NERDS AROUND TOWN
Nerds Around Town: New comic books, My Chemical Romance and writer's block
Nov 8, 2019, 3:33 pm
ART BY JESUS RODRIGUEZ
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
Next weekend the Firefly 5k/10k Run is happening to benefit Buffalo Bayou Partnership, this is one of the cool ones. A nighttime run with lights and all kinds of fun costumes and afterwards there's a party. It's bright and fun and it benefits a great cause, so come out and get sweaty and be glowing and have a great time.
FOOD FEST
The Houston Food and Wine fest will be this Saturday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $55 and there's all kinds of good food and wine to be tried and eaten. There are over 20 foods and tons of 4 oz wine samples, now me personally, I'm not a wine guy but man do I love a food festival. There's all kinds of goodies to be had and who knows, you might find your new favorite dish and who doesn't love a new favorite dish.
WHILE YOU'RE OUT
There's some great books coming out this week including Legion of Super Heroes #1, it's a return from the future as the teen super heroes of the 31st Century come crashing back into DC Comics. This is a big deal because honestly, these guys are a huge part of DC lore and their absence has been criticized and discussed ad nauseum. X-Force #1, the reinvention of The X Men property continues as X-Force becomes the intelligence agency of the Island Nation of Krakoa. This is some very real and very exciting stuff, seeing new stories and a new way to engage the relationship between Mutants and the Marvel Universe. Seriously, check it out. Come by your local comic book shop and check it out.
MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE
My Chemical Romance has announced a reunion tour and young 20's me is super excited about all of this. I hope to god they are coming to Houston and a quick google reveals they aren't even coming to America but playing New Zealand, Australia and Japan. There's a reunion show in the states but otherwise nothing. What is going on here?! Hopefully these are just warm up shows and down the pipe is some great stuff but honestly, I don't think that's the case. I hope the shows are "get ready" shows, I hope they get back into the studio and make a new album, but as of right now all they have are a few shows scheduled. I loved The Black Parade and Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge and I really want another album like that… but so far they have a few shows scheduled. Not for nothing, they have Jimmy Eat World on the tour and I love them too.
NOT THAT YOU ASKED
So I'm a fairly open guy here and I like to make an honest approach to how my life is going and what it's like to be somebody working their way through freelance life. It isn't glamorous, it does afford me a different way of life and a questionably relaxed lifestyle but man I have been straining with a serious case of writer's block all freaking week. Everything I've been writing all week has been absolute crap and I totally apologize to anyone who reads my work this week.
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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Texans HC DeMeco Ryans reveals what he values most at scouting combine
Feb 28, 2025, 3:51 pm
Now that spring training is officially underway, we're able to make some observations about how the Astros 2025 roster is taking shape.
Houston's starting rotation is basically set, but we got to see Hayden Wesneski make his first start in an Astro uniform. Wesneski pitched two innings against the Mets on Tuesday, allowing one run with three strikeouts.
He's working on a curveball that's a new pitch for his repertoire, and he saw some success with it. Hopefully, adding this pitch will help keep batters off balance (especially left-handed hitters) and help elevate his game. Which is nothing new for the Astros, who have a history of helping pitchers get to the next level.
Forrest Whitley also looked good, pitching a clean inning and finishing off his final hitter with a 97 mph fastball. Whitley finally realizing his potential in the big leagues could be a huge deal for the Astros, as they're looking to lighten the workload for Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader this season.
Hader in particular could benefit from this adjustment, as he was much worse when pitching in non-save situations last season. An easy fix with Hader could be trying to limit his workload to mostly save situations. That way, you get the most out of him and achieve the goal of him pitching less innings this year.
The Houston Chronicle's Matt Kawahara wrote about Hader's struggles pitching when games were tied or Houston was trailing.
“Hader converted 34 of 38 save chances but faced more batters in non-save situations (142) than in save situations (136), a sharp pivot from his previous few seasons. Opponents slugged .271 against him in save situations and .411 in non-save situations, while his ERA was more than two runs higher (4.98) in the latter.”
And while it's easy to say “suck it up, you're getting paid a fortune to pitch,” if he's not having success in those situations, and you're looking to back off his workload, this seems like an obvious way to pivot. He's under contract for another four seasons, so the Astros are right to want to be careful with him.
Astros plate discipline
Manager Joe Espada has made it very clear that he would like his offense to see more pitches this season. And we're seeing a stark difference in the approaches from the newly acquired players (Isaac Paredes, Christian Walker) and Houston's returning hitters.
Keep in mind, Paredes was first in pitches per plate appearance last season, and Walker was 10th.
So it shouldn't come as a surprise that Paredes and Walker both worked a full count in their first at-bats on Tuesday, while Mauricio Dubon, Yainer Diaz, and Chas McCormick swung at every pitch in their first at-bats.
Hopefully the new blood in the clubhouse will rub off on the rest of the Astros lineup, which is full of free swingers, especially with Alex Bregman now playing for Boston.
Which is why we're so excited about Cam Smith's early results. While we're super pumped about his two home runs on Tuesday, we're equally impressed that he walked in his first two at-bats this spring. If anyone would naturally be jumping out of their shoes to make a strong first impression, you would think it's the guy that was traded for Kyle Tucker. But Smith was patient, and he was rewarded for it.
What is Dana Brown saying privately?
Just last offseason, Brown was talking about extending Tucker and Bregman while also signing Hader to a shocking 5-year, $95 million deal. Plus, the team signed Jose Altuve to a whopping $150 million extension. Fast-forward one year and Tucker has been traded, Bregman left in free agency, and Ryan Pressly was dealt in a salary dump. Safe to say, his vision for the ball club has changed drastically in one season. Welcome to baseball economics under Jim Crane!
We're just scratching the surface on everything covered in the video above. Be sure to hit play to watch the full conversation!
The countdown to Opening Day is on. 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. Click here to catch!
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