FALCON POINTS

Memo to Astros, Rockets, Texans and Houston fans in general: Sports in this city can be fun again. Here's how we make it happen

Fred Faour
Feb 19, 2020, 7:54 am
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Being a Houston sports fan is not much fun these days. Astros fan is under siege for something they had nothing to do with.

Rockets fan? The world hates James Harden and who knows if this team is good enough to get over the hump?

The Dynamo? When was the last time they were actually competitive?

The Texans? Bill O'Brien makes it hard to love the team.

Sometimes, we need to be reminded that sports is supposed to be entertaining and fun. Enter the Roughnecks.

Having attended my first XFL game on Sunday, I was struck by two things: 1) Where did all these fans come from? 2) It was more of a party atmosphere than a sporting event atmosphere. And oh man, it was fun.

I don't know if the league will last. I delved into that last week. But they have captured something that is missing from most sporting events, especially in Houston.

It's supposed to be fun. And like it or not, most of the teams in this city are not as fun to watch as they should be.

Capturing something

More on that in a moment. The first question is something I have wrestled with. Are these Roughnecks fans people who just have O'Brien fatigue? Or don't want to pay NFL prices? WWE fans?

I think the answer is all that and more. Many of my friends who attended the game are not from Houston, and thus not Texans fans, but they can get behind the Roughnecks because they aren't fans of another XFL team from another city. It gives them a connection to Houston, the city they adopted, without sacrificing their NFL fandom.

As for the rest of Houston...

And let's be honest; it's hard to be a fan of the Big Three sports right now. The Rockets seem stuck in almost-contender status, and the Harden dribble, dribble, dribble, shoot a 3 offense is a turn off. Even if that is not entirely accurate, that's the narrative. Plus the game atmosphere can be staid, no matter how hard the marketing team tries. Many of the people aren't there to watch basketball, but to be seen. They leave their seats and walk in front of people in the middle of a play.

The Texans have some of the most fun players in the league in Deshaun Watson, DeAndre Hopkins and J.J. Watt. They are easy guys to root for. But O'Brien's stranglehold on the franchise makes for a hard sell. He was even caught yelling at a fan on video. His dictatorial rule and inflexible approach are complete turn offs. That, and NRG has always been a place where a lot of fans from other teams show up. That is to be expected in a city that is as transient as this one. For whatever reason, Texans games just don't feel fun very often. Certainly it is for the hardcore fans - any sport is - but the atmosphere often comes off as stagnant, especially when the team is not playing well. It's strange, because NRG also has some of the best tailgating in the league. But the fun part seems to stay in the parking lot far too often.

As for the Astros...the cheating scandal is certainly going to hang over the team and the fanbase. Houston's most fun team is now a giant question mark. Plus, with all the pending free agents, this year might be the last as legitimate World Series contenders.

There are others...

When the Dynamo were contenders, the atmosphere was electric, but that was a long time ago. UH football is a fun experience when they are winning big, which they have not done for three years. The basketball team has made Fertitta Center the place to be, but if you are not a UH fan...

The Sabercats and Skeeters have found niche audiences and are nice family experiences, but that is really on a different level.

What does it all mean?

Sports matches are supposed to be fun, win or lose. An experience for yourself or your children. Maybe the Astros should embrace their villainy with trash can giveaways or Darth Vader helmet giveaways. Have fun with it. The team and its fans are in the cross hairs right now, and none of it is the fans' fault. All they can do is embrace it and hope for the best.

To the Rockets credit, they do try, with a lot of packages that are fan friendly. But unless they somehow win a championship, it's hard to see them capturing the city. The Rockets do a lot of fun stuff, but the main product seems to turn people off. Harden fatigue, perhaps? Like any relationship, after a while, things can turn sour when you appear to be stuck in a rut. So liven it up with a drinking game: Take a shot every time Harden shoots a step back three. You will be drunk in a quarter, but it will be fun getting there.

Which brings us to the Texans. O'Brien has made them unlikeable, which is a shame. When a coach loses a fan base, the experience is not a fun one for anyone. A Texans Super Bowl would dwarf the Rockets titles and even the Astros, but it's hard to see it happening under O'Brien. Maybe he will prove us all wrong. Again, drinking game. A shot every time O'Brien calls a draw on third and 10-plus? Or every time he says "we have to coach better, we have to play better" in a press conference?

