ENFORCED ERRORS
Ken Hoffman calls a strike on Fox Sports' coverage of the Astros
Jun 24, 2019, 4:20 pm
Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
This article originally appeared on CultureMap.
Note to Fox Sports: Next time you cover an Astros game, leave your announcers at home. They're awful. Just let the Astros broadcast crew handle the game. We've got it covered.
On June 22, the Astros were in New York to face the Yankees. It was a national game on Fox Sports (Channel 26 here), and the Fox announcers were Aaron Goldsmith, who normally does Seattle Mariners games on radio, A.J. Pierzynski, who played 19 years in the big leagues, and Ken Rosenthal, who wears a bowtie.
It was like they had never seen a baseball game before. Truly amazing and painful and annoying all at once. And I'm not one of those homers who thinks announcers and umpires are against Houston teams.
Kemp, not Sipp
For example: They announced that Tony Sipp was coming to the plate to bat for Jake Marisnick. Tony Sipp, while a former Astro, is now a pitcher with the Washington Nationals. They meant to say Tony Kemp. But I guess any Tony would do in a pinch … hit.
At one point, Astros catcher Max Stassi interfered with Aaron Judge's swing and Judge was awarded first base. The announcers went on for several minutes how Stassi would get an error for the play and poor Judge would be assessed an at bat, which would hurt his batting average. They said how unlucky it would be if Judge hit .299 for the season. If not for Stassi's interference, he would have hit .300.
Wrong! Judge was not assessed an at bat — his batting average would not be affected, now or the end of the season. The weird part, Pierzynski was a catcher for all those years in Major League Baseball. He didn't know the rule about catcher's interference?
Bad math
The Fox announcers said the Astros were leading their division by 4 1/2 games. No, try 7 1/2 games.
Then, the cruelest cut of all. Because the Yankees would be playing the Red Sox next week in England, the announcers brought Henry the Eighth into the conversation. That was a reach. I guess they were stretching for some English references. How about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Brexit, England's undefeated women's soccer team in the World Cup, Mick Jagger back on tour, or fish 'n' chips next time? England's fish 'n' chips are incredible. It's because they fry the fish in beef fat. Disgusting and dangerous, yet delicious.
One of the Fox announcers said that Big Hank No. 8 was beheaded, and they went on and on about the 16th-century monarch who gave Larry King a run for his money on number of wives. According to lore, Henry had six wives. King has been married eight times, though he's had only seven wives. He married one of them twice. I'll let Elias Sports Bureau decide King's total.
An F in history
The point is, Henry the Eighth was not…
Continue reading on CultureMap to hear Ken Hoffman's advice for Fox announcers.
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Astros get just enough but lose a key contributor late
Jun 12, 2025, 11:22 pm
NFL analyst Albert Breer isn’t buying the quiet offseason surrounding the Houston Texans. In his view, the buzz — or lack of it — isn’t reflective of what this team actually is: a legitimate AFC contender that should be taken seriously in 2025.
Much of the skepticism, Breer believes, comes from surface-level narratives. The Texans went 10-7 in the regular season last year, a step back from the lofty expectations set after C.J. Stroud’s electric rookie year and Houston’s dramatic playoff push. And while the offense didn’t maintain its early-season explosion under Bobby Slowik, people seem to be overlooking how that same Texans team ended the year: as one of the last four teams standing in the AFC — alongside the Chiefs, Bills, and Ravens.
In Breer’s eyes, Houston belongs in that group. The defense is championship-caliber, with rising stars and playmakers at every level. And offensively, the switch to Nick Caley as offensive coordinator could be just what the unit needs. Caley brings a fresh voice and perspective, and paired with a fully settled-in Stroud, the Texans are well-positioned to take another leap forward.
One moment Breer points to as underrated: Houston’s Divisional Round game against Kansas City at Arrowhead. While most remember the Texans bowing out of the playoffs there, many forget they were trailing by just one point going into the fourth quarter — toe-to-toe with the defending Super Bowl champs in one of the toughest environments in football.
The Texans’ current win total is set at 9.5 by oddsmakers — a line Breer believes is too low. His expectation? Twelve wins and another deep playoff run. To him, the narrative that Houston is being “slept on” will disappear soon enough — likely around the time the Texans remind everyone why they’re still a problem in the AFC.
You can watch the video below for the full conversation.
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*ChatGPT assisted.
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