THE INSIDER
A weekly look at all things Houston sports from the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority: Alexander, Luhnow and Watt honored at inaugural Houston Sports Awards
Patti Smith
Dec 15, 2017, 5:11 pm
J.J. Watt garnered a big award. Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for Sports Illustrated
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One brought the city back-to-back world championships a few decades ago and may have just set up his former team for a run at a third.
One asked for patience with a team at the bottom of the standings and delivered a world championship a few years later.
And one a hero who simply lifted us onto his broad shoulders during the worst disaster the city has ever seen and gave us hope.
Leslie Alexander, Jeff Luhnow and J.J. Watt – in order – didn’t just stand out in 2017. They stood above. They made lasting impacts on the nation’s fourth-largest city and were the epitome of #HoustonStrong.
And now they’re being honored at the inaugural Houston Sports Awards, Feb. 8 at the Hilton Americas.
Alexander, who owned the Houston Rockets for 24 years before selling one of the league’s best teams to Tilman Fertitta, will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Luhnow, the Houston Astros General Manager, will be honored as Executive of the Year for rebuilding a 111-loss 2013 Astros team in into 2017 World Series Champions.
And Watt? What can you say about the Texans’ All-pro defensive end who became a sort of patron saint of Houston for raising over $37 million for Hurricane Harvey Relief? He didn’t just touch Houston, he touched the world with his YouCaring initiative and will be honored with the Sportsmanship Award.
J.J. was the talk of the town and national-news-worthy daily in the aftermath of Harvey as the three-time NFL defensive player of the year, seeded the fund with $100,000 and hoped to raise just $200,000. The effort took off and his daily total was a staple on network news as the world watched the number skyrocket in just a few short weeks to over $37 million.
You shouldn’t be surprised. The man who shared Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year honors with Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, started his Justin J. Watt Foundation, which serves middle school programs in 28 states, when he was in college at Wisconsin.
The city that celebrated his efforts, cried with him, too, when a few weeks after raising the money, Watt, who was coming back from back and groin injuries in 2016, suffered a season-ending left leg injury.
Les Alexander made news first in 2017 for putting the Houston Rockets up for sale, then for donating $10 million to Mayor Sylvester Turner’s Hurricane Harvey Relief efforts. The financier and philanthropist purchased the Rockets in 1993 and delivered back-to-back NBA Championships in 1994 and 1995. He followed that up with his Houston Comets winning the first four WNBA titles from 1997-2000.
Alexander wasn’t afraid