How new wrinkles in Astros playoff aspirations open up opportunities, challenges
STRETCH RUN SOLUTIONS
09 September
Can the Astros take advantage of their schedule easing up?Composite Getty Image.
With 19 games left in the regular season, the Astros sit 4 1/2 games up on the Mariners as they get ready to host the Athletics on Tuesday.
One factor that's stayed consistent for the Astros in recent years, is their ability to step up their game against tough competition, and to play down to lesser teams like the Reds, who swept them last week.
Which is why we're not ready to say the 'Stros have punched their playoff ticket. Missing the postseason however would require a both a surge from the Mariners and a collapse from Houston.
But based on how the Astros have been pitching over the last month (Top 3 in ERA), you have to like their chances to finish strong and secure the division once again.
One of the big news items from the Diamondback series was the return of Kyle Tucker. Tucker didn't do a whole lot in the two games he played in, but having him back does give the Astros lineup a different feel.
With Tucker and Bregman both in the lineup, the Astros have a formidable Top 5. It will be interesting to see how Joe Espada juggles the lineup moving forward, and if he drops Tucker to the five spot in games they are facing a left-handed starter.
Speaking of Tucker and Bregman, we've had countless discussions about whether they will sign extensions with the Astros. In Bregman's case, the new contract Matt Chapman signed with the Giants will likely serve as a measuring stick (6-year, $151 million) for Bregman's next deal.
Don't miss the video above as we preview the playoff push, breakdown Tucker's return, and weigh the pros and cons of signing Bregman to a deal comparable to Chapman's.
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
The menu includes dishes such as steak au poivre and deviled eggs topped with caviar. Photo by Becca Wright.
A growing Houston restaurant group is ready to unveil its latest creation. Maven at Sawyer Yards will open this Friday, October 18.
Located in a former commercial trucking station on the Sawyer Yards campus (1501 Silver St.), the new restaurant is an evolution of Maven Coffee + Cocktails, the beverage-focused concept created by Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. and his business partners, local entrepreneur Juan Carlos de Aldecoa and attorney Jimmy Doan as part of the Rex Hospitality Group.
Currently, Maven operates coffee shops and cocktail bars at Minute Maid Park, Toyota Center, and the Thompson Hotel, but the new Sawyer Yards location is an all-day restaurant that opens at 7 am daily for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The 2,400-square-foot space has been divided into a main dining room, bar, and an outdoor patio.
“The opening of Maven at Sawyer Yards — the brand’s fourth outpost in less than 16 months — is a testament to the demand for quality-driven, handcrafted food and beverage experiences,” Nina Quincy, president of Rex Hospitality Group said in a statement. “We envision our Sawyer Yards location as a neighborhood destination that lends itself to both daytime and nighttime experiences. Maven at Sawyer Yards differs from our other concepts in that it offers a complete dining experience, rooted in quality, chef-driven cuisine.”
To deliver “chef-driven cuisine,” de Aldecoa recruited his cousin, chef Nicolás “Nico” Baizan de Aldecoa, to serve as the COO for Rex Hospitality Group. Baizan brings a range of experience to his role, including a lengthy stint working for superstar chef Jose Andres, as he discussed on an episode of CultureMap’s What’s Eric Eating podcast.
“I really strive for, like Lance said, it’s more than a coffee shop,” he said about the menu at Maven’s Thompson Hotel location. “It really is a place we want people to enjoy a good dinner and create memories that you’re not able to get otherwise. One of my favorite spots in Chicago is Kasama. It started off as a pastry shop with amazing breakfast, now it’s the first Filipino restaurant to have a Michelin star.”
Baizan’s Spanish-influenced menu includes smoked fish dip, beef tartare, octopus with fingerling potatoes, and deviled eggs topped with caviar. Entree choices include steak au poivre, roasted chicken, and a take on the trendy spicy rigatoni pasta. Morning options include breakfast tacos and avocado toast, while lunch features sandwiches such as a Cuban — a nod to McCullers’ Cuban heritage — a truffle grilled cheese, and a smoked grouper melt with American cheese, which sounds like a very adult version of a fast food fish sandwich.
For drinks, the partners turned to Chicago-based cocktail consultant Paul McGee, whose resume includes legendary Chicago tiki bars Lost Lake and Three Dots and a Dash. Of course, the restaurant will serve coffee-based cocktails such as the espresso martini and carajillo as well as takes on the Old Fashioned, margarita, daiquiri, and caipirinha. Non-alcoholic cocktails will also be available as well Maven’s full lineup of coffee drinks.
“We’re looking forward to Silver Street being an expanded Maven,” McCullers said during the podcast. “Very welcoming, approachable food. A place where people don’t really know why, but they feel like that’s their spot.”
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Fans of Houston sports and Houston food can now score tickets to The Tailgate, CultureMap's all-out party devoted to everyone’s favorite way to get in the gameday spirit. The event, presented by Verizon, goes down from 6-9 pm November 11 at 8th Wonder. Find out more about it here.
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