
Lance back = best news for the future
With Jake Odorizzi gone and the possibility that Justin Verlander (who loves him some Nancy’s Hustle burgers) may leave after this season, McCullers’ return was good news for the Astros’ drive to the World Series this year, and the next, and the next.
He’s already carved into Houston legend for the time he threw 24 straight curveballs against the Yankees to propel the Astros to the World Series in 2017. Watch that insane performance here:
McCullers throws 24 straight curveballs to close out the AL Pennantwww.youtube.com
And, McCullers was the starting pitcher against the Dodgers in Game 7 of the 2017 World Series when the Astros won their first and only championship. As Yahoo Sports pointed out, McCullers completely owned the boys in pinstripes.
But that’s not why he’s a hero in my book.
More than a sports hero
McCullers and his wife Kara are animal lovers and they’ve put their passion into relentless action. The Lance McCullers Jr. Foundation supports local pet organizations like Houston Pets Alive and Rescued Pet Movement. The foundation’s goal is to promote pet adoption and fostering, raise awareness and donations for animal shelters and continue the journey to make Houston a no-kill community. The motto is “Protecting Pets, Creating Families.”
“Since partnering with the Lance McCullers Jr. Foundation, thousands of pets are being saved each month that otherwise didn’t have a chance. Thousands of homeless dogs and cats’ lives have been saved,” Rescued Pet Movement notes. “To date, because of LMJF, almost 60,000 homeless dogs and cats’ lives have been saved.”
Photo courtesy of the Lance McCullers, Jr. Foundation
McCullers didn’t just attach his name to the foundation and step back. As we frequently cover here, he personally shows up to help locals in need: whether it’s handing out Thanksgiving turkeys or supplying 10,000 meals to the Houston Food Bank during the pandemic. “This city has embraced me and my family,” he told us in 2019, “everywhere we go, people couldn’t be more gracious to us.”
No big surprise that he handles his foundation the same way—he hosts events, advocates tirelessly for animals, and gets his hands dirty supporting efforts to save pets lives. To donate or volunteer to his organization, visit the How to Help section on the official site.
The Lance McCullers Jr. Foundation is a donor-advised fund at Athletes and Causes, a nonprofit with federal tax exempt status and a public charity.
Photo courtesy of the Lance McCullers, Jr. Foundation
Here’s the cherry on top why I love and support his foundation. He reminds people that 75-percent of dogs available for adoption in shelters are mixed breeds. I got one of those sitting next to me right now.
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Jose Altuve and rookie Jacob Melton drove in three runs each as the Houston Astros jumped on Chris Paddack early and cruised to a 10-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Friday night.
Paddack (2-6) tied career highs by allowing 12 hits and nine runs — eight earned — in just four innings for his third straight loss.
Houston rookie starter Colton Gordon (2-1) gave up six hits and two runs with five strikeouts in a career-high six innings.
Jeremy Peña tied a season-high with four hits and rookie Cam Smith had two hits and two RBIs as the AL West-leading Astros won their third straight.
Willi Castro, Royce Lewis and Ty France all hit solo homers for the Twins, who were blown out for the third time in four games after losing to Texas 16-4 Tuesday and 16-3 Thursday.
Lewis, who missed the start of the season with a hamstring strain, pulled up as he was running to first base on a single in the ninth inning and was replaced by a pinch-runner. There was no immediate word on his injury.
The Astros got to work early in this one. The bases were loaded with two outs in the first when Smith hit a two-run single to center field to make it 2-0. Melton followed with a single to right field to drive in another run.
There were runners on first and third with one out in the second when Altuve’s double scored two to make it 5-0.
The Twins loaded the bases with two outs in the third but Carlos Correa grounded out to end the threat.
Melton hit a two-run triple with no outs in the bottom of the inning to push the lead to 7-0. A sacrifice fly by Mauricio Dubón made it 8-0.
The Twins got on the board with Castro’s two-out homer in the fourth inning.
Altuve homered to left-center to start the bottom of the inning and make it 9-1.
Smith’s two-RBI single in the first that gave Houston the lead for good.
The Astros had four doubles to give them 15 in their last three games.
Astros RHP Hunter Brown (8-3, 1.82 ERA) opposes Twins RHP Joe Ryan (7-2, 2.96) on Saturday.