WATT A SHOW!

J.J. Watt, Jose Altuve, and Carlos Beltran score big at Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year Awards

J.J. Watt, Jose Altuve, and Carlos Beltran score big at Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year Awards
Jose Altuve and J.J. Watt won big. Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for Sports Illustrated

Originally appeared on CultureMap/Houston.

If your Sunday morning plans are centered around TV and chill, we suggest you tune into NBCSN, as Houston will be the MVP of the 2017 Sportsperson of the Year Award Show.

As seen all over social media this week, J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans, and José Altuve of the World Series Champion Houston Astros, are both 2017 Sportsperson of the Year recipients. (Cool local angle: Houston men’s style house Festari dressed and styled Altuve for the SI cover.) The show originally aired Friday night. 

You can expect some serious Htown love when Houston native (and NFL great) Michael Strahan presents the award to the two local legends, with a speech recognizing their contributions to the Houston community.

With his trademark humility, Watt credited first responders and citizens in his acceptance speech: “I don’t think I could accept this award without mentioning the 200,000 people who donated to the fund…without mentioning all the firefighters and policeman, and all the people who got their own boats and went out in the streets to help save people. This award is about humans being good to help other humans and I think it’s incredible,” he says. For a refresher, Watt’s total donations topped $37 million.

Fresh off his retirement announcement, Astros star Carlos Beltran has been given the first-ever Hope Award from SI for using his platform to help Puerto Rico rebuild after Hurricane Maria.

“As a Puerto Rican, I’m extremely proud to be from the Island that has given me so much support throughout my 20-year career in baseball,” Beltran says. Beyoncé even makes an appearance — furthering the Htown dominance — as she and Daily Show host Trevor Noah presented Colin Kaepernick with the SI Muhammad Ali Legacy Award.

But who are we kidding? It’s all about Justin James, and Altuve.

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The Sports Illustrated 2017 Sportsperson of the Year Award Show first aired nationally on NBCSN at 7 pm, Friday, Dec. 8. NBCSN will air an encore presentation of Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year at 9 pm, Sunday, December 10; and 10:30 pm, Tuesday, December 12.

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Hunter Brown takes the mound for Houston Tuesday night. Composite Getty Image.

The Houston Astros will look to even their three-game set against the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night at Daikin Park, with ace-in-the-making Hunter Brown taking the mound.

The Astros (55-36) dropped the series opener 7-5 on Monday, snapping a stretch that saw them win six of their last eight games. But they'll have their best arm on the hill in Brown, who enters with a 9-3 record, a sparkling 1.82 ERA, and a microscopic 0.90 WHIP. The right-hander has been the definition of dominant this season, striking out 126 batters and giving Houston a clear edge in any matchup he starts.

Cleveland (41-48) will counter with Joey Cantillo, who has impressed in limited action. The lefty owns a 3.41 ERA and will face a Houston lineup that has been red-hot, batting .298 over the last 10 games and piling up runs behind contributions from Victor Caratini, Cam Smith, and Jose Altuve.

Despite Monday’s setback, the Astros are still 32-15 at home and boast a 43-13 record when outhitting their opponent. Cleveland, meanwhile, has lost nine of its last 10 and is hitting just .187 over that span — though Jose Ramirez and Steven Kwan remain threats to change a game with one swing.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jake Meyers has 15 doubles, two triples, three home runs and 21 RBIs for the Astros. Meyers is dealing with a calf issue and was out of the lineup for Game 1 versus the Guardians.

Caratini is 10 for 38 with two doubles and four home runs over the past 10 games.

Tuesday marks the fifth meeting between the two clubs this season, with the series tied 2-2. With Brown on the mound and the offense continuing to click, Houston will try to reclaim control and keep pace atop the American League.

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -211, Guardians +173; over/under is 7 runs.

Lineup breakdown

Here's an early look at Houston's lineup for Game 2. Spots 1-6 are the same as Game 1, except Cooper Hummel is playing left field, with Altuve in the DH spot. Mauricio Dubon is hitting seventh and playing second base, with Zack Short (SS) hitting eighth, followed by Taylor Trammell batting ninth and playing center field. Jake Meyers is out of the lineup again with a calf issue.



 

  Image via: MLB.com/Screenshot


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