NERDS AROUND TOWN
Nerds Around Town: The Mandalorian, Thanksgiving and Undercity Tales
Nov 25, 2019, 6:36 am
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
This is one of the best charity ideas I've heard yet. It's called "Let's Bring 'Em Home" and the charity buys tickets for soldiers in the Armed Forces and flies them home from overseas. Nerd Thug Radio and The Adventure Begins Comics, Games and More will be holding an event to benefit these guys on December 13th. The Nerd Thug Takeover of Adventure Begins will happen starting at 6pm and on December 13th and all proceeds from sales will go to benefit "Let's Bring 'Em Home".
UNDERCITY TALES
Undercity Tales is a great Kickstarter success story. Mike Tener is a guy I found when he was running a crowdfunder for Black Jackets earlier this year. At the time I talked about that project and had him on the radio show to talk about it, it was a success and it was also a great project overall, one of my favorite this year. Undercity Tales was his next project and I recently got my copy of it in the mail, and it only continues his successful run of work. Created and produced by him, it tales a story written by Scott Wilke with art by Brian Balonado, colors by Bryan Arfel Magnaye and Letters by Matt Krotzer. Everyone does a great job and it's a great single issue story to introduce you to the world Tener's created. The story is a single issue murder mystery and it doesn't disappoint, tons of great characters with an interesting story, there's a bit of a pacing issue in the beginning as they rush you through the early details of a murder mystery that in a regular Law and Order episode would take a little longer, but overall it uses the saved pages to give a better finale to the story. Very much worth the read and whatever is coming next from Mike Tener is worth reading, because in my book he's 2/2 on awesome first issues.
THE HOLIDAYS
This time of year for a lot of people brings up complicated feelings and bad memories. Not everyone loves the holidays as much as they could and that's because of things that might've been out of their control as well. Check on your people, say nice things and be there for each other because as unexcited as you are for the in-laws to visit, they're even more unexcited for even the day on the calendar and all the focus on holidays and family and all of that. No matter what they turn off or tune out, something else is rubbing this time of year into their faces and that's a problem for them, so just make sure your people are ok for the holidays.
THE MANDALORIAN
Honestly, this show is great. This is what I've always talked about when I talked about how interesting the Star Wars Universe was but it was being crowded with conversations about Luke Skywalker kissing his sister. There was more to this universe than just the Skywalker family and this is exactly the kind of story I'm talking about. A mercenary trying to do right by his people finds a higher calling when asked to do the unaskable, kill a baby. You have to check this show out if you haven't and it's worth the $12.99 for Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+.
NOT THAT YOU ASKED
This week I got to do something SUPER cool and had my first event as Cory de la Guardia the comic book creator. It was a signing at Space Cadets Collection Collection on local comic shop day and it was very cool. I made a few new friends/fans and helped them sale a couple copies of my book, it was a very cool experience and I would like to thank Jen King for helping make it happen.
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.
So where does one turn now in Houston for mediocre, overpriced salsa? I kid, I kid. While wondering if Breggy Baked Beans are on the horizon. Congrats to Alex Bregman and agent Scott Boras for landing an on its face outlandish three-year 120-million dollar contract with the Boston Red Sox. With deferred money part of the deal the contract will be valuated in the neighborhood of “only” three years 90 million. Would Bregman have taken that from the Astros if offered? The Astros’ six-year 156-million dollar proposal was 26 mil per season. Bregman has the right to opt out after each of the first two seasons of his BoSox deal. If his decline (while still a very good player) of the last two seasons continues, or even if he holds steady, there is near zero chance of Bregman opting out unless he hates life in New England. At the end of the three years, will Bregman be able to land a three-year 66 million-dollar deal when he’s about to turn 34 years old? That plus the 90 mil with deferrals accounted for in his new deal would total 156 million. Massachusetts taxes personal income of just over a million dollars and upward at a nine percent rate. Playing half his games in the Bay State, Bregman will pay Massachusetts tax on half his salary.
Reminders...
Bregman obviously had an excellent Astros’ career, among non-pitchers he is top 10 all-time, but the excellence was frontloaded. Over Bregman’s first three big seasons he compiled a .289 batting average and .924 OPS. Elite numbers. Over the five seasons since: .261 and .795. Good, nothing legendary. After his monster MVP runner-up 2019 season (stats aided by the juiced balls of that season) Bregman was on a strong early Hall of Fame track. Now not so much, without some offensive resurgence. Fenway Park should suit Bregman well. He’ll bang singles and doubles off of the Green Monster, though the much higher than Crawford Boxes wall will not goose his home run numbers. In his time with the Astros Bregman mashed at Fenway with a .375 batting average and 1.240 OPS. That’s in a statistically not very significant 98 regular season plate appearances.
It is myth that Bregman in the postseason was some relentless hitting machine. He posted phenomenal numbers over seven Division Series batting .333 with an OPS over 1.000. Over 68 American League Championship Series and World Series games: batting average .196, OPS sub-.700.
For his career, Bregman’s worst month of performance by far has been April (plus any days in March, .737 OPS). In 2024 Bregman was baseball garbage into mid-May. Should a typical slow start happen again, we’ll see what the Fenway faithful patience level is. By far, Bregman’s best batting month has been August (.992 OPS). As it works out, both Astros-Red Sox series are in August this year. First in Boston August 1-3 then in Houston August 11-13.
Who's on third?
Over the last two seasons combined, new Astros’ third baseman Isaac Paredes has been as good offensively as Bregman. That includes Paredes pretty much stinking for two months in Chicago after being dealt from the Rays to the Cubs. Paredes, who turns 26 years old on Tuesday, was an AL All-Star last season. Bregman, who turns 31 March 30, was last an All-Star in 2019. The defensive drop-off from Bregman to Paredes is a fairly steep one.
There is no question that Bregman’s official departure weakens the Astros via a domino effect. Had Bregman wound up staying here, Paredes would have shifted to second base with Jose Altuve primarily in left field. Now, 600-plus plate appearances that Bregman would have taken project to be divided among Mauricio Dubon, Ben Gamel, Zach Dezenzo, and others. That projects as a substantial offensive downgrade. The lineup net result of the Astros’ offseason is negative. Christian Walker and Paredes joining the infield in lieu of Jon Singleton and Bregman is fine. Kyle Tucker out, hodge-podge in in the outfield, oh boy.
Alex Bregman is an unquestioned gamer, leader, and would seem to have the temperament to take well to the more intense baseball environment of Boston relative to that in Houston. Yankee fans should reeeeally love him now!
New beginnings
Considering baseball wasn’t invented until more than a century later, the poet Alexander Pope did not have baseball in mind when in 1732 he wrote “Hope springs eternal (in the human breast).” It works though. Other than the Chicago White Sox and Colorado Rockies, Major League teams have convened in Florida or Arizona thinking if things break right this could be their year! I’d probably put the Miami Marlins in with the ChiSox and Rockies. Many Astros’ fans are strongly disgruntled over the departures of Bregman and Kyle Tucker. This team still has “gruntlement” potential. The batting order appears Morganna-level (Google as necessary) top heavy, but one through five stacks well versus most other lineups. In the American League only the Mariners, Yankees, and maybe Royals have starting pitching rotations that should rate above the Astros’ rotation. Let the countdown to Opening Day begin!
Spring training is up and running. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me 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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