The point is the fans at the Roughnecks game were having fun. The party lasted three hours. It was just sheer joy of sports. Will they still be into it when the team loses a couple games? That remains to be seen. This is Houston, after all, home of the front-running fan. But it should remind us what we are supposed to take from sports. Entertainment. Fun. Win or lose.

And no, this is not about the hardcore fan, but the casual fan, who is not won over or who is frustrated. And that's OK, but irritation with a player or coach aside, you can still enjoy the experience. Many of you have become jaded - I hear from you all the time on the radio or see it on Twitter. But maybe take in a Roughnecks game and remember why you fell in love with sports in the first place. Then take that back to your Big Three fandom.

Sports is supposed to be the best reality TV. Sometimes it is a comedy. Sometimes a tragedy. Sometimes a feel-good story. That does not mean you can't bash O'Brien or get frustrated with Harden's playoff performances, or go nuts over the way the national media is pounding the Astros. But shouldn't we enjoy each experience and see how it plays out?

Maybe it's not a bad thing to be reminded that sports is supposed to be fun, especially now, when things seem so bleak and stagnant.

For a time, however brief, the Roughnecks have reminded us of that. What we do with it is up to us.

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Houston is moving on

Astros advance to ALDS with ALWC Game 2 win over Twins

Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

After rallying in the ninth inning in Game 1 to take the pivotal opener of this best-of-three ALWC series, the Astros were in the driver's seat to try and end the series on Wednesday with another win at Target Field. Here is a quick rundown of Game 2:

Final Score: Astros 3, Twins 1.

Series: HOU Wins 2-0.

Winning Pitcher: Cristian Javier.

Losing Pitcher: Cody Stashak.

Houston gets the first hit and first run in the fourth

Through the first three innings, neither team could get a hit off of Jose Berrios or Jose Urquidy, though the Twins did load the bases in the bottom of the first on two walks and an error, but Urquidy would strand the runners before getting 1-2-3 innings in the second and third.

Meanwhile, the Astros lineup was retired in order in three perfect innings by Berrios. That changed in the top of the fourth when Houston would get back-to-back two-out walks to set up the first hit of the game, an RBI-single by Kyle Tucker to give the Astros a 1-0 lead.

Dusty Baker makes another early call to the bullpen before Twins tie it up

Urquidy was able to keep the 1-0 lead by working around a two-out single in the bottom of the fourth, the first hit for the Twins. He returned in the fifth, allowing a leadoff single before a strikeout for the first out. Dusty Baker would pull another early hook, like Greinke the day prior, dipping into his bullpen early to end Urquidy's day at just 76 pitches in the fifth. His final line: 4.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 76 P.

Brooks Raley was who Baker called on to face the top of the Twins' lineup. He would walk his first batter, putting runners on first and second, get a strikeout for the second out, then allow an RBI-double to Nelson Cruz that almost scored a second, go-ahead run. Instead, the runner was out at home thanks to a terrific defensive play by Carlos Correa, bulleting the ball to Maldonado at home, who made a great tag to save the run and keep it tied 1-1.

Correa homers, Astros advance to ALDS

After Raley completed the fifth inning for Urquidy, Cristian Javier was the next reliever out to begin the bottom of the sixth. He would toss a 1-2-3 frame, sending the tie game to the seventh. In the top of the seventh, Carlos Correa broke the tie with a long, loud two-out solo home run to center-field, putting the Astros back in front 2-1.

Javier held on to the one-run lead in the bottom of the seventh by working around a leadoff walk, then returned for the eighth. He would get through it scoreless, despite allowing a one-out walk to Nelson Cruz, who would be pinch-ran for by the speedy Byron Buxton. After a strikeout for out number two, Javier would catch Buxton between first and second base in a rundown, getting the big final out of the inning.

Houston added insurance in the top of the ninth, getting two on base before an RBI-single by Kyle Tucker, his second of the day to make it 3-1. That left things up to closer Ryan Pressly, making his first appearance of the postseason. He would notch the save, advancing the Astros to the ALDS for their fourth-straight year.

Up Next: The Astros will now have a few days off to travel to the west coast before starting their ALDS with the winner of the A's / White Sox ALWC series. Game 1 of their ALDS will be on Monday, October 5th, at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, with start time TBD.

astros score astros recap astros vs twins twins score twins recap mlb mlb recap mlb score alwc game 2 alwc recap cristian javier astros

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