The Men’s 5-on-5 Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Match features some of the biggest names in the industry. Photo by WWE.com
Houston, we’re in for a treat as the WWE will be invading our city for four straight days of action.
NXT: WAR GAMES
NXT is no stranger to shows in Houston. Their two latest tours had successful stops in our city. Neither of those events, though, even comes close to the magnitude of NXT: War Games. This will be the first time an NXT show in Houston is held inside of The Toyota Center, and, boy, did they put together a card worthy of the move to a bigger venue.
Kassius Ohno will open the show against Lars Sullivan. Two big, hard hitting, guys will be facing off in a match that will surely set the tone for the night. NXT does a very good job of setting up their shows through their opening matches; this match should do a great job at that.
Aleister Black vs Velveteen Dream is a match that could easily fall under the radar. That being said, creative has done a good job handling these two characters. Will it be as hard hitting as Ohno vs Sullivan? Probably not. That should not be a detriment to this match, though.
A Fatal Four Way match will determine who will be the new NXT Women’s Champion. This match perhaps has my favorite story out of any on the card. Peyton Royce, Ember Moon, and Nikki Cross have now been on NXT for a while but have never been able to get over the hump thanks to Asuka and her incredible reign as champion. Kari Sane is an international wrestler held to the highest regards. She won the WWE’s May Young Classic tournament in her first few weeks in the company. I have no idea who will win this match, and I absolutely love that.
Drew McIntyre will defend his NXT Championship against Andrade “Cien” Almas. Seeing the progress Almas has made since his arrival to NXT has been great. That being said, McIntyre is champion for a reason. This match may not feel as big as a Balor vs Samoa Joe or a Roode vs Nakamura, but I have absolutely no doubt that this match will deliver.
The match the event is named after, War Games, will close the show. This match will be a beautiful train wreck between SAnitY, The Undisputed Era and The Authors of Pain with Roderick Strong. I am very curious to see how Strong fits into this match. I would not be surprised if he is utilized in any possible swerve.
What match am I looking forward to the most?
Without a doubt, it is War Games. At my young age of 23, I have never been able to experience one of these matches as they happened. That changes this weekend.
SURVIVOR SERIES
The month long build and cross over between Raw and SmackDown will finally culminate this Sunday. The most interesting thing about this year is the champion vs champion matches that will take place.
The Intercontinental Champion, The Miz, will take on The United States Champion, Baron Corbin. The Tag Team Champions for each brand, The Bar and The Usos, will face off in a match between my two favorite tag teams this year. The Women’s Champions, Alexa Bliss vs. Charlotte Flair, will clash; we will finally get to see the two most dominant women on the main roster face off one on one.
The Men’s Traditional 5-on-5 Match looks like Vince McMahon himself hit randomize on WWE 2K18. The Women’s Traditional Five on Five Matches will tease dream matches like Asuka vs. Becky Lynch. Both of these matches should be great. With so many moving bodies, we are guaranteed some memorable spots. I’m looking at you, Shane.
Speaking of dream matches, The New Day will take on The Shield. One of the most iconic staples of this generation against the most consistent in the last two years. These guys love to put on great matches; Survivor Series will surely be one of those cases.
The Universal Champion, Brock Lesnar, will take on the WWE Champion, AJ Styles. This is a match that if you told me at the beginning of the year would happen, I would not believe you. I want to see Styles win this match, but cannot see them going that direction.
What match am I looking forward to the most?
This is probably a tossup. There is so much star power in the Men’s 5-on-5 Match, but the video game dream match of Brock Lesnar and AJ Styles is what I have to say I am looking forward to the most. No matter what the result will be.
RAW and SMACKDOWN LIVE
We can expect a lot of recaps from both Raw and SmackDown Live. Without a doubt, the stories, the matches, and the promos will be reactions to Survivor Series. The post Pay Per View television shows have been known to deliver great action and surprise. There are plenty of tickets still available, so if you are unable to make it to Survivor Series, consider going to Raw or SmackDown Live.
WWE will provide Houston with a long, extended, weekend of great wrestling action. If you are a wrestling fan, you should definitely make plans to attend one of these events. From NXT: War Games to SmackDown Live, there will be plenty of memorable moments that will make the trip worth your time.
