THE WRESTLING REPORT
The Wrestling Report: Potential dissension in the ranks of AEW?
Nov 27, 2019, 7:18 am
WWE IMAGES
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, Sports. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio shows www.nerdthugradio.com!
The first cracks are starting to appear in AEW's seemingly unified front against the WWE natural monopoly in the world of wrestling. Joey Janela, the bad boy of Indy wrestling, has since deleted a tweet that announced he wasn't getting on his flight to make his next booking with All Elite Wrestling because they weren't explaining to his satisfaction his elimination from a match the previous week and that he felt that he was losing his momentum that comes from fourteen years of independent wrestling. This was always going to be the issue, every match isn't marquee and every competitor can't be a winner and so you have to have great performers that are OK with losing. That's a hard thing to find among a bunch of guys who have always been me first, like traditional Indy wrestlers are seen as. So what exactly is the solution? Tough to say but it's a good sign that he deleted the tweet, hinting that maybe he got the conversations he was looking for or maybe AEW flexed a little contract muscle, it's hard to say.
AEW is also very obviously in the head of WWE as Britt Baker, one of the top female wrestlers of AEW is the girlfriend of current NXT champion Adam Cole and she was in attendance for his match during Takeover and they put the camera on her during the match. There's nothing like a little free publicity.
Survivor Series is over thankfully and apparently the rumor mill is saying Vince McMahon wasn't even happy with the main event. The triple threat women's match, Becky Lynch, Bayley and NXT's Baszler was just not the end of the show pop they were looking for and most odd was all of these triple threats had a lot of NXT winners, they actually won a majority of the matches, I suppose trying to make them look equal to their counterparts. That's dumb though, we know they aren't. This is one of those mistakes that comes from having a third show and especially having it be the "minor league" of your talent development, the fans know what it is, so when these guys are beating Smackdown and Raw guys, if you're Fox or USA the question should be, well why aren't they on the main roster then? Overall I think this attempt at elevating the NXT brand may further hurt WWE's credibility and leave people looking across the street on Wednesday's to AEW's Dynamite on TNT.
Feel free to check out my brand-new comic book Another Day at the Office email me for details 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.
The Houston Astros will go for the sweep Wednesday afternoon in Phoenix as they wrap up a three-game set against the Arizona Diamondbacks. With wins in the first two games of the series and three straight overall, the AL West-leading Astros are starting to find their rhythm again, and they’ll look to keep it going behind left-hander Brandon Walter.
Walter (1-3, 3.66 ERA) has been steady since joining the rotation, and he'll be tasked with keeping Arizona’s contact-heavy lineup in check. The Diamondbacks, sitting fourth in the NL West at 50-52, are hitting .253 as a team, fifth-best in the National League, but have struggled to string together wins at home, where they’re just 26-27.
Opposing Walter is right-hander Brandon Pfaadt, who enters with a 10-6 record and 4.74 ERA. He’s capable of missing bats but can be vulnerable to power, something the Astros lineup will try to exploit as they look to post at least eight hits for the fourth straight game. A mark that has typically led to success this season (39-19 when they reach it).
Houston will again lean on veterans like Jose Altuve and the red-hot Victor Caratini, who’s 13-for-36 over his last 10 games. Brice Matthews and Christian Walker have also sparked the offense in recent days, while the bullpen continues to deliver under pressure.
For Arizona, Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suárez have been the primary power threats of late, with Suárez clubbing eight home runs in his last 10 games. If the Diamondbacks want to avoid the sweep, they’ll need to capitalize on any early chances against Walter and match Houston’s timely hitting.
First pitch is set for 3:40 p.m. EDT.
Lineup takeaways
For the finale, you'll notice Cam Smith is not in the leadoff spot and playing right field. Smith gets the day off with Taylor Trammell hitting first and playing center field, followed by Victor Caratini, who is playing first base. Christian Walker is the DH and hitting third, followed by Yainer Diaz (C), Brice Matthews (2B), Mauricio Dubon (SS), Cooper Hummel (LF), Chas McCormick (RF), and Shay Whitcomb (3B). Jose Altuve's name is nowhere to be found. It seems like manager Joe Espada is happy with the series win based on this lineup.
Last one on the road.
⚾️: 2:40 PM CDT | 12:40 PM MST
📺: @SpaceCityHN
🎙️: @SportsTalk790 | Spanish: 93.3 FM#BuiltForThis x @reliantenergy pic.twitter.com/A9VAhNhG4U
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 23, 2025
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -116, Diamondbacks -104; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
___________________________
*ChatGPT assisted.
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!