PLAYING THE PONIES
Sam Houston Race Park selections for Friday, Jan. 31
Jan 31, 2020, 6:36 am
Here are my selections for Friday night at Sam Houston Race Park. These are not meant to be in exact order, but merely the four horses I think have the best chance to win. For beginners, I suggest exacta boxes with three horses, using two of mine and one of your own. And you can always pick up a copy of Acing Racing 2016 to learn everything you need to know. (These are the picks and format that are available on the free tip sheet at SHRP).
FIRST
4-2-7-1
SEATTLE SOUNDER is lightly raced and should improve
SECOND
3-1-5-7
ORATORY GLORY should be in a good spot to clear this condition
THIRD
10-6-1-12
MINE BOSS is lightly raced, last was not bad and he should improve
FOURTH
4-6-2-3
REACHREACHREACH drops in class and fits well in this spot
FIFTH
10-7-11-2
T.J.B. OORAH comes from a hot barn and is bred to love the grass
SIXTH
5-4-9-1
FRANKALEE FUN did the heavy lifting in last before getting passed by the favorite late
SEVENTH
5-8-2-3
TIZ PLUS was in over his head in the last two; much better spot here
EIGHTH
2-8-9-3
TRULY BLING has good connections; distance should be a perfect fit
NINTH
3-1-7-2
KARATE HOTTIE is another sharp Broberg claim who will be tough
TENTH
5-7-4-1
GATOR VINDICATION was a sharp second here in last and might go all the way
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Critical levers Astros can pull as health concerns, deadline pressures grow
Jul 10, 2025, 3:46 pm
Jake Meyers is the latest Astro to be rushed back from injury too soon. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.
Houston center fielder Jake Meyers was removed from Wednesday night’s game against Cleveland during pregame warmups because of right calf tightness.
Meyers, who had missed the last two games with a right calf injury, jogged onto the field before the game but soon summoned the training staff, who joined him on the field to tend to him. He remained on the field on one knee as manager Joe Espada joined the group. After a couple minutes, Meyers got up and was helped off the field and to the tunnel in right field by a trainer.
Mauricio Dubón moved from shortstop to center field and Zack Short entered the game to replace Dubón at shortstop.
Meyers is batting .308 with three homers and 21 RBIs this season.
After the game, Meyers met with the media and spoke about the injury. Meyers declined to answer when asked if the latest injury feels worse than the one he sustained Sunday. Wow, that is not a good sign.
Asked if this calf injury feels worse than the one he sustained on Sunday, Jake Meyers looked toward a team spokesman and asked "do I have to answer that?" He did not and then politely ended the interview.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) July 10, 2025
Lack of imaging strikes again!
The Athletic's Chandler Rome reported on Thursday that the Astros didn't do any imaging on Meyers after the initial injury. You can't make this stuff up. This is exactly the kind of thing that has the Astros return-to-play policy under constant scrutiny.
The All-Star break is right around the corner, why take the risk in playing Meyers after missing just two games with calf discomfort? The guy literally fell to the ground running out to his position before the game started. The people that make these risk vs. reward assessments clearly are making some serious mistakes.
The question remains: will the Astros finally do something about it?