HOUSTON THE BEAUTIFUL
Houston shines among America's best places to celebrate 4th of July
Jul 1, 2019, 3:43 pm
HOUSTON THE BEAUTIFUL
Houston is a pretty good place to be for the Fourth of July.
This article originally appeared on CultureMap.
Fourth of July is upon us, and Houston is just the place to be, according to a new study that names H-Town among the top places to celebrate the holiday.
Personal finance website WalletHub recently released a list of the best and worst places to celebrate July Fourth this year, ranking Houston No. 3 in Texas and No. 27 nationally. The site graded each city on its celebrations, affordability, attractions and activities, safety and accessibility, and — always crucial — weather.
Houston, where there are plenty of events and fireworks extravaganzas to choose from, ranks ninth in celebrations, 28th in affordability, and 31st for attractions and activities. Regarding safety and accessibility, we rank 70th, and for holiday weather, we're just about the worst (99th out of 100).
WalletHub isn't the only one taking notice of Houston this summer. Travel site Priceline deems it the country's top spot for millennials to spend the Fourth of July, as well as the most affordable destination, based on holiday hotel bookings. Dallas takes the No. 2 spot on both lists.
Continue reading on CultureMap to see where other Texas cities rank on the list.
Two first-place teams, identical records, and a weekend set with serious measuring-stick energy.
The Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs open a three-game series Friday night at Daikin Park, in what could quietly be one of the more telling matchups of the summer. Both teams enter at 48-33, each atop their respective divisions — but trending in slightly different directions.
The Astros have been red-hot, going 7-3 over their last 10 while outscoring opponents by 11 runs. They've done it behind one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, with a collective 3.41 ERA that ranks second in the American League. Houston has also been dominant at home, where they’ve compiled a 30-13 record — a stat that looms large heading into this weekend.
On the other side, the Cubs have held their ground in the NL Central but have shown some recent shakiness. They're 5-5 over their last 10 games and have given up 5.66 runs per game over that stretch. Still, the offense remains dangerous, ranking fifth in on-base percentage across the majors. Kyle Tucker leads the way with a .287 average, 16 homers, and 49 RBIs, while Michael Busch has been hot of late, collecting 12 hits in his last 37 at-bats.
Friday’s pitching matchup features Houston’s Brandon Walter (0-1, 3.80 ERA, 1.10 WHIP) and Chicago’s Cade Horton (3-1, 3.73 ERA, 1.29 WHIP), a promising young arm making one of his biggest starts of the season on the road. Horton will have his hands full with Isaac Paredes, who’s slugged 16 homers on the year, and Mauricio Dubón, who’s found a groove with four home runs over his last 10 games.
It’s the first meeting of the season between these two clubs — and if the trends continue, it may not be the last time they cross paths when it really counts.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -112, Cubs -107; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
Here's a preview of Joe Espada's Game 1 lineup.
The first thing that stands out is rookie Cam Smith is hitting cleanup, followed by Jake Meyers. Victor Caratini is the DH and is hitting sixth. Christian Walker is all the way down at seventh, followed by Yainer Diaz, and Taylor Trammell who is playing left field.
How the mighty have fallen.
Pretty wild to see Walker and Diaz hitting this low in the lineup. However, it's justified, based on performance. Walker is hitting a pathetic .214 and Diaz is slightly better sporting a .238 batting average.
Screenshot via: MLB.com
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