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Houston Texans slated for Christmas Day game on Netflix
May 15, 2024, 2:29 pm
Houston will host Baltimore on Christmas Day. Composite Getty Image.
Netflix and the NFL announced a three-year deal Wednesday to stream games on Christmas Day.
The streaming giant will carry two games this year and at least one game in 2025 and ‘26. Netflix announced during a presentation to advertisers that it will have defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City at Pittsburgh followed by Baltimore at Houston.
We'll be home for Christmas 🎁 pic.twitter.com/cHwKKWC3ll
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) May 15, 2024
“Last year, we decided to take a big bet on live — tapping into massive fandoms across comedy, reality TV, sports and more,” Bela Bajaria, Netflix's chief content officer, said in a statement. “There are no live annual events, sports or otherwise, that compare with the audiences NFL football attracts. We’re so excited that the NFL’s Christmas Day games will be only on Netflix.”
Netflix began airing NFL programming last year with the series “Quarterback." A series on wide receivers will premiere this year.
Netflix began airing live sports last year, but they were exhibition events in golf and tennis. It is also slated to air the July 20 bout between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul and next year will start carrying World Wrestling Entertainment’s flagship show, “Raw.”
The NFL has played a total of 30 games on Christmas Day since 1971, including three last year. It has stayed away from midweek games, though, until this year.
In keeping with the NFL's longstanding policy on games that are carried on cable or streaming platforms, Netflix's Christmas games will air on broadcast TV in the competing teams' home cities and will be available on mobile devices in the U.S. with NFL+.
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The Houston Astros will look to even their season series against the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night as they return to Daikin Park for what promises to be a tightly contested matchup. First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. ET, with two left-handers taking the mound—Framber Valdez for Houston and Kris Bubic for Kansas City.
The Royals come into the game riding a three-game road winning streak and holding a 3-1 edge in the season series. Winners of eight of their last ten games, Kansas City has been one of the hottest teams in baseball lately, thanks in large part to their league-best 3.01 ERA. Bubic has been a key part of that success, boasting a 4-2 record and an impressive 1.69 ERA over 47 strikeouts this season.
Meanwhile, the Astros are trying to find some consistency. At 20-20 overall, Houston has been streaky to start the year, but they’ve been strong at home with a 13-9 record. When they out-hit their opponents, they’re a formidable 16-8, and they’ll be hoping the bats show up again Tuesday.
Framber Valdez will get the ball for the Astros. While his 2-4 record doesn’t reflect it, he’s been steady with a 3.94 ERA and 44 strikeouts. He’ll face a Kansas City lineup that’s been clicking—especially Maikel Garcia, who’s hitting .295 with 10 doubles and 17 RBIs on the year, and Vinnie Pasquantino, who’s batting .349 over his last ten games.
Houston’s lineup has some heat of its own. Jeremy Peña leads the team with five home runs, and Yainer Díaz has been scorching over the past ten games, going 16-for-43 with two homers and nine RBIs.
The Royals have outscored opponents by 16 runs over their last ten games, while the Astros have managed a +6 differential in that span despite going 4-6. With two talented pitchers on the mound and both offenses showing signs of life, Tuesday’s game could come down to which team capitalizes on the small moments.
The Astros are slight favorites according to BetMGM (-141), but with the way Kansas City has been playing, this one feels like it could go either way.
*ChatGPT assisted.
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