TESTING LOYALTY
Paul Muth: Astros decision makes it tough on hardcore fans
Jul 31, 2018, 8:54 pm
The Osuna case is hard on Astros fans. Julio Aguilar/Getty Images
Sport is typically utilized by many as an escape from reality. For most, the team logo can do no wrong and it's safe to blindly throw loyalty behind it.
As times change, so to does society's collective morality and code of ethics. We have learned through test cases in recent years, however, that sports franchises aren't as quick to evolve.
It's at this crossroads that the Baltimore Ravens found themselves at in 2014 with running back Ray Rice, who was caught on camera brutally assaulting his then fiancee in an elevator. The NFL levied a whole two-game suspension before the court of public opinion altered the verdict to an indefinite suspension.
The Dallas Cowboys then found themselves under similar scrutiny upon signing defensive end Greg Hardy, who was found guilty of domestic abuse in 2014. “America's team” weathered a firestorm of public ire as a result, and the Cowboys chose not to resign at the season's end.
There have been other instances of accused abusers continuing to remain gainfully employed since then. There’s Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman, boxer Floyd Mayweather, and plenty others that may or may not surprise you. The one common theme of them all is that there is a proportional ratio in regards to talent vs acceptable malfeasance threshold. The more talented you are, the more willing a team -- despite its fan base’s majority stance -- is willing to take a chance on you, despite being a despicable human being.
The Houston Astros took one of those very chances on Monday by trading maligned relief pitcher Ken Giles and prospects to the Toronto Blue Jays for Roberto Osuna. Osuna, who looks to compete for the Astros closer role, is currently serving the tail end of a 75-game suspension that was handed down after a domestic violence incident in May. He will be eligible to play Aug. 5. The move has suddenly taken an issue that Houston fans have been able to casually observe and remark upon from a distance and dropped it right in their lap.
Astros-mania, following their 2017 World Series victory, is at an all time high. The stadium is fuller, the lines are longer, and orange shirts and jerseys have become far more prevalent in day-to-day passing. Now new fans and old alike are found in the same predicament: remain loyal to their team logo, or admit that maybe their team shouldn’t hitch their wagon to anything that remotely insinuates a lackadaisical stance regarding premiere athletes physically abusing women.
The issue is no longer one that can be debated from a safe distance. Houston fans were quick to point at the failings of the Cowboys organization for their signing of Hardy. Now that an almost identical situation has been set at the Astros’ doorstep -- on their own volition -- suddenly those same fans have taken a much softer approach.
“Innocent until proven guilty.”
“The front office did their research.”
These are real statements that have been tossed out in order to allow fans to put their ear muffs on and continue blindly watching their team while a massive black eye encircles Minute Maid Park. That type of hypocrisy based on proximity is absolutely unacceptable and should not be tolerated. Winning is important. But winning at the expense of conscience and credibility is worth taking pause over.
You can remain a good, moral human being and still enjoy your Astros. That’s entirely possible and acceptable. In doing so, however, it’s imperative to recognize that no win total or trophy can or should serve as a placeholder for an ethical approach to team-building. Root for your team, but also acknowledge that this move was a mistake, no matter how good Osuna is.
He may turn out great. For all anyone knows, he may be the one piece that moves Houston over the edge this season en route to another World Series victory. If that moment comes to pass, I will certainly be elated. Nothing Osuna accomplishes on a baseball diamond, however, will alter my opinion of him or cause me to defend any of his actions. Develop or maintain a zero tolerance threshold for domestic violence and do not defend a woman beater simply because he joined your favorite team.
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Houston spent time this week practicing an inbound play that coach Kelvin Sampson thought his team might need against Purdue.
Milos Uzan, the third option, ran it to perfection.
He tossed the ball to Joseph Tugler, who threw a bounce pass right back to Uzan, and the 6-foot-4 guard soared to the rim for an uncontested layup with 0.9 seconds left, giving the top-seeded Cougars a 62-60 victory — and a matchup with second-seeded Tennessee in Sunday's Elite Eight.
“Great execution at a time we needed that,” said Sampson, who is a win away from making his third Final Four and his second with Houston in five years. “You never know when you’re going to need it.”
The Cougars (33-4) made only one other basket over the final eight minutes, wasted a 10-point lead and then missed two more shots in the final 5 seconds. A replay review with 2.2 seconds left confirmed Houston would keep the ball when it rolled out of bounds after the second miss.
Uzan took over from there.
“I was trying to hit (L.J. Cryer) and then JoJo just made a great read,” Uzan said. “He was able to draw two (defenders) and he just made a great play to hit me back.”
Houston advanced to the Elite Eight for the third time in five years after falling in the Sweet 16 as a top seed in the previous two editions of March Madness. It will take the nation's longest winning streak, 16 games, into Sunday’s Midwest Region final.
The Cougars joined the other three No. 1 seeds in this year's Elite Eight and did it at Lucas Oil Stadium, where their 2021 tourney run ended with a loss in the Final Four to eventual national champion Baylor.
They haven't lost since Feb. 1.
Uzan scored 22 points and Emanuel Sharp had 17 as Houston survived an off night from leading scorer Cryer, who finished with five points on 2-of-13 shooting.
Houston still had to sweat out a half-court heave at the buzzer, but Braden Smith's shot was well off the mark.
Fletcher Loyer scored 16 points, Trey Kaufman-Renn had 14 and Smith, the Big Ten player of the year, added seven points and 15 assists for fourth-seeded Purdue (24-12). Smith assisted on all 11 second-half baskets for last year’s national runner-up, which played in front of a friendly crowd about an hour’s drive from its campus in West Lafayette.
“I thought we fought really hard and we dug down defensively to get those stops to come back,” Smith said. “We did everything we could and we just had a little miscommunication at the end and they converted. Props to them.”
Houston appeared on the verge of disaster when Kaufman-Renn scored on a dunk and then blocked Cryer’s shot with 1:17 to go, leading to Camden Heide’s 3 that tied the score at 60 with 35 seconds left.
Sampson called timeout to set up the final play, but Uzan missed a turnaround jumper and Tugler’s tip-in rolled off the rim and out of bounds. The Cougars got one more chance after the replay review.
Sharp's scoring flurry early in the second half finally gave Houston some separation after a back-and-forth first half. His 3-pointer at the 16:14 mark made it 40-32. After Purdue trimmed the deficit to four, Uzan made two 3s to give Houston a 10-point lead in a tough, physical game that set up a rare dramatic finish in this year's tourney.
“Smith was guarding the inbounder, so he had to take JoJo,” Sampson said. “That means there was no one there to take Milos. That's why you work on that stuff day after day.”
Takeaways
Purdue: Coach Matt Painter's Boilermakers stumbled into March Madness with six losses in their final nine games but proved themselves a worthy competitor by fighting their way into the Sweet 16 and nearly taking down a No. 1 seed.
Houston: The Cougars lead the nation in 3-point percentage and scoring defense, an enviable combination.
Scary fall
Houston guard Mylik Wilson gave the Cougars a brief scare with 13:23 left in the game. He leapt high into the air to grab a rebound and drew a foul on Kaufman-Renn.
As the play continued, Wilson was undercut and his body twisted around before he landed on his head. Wilson stayed down momentarily, rubbing his head, but eventually got up and remained in the game.