PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING
Here’s further proof that Houston Astros have beaten their haters into submission
Sep 20, 2022, 1:27 pm
The Astros won the AL West. Again! Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
The Houston Astros clinched their fifth American League West Championship in the past six seasons on Monday when they defeated Tampa Bay 4-0.
Houston’s success the past few years include a World Series championship, three AL championships and five straight ALCS appearances. The Astros are almost guaranteed to be the No. 1 seed in the AL again this postseason. However, the Astros’ success has been long overshadowed by the sign stealing scandal in 2017.
Despite the public backlash, loss of key players and change in leadership, there has been one constant — Houston keeps winning. With yet another season in which the Astros dominated the AL West, it looks like the team is beginning to give outsiders no choice but to acknowledge that they are just that good. 2017 was not an aberration. It was the beginning, and national media is catching on.
In an article from Deadspin’s Sam Fels, he brought up what Astros fans know more than anyone else. When the team has success, and posts about it on social media specifically, people are quick to dismiss it due to the five-year-old cheating scandal.
The irony is that Houston was not alone in stealing signs, which Fels mentioned. Both the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox have been linked to doing similar deeds. Boston even brought back their manager after he was punished for it. The difference, however, is that the Astros have never fallen off the mountain top.
Five straight seasons have seen Houston make it to the ALCS, which might just have to be renamed the Astros invitational at some point. Not even the Los Angeles Dodgers, who are the closest team that has mirrored the Astros’ success can boast that in the National League.
Houston’s done it with the core that won the 2017 World Series, and they’ve done it with new players too. Trey Mancini, who only recently joined the Astros at the trade deadline, told MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart the team’s culture is just different.
Everyone wants their team to be the Astros, that’s what everyone is really angry about, Fels said in his article. Deadspin is one of the first, and if Houston keeps winning, other national outlets, even those based in Los Angeles and New York, will have no choice but to acknowledge that as well.
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Nick Chubb didn’t expect to be a Houston Texan. At least, not until he got the call on a quiet Saturday at home and was on a flight the next day. It happened fast — too fast, even, for the four-time Pro Bowler to fully process what it all meant. But now that he’s here, it’s clear this wasn’t a random landing spot. This was a calculated leap, one Chubb had been quietly considering from afar.
The reasons he chose Houston speak volumes not only about where Chubb is in his own career, but where the Texans are as a franchise.
For one, Chubb saw what the rest of the league saw the last two seasons: a young team turning the corner. He admired the Texans from a distance — the culture shift under head coach DeMeco Ryans, the explosive rise of C.J. Stroud, and the physical tone set by players like Joe Mixon. That identity clicked with Chubb. He’d been a fan of Ryans for years, and once he got in the building, everything aligned.
“I came here and saw a bunch of guys who like to work and not talk,” Chubb said. “And I realized I'm a perfect fit.”
As for his health, Chubb isn’t running from the injuries that cost him parts of the past two seasons, he’s owning them. But now, he says, they’re behind him. After a full offseason of training the way he always has — hitting his speed and strength benchmarks — Chubb says he’s feeling the best he has in years. He’s quick to remind people that bouncing back from major injuries, especially the one he suffered in 2023, is rarely a one-year journey. It takes time. He’s given it time.
Then there’s his fit with Mixon. The two aren’t just stylistic complements, they go way back. Same recruiting class, same reputation for running hard, same respect for each other’s games. Chubb remembers dreading matchups against the Bengals in Cleveland, worrying Mixon would take over the game. Now, he sees the opportunity in pairing up. “It’ll be us kinda doing that back-to-back against other defenses,” he said.
He’s also well aware of what C.J. Stroud brings to the table. Chubb watched Stroud nearly dismantle Georgia in the College Football Playoff. Then he saw it again, up close, when Stroud lit up the Browns in the postseason. “He torched us again,” Chubb said. Now, he gets to run alongside him, not against him.
Stroud made a point to welcome Chubb, exchanging numbers and offering support. It may seem like a small thing, but it’s the kind of leadership that helped sell Chubb on the Texans as more than just a good football fit — it’s a good locker room fit, too.
It appears the decision to come to Houston wasn’t part of some master plan. But in retrospect, it makes perfect sense. Chubb is a player with a no-nonsense work ethic, recovering from adversity, looking to write the next chapter of a career that’s far from over. And the Texans? They’re a team on the rise, built around guys who want to do the same.
You can watch the full interview in the video below.
And for those wondering how Joe Mixon feels about Nick Chubb, check out this video from last season. Let's just say he's a fan.
I’ve seen some speculation indicating that Joe Mixon may not be happy the Texans signed Nick Chubb. If that is what you believe, watch this clip from an interview with @greenlight pod last year & get back to me. pic.twitter.com/3vaip85esj
— Houston Stressans (@TexansCommenter) June 11, 2025
*ChatGPT assisted.
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