NERDS AROUND TOWN
Nerds Around Town: Direct TV vs. Disney, NFL is going crazy and great commercials
Sep 18, 2019, 7:23 am
Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio and Sports. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!
GOOD DEED OF THE DAY
This Saturday at 6 p.m. there's a walk to raise funds to cure Melanoma, called the Steps For Melanoma Walk. Check it out, look it up and donate or participate.
A GREAT DIVIDE
WWE is gearing up for its next chapter, with Smackdown moving to Friday's on Fox soon and they're talking about doing another draft and this time, not allowing for wildcards. So on Smackdown and Raw will be two distinct rosters with no cross over and no bleed over. There will be no "whoa what is so and so doing here" moments, they are basically creating three wrestling shows (once you factor in NXT on USA Wednesdays) and now there will be three separate brands. I don't know that splitting the baby so to speak, is a good idea.
AS THE NFL TURNS
Man this year has been crazy! We're down seven starting quarterbacks already, Andrew Luck, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, Sam Darnold then Trevor Siemian and now Cam Newton is day to day, but beyond that two teams are historically bad, one on purpose it looks like, The Dolphins and the Jets on accident. They paid a lot of money to Leveon Bell and they still aren't sure what the heck they're doing out there. They looked awful against the Browns. Adam Vinatieri is talking about demons in his head after missing seven kicks in three games and we haven't even gotten to Antonio Brown. Honestly, what's next? The NFL has been fascinating and also my fantasy team sucks.
DIRECT TV VS DISNEY
It appears this month may be the last month that ESPN and the rest of the Disney family might be on Direct TV. ESPN has been putting info on their bottom line asking viewers to call Direct TV and complain, so Direct TV has started blacking out the ESPN bottom line when it mentions them. This is a crazy war between two very large entities, but let me be very clear. If Disney walks from Direct TV, I cut the cord. That simple.
NOT THAT YOU ASKED
So while watching Smackdown, I noticed something odd, first an AEW wrestling TNT channel ad on the USA network WWE show. If TNT did that on purpose that is some great strategic ad buying during Smackdown. Also during USA's airing of Smackdown there was a commercial for Peacock, NBC's upcoming streaming service. There will literally be a streaming service from all sides. You will pick and choose and be miserable and lament your choices all the time.
Feel free to check out my brand new comic book Another Day at the Office or buy a shirt from Side Hustle Ts where some proceeds help people struggling with cancer or listen to Nerd Thug Radio. Thoughts, complaints, events and comments can be sent to corydlg@gmail.com.
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The Houston Astros (20-19) are just 4–6 over their last 10 games, but the numbers tell a more encouraging story. Despite the record, Houston is slowly but surely gaining ground in the AL West, sitting just two games back with a division-best +21 run differential. The standings may not fully reflect it yet, but the Astros are showing clear signs of being on the other side of their early offensive struggles.
Through the first month and change, the team’s season-long offensive stats still look pedestrian—14th in OPS (.697), 21st in slugging (.375), 20th in runs scored (163), and just 25th in home runs (33). But zoom in on the last 15 games, and the picture shifts dramatically.
In that span, the Astros have quietly put together one of the most productive offenses in baseball. And that's with Yordan Alvarez and Jose Altuve missing time due to injury. Houston ranks 4th in OPS (.805), 6th in slugging (.442), 7th in runs (64), and 5th in doubles (22). For a team with playoff expectations, that kind of turnaround is exactly what fans have been hoping for.
The resurgence has been powered in part by rising bats in the middle of the lineup. Christian Walker, who looked stuck in a rut early on, has caught fire over the past week, hitting .385 with a .500 slugging percentage over his last 7 games. Yainer Diaz is heating up too, hitting .310 with a .448 slug over that same stretch. Zoom out a little further, and Diaz has been even better—.339 average and .559 slugging over his last 15 games. His bat is starting to match the hype.
On the mound, the Astros have had their share of turbulence, particularly in Lance McCullers Jr.’s rocky return. Saturday’s 13–9 loss to the Reds underscored some of those struggles. McCullers failed to escape the first inning, giving up walks and hitting a batter before allowing a barrage of hits. Across his two starts since returning from injury, the right-hander has walked three batters and hit one in each outing.
Even so, Houston's pitching remains a strength overall. The Astros rank 8th in team ERA and lead the majors in WHIP (1.14), while holding opponents to the second-lowest batting average (.213). The bullpen, in particular, has been nails. Steven Okert, Josh Hader, Bryan Abreu, and Brian King have all posted ERAs of 1.59 or lower, keeping games within reach when starters falter.
There’s still work to do, and the standings don’t lie. But if the last two weeks are any indication, Houston is turning the corner. The bats are waking up, the bullpen is elite, and the rotation has room to get healthy and sharper. It might not show up in the win column just yet, but make no mistake—the Astros are trending in the right direction.
We have so much more to discuss. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday!
*ChatGPT assisted.
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