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
How Astros advanced metrics tell puzzling story about Houston's start
Apr 17, 2025, 5:21 pm
Major League Baseball’s regular season is 162 games long. You can think of 18 games as the first inning of the season, 18 times nine equaling 162. While the Astros 8-10 record is not good, it’s far from disastrous. Think of it as them being behind 1-0 after the first inning. It is pretty remarkable that they have yet to win consecutive games. Even during last year’s 7-19 stink bomb of a start the Astros twice managed to win two in a row.
The Astros’ offensive woes are plentiful. Oddly enough as impotent as they’ve been, the Astros have yet to be shutout. But in half their games they have scored exactly one or two runs. Basically, most of them stink thus far. Exemptions go to Jose Altuve and Isaac Paredes, but it’s not like either of them has been outstanding. It’s still early enough that one big series can dramatically alter the numbers, but the Astros badly need Yordan Alvarez to pick up his production. Yordan enters the weekend batting just .224 with a .695 OPS and just four extra base hits. Yainer rhymes with minor. As in minor leagues, where Diaz belongs at his current level of performance. That is not saying Diaz should be sent down, just that any random AAA catcher called up couldn’t have done much worse to this point. Diaz isn’t hitting Altuve’s weight, a woeful .130 with seven hits in 57 at bats. Diaz simply remains too undisciplined at the plate swinging at too many balls. He’s drawn three walks. And now to Christian Walker, who thus far has delivered return on investment for his three year 60 million dollar contract about as strong as the stock market’s performance in Tariff Time. Walker’s .154 batting average and .482 OPS are very Astro Jose Abreu-like. Walker’s23 strikeouts in 65 at bats jump off the page. In the batter’s box he has often looked befuddled. Walker is definitely pressing and frustrated, wanting to perform better for his new team. Jeremy Pena goes into the weekend batting .215 and has one hit in 13 at bats with runners in scoring position. Brendan Rodgers, Jake Meyers, and Chas McCormick all have weak stat lines, with little reason to expect quality offensive output from any of them. Cam Smith is at .200 with a yucky .591 OPS but he’s obviously a young stud work in progress thrown into the deep end of the pool.
All batting orders are top-heavy, the Astros’ on paper more so than many. As I set forth on one of our Stone Cold ‘Stros podcasts this week, the first inning should be a team’s best offensive inning. It’s the only frame in which a team gets to dictate who comes up from the start with the batters lined up just as the manager slots them. Add to that, the first inning is a good time to get to a starting pitcher before he settles in. The Astros have scored a pitiful three first inning runs in 18 games, and in two of the games they pushed one across in the first, it turned out to be the only Astro run of the game. Improvement needs to come internally from the big league roster. It’s not as if the Astros have a meaningful prospect at AAA Sugar Land who looks ready to help. Entering play Thursday the Space Cowboys’ team average was .186. Second base hopeful Brice Matthews is nowhere close, batting .180 and striking out left and right. Outfielder Jacob Melton opened three for 17 following the back injury-delayed start to his season.
As exasperating and boring as the offense has been for so many, grading needs to occur on a curve. So, while the Astros’ team batting average is a joke at .216, know that at close of business Wednesday the entire American League was batting just .232. The American League West-leading Texas Rangers scored eight fewer runs over their first 18 games than did the Astros, though that is skewed by the Astros’ one 14-run outburst against the Angels.
Familiar faces return
This weekend the Astros play host to the San Diego Padres at Daikin Park. The Friars are off to a fabulous start at 15-4. The Padres being here creates a mini reunion as both Martin Maldonado and Yuli Gurriel are on their roster. In a telling fact, Maldonado would have the third-highest batting average on the Astros if on the team with his current numbers. Maldonado is hitting .250 with seven hits in 28 at bats. The last season he finished above .200 was 2020. The only season in his career Maldonado topped .234 was his rookie season with a .266 mark in 2012.
Gurriel was last good in 2021 when he won the American League batting title at .319. He fell off a cliff from there, though perked up to have a fine postseason in the Astros’ 2022 run to World Series title number two. “La Pina” is batting .115 with just three hits in 26 at bats. Gurriel may be released soon, and approaching his 41st birthday June 9, that would probably be the end of the line. Short-timer Astro Jason Heyward is also on the Padres, and batting .190.
For Astro-centric conversation, 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!
_____________________________________________
*Looking to get the word out about your business, products, or services? Consider advertising on SportsMap! It's a great way to get in front of Houston sports fans. Click the link below for more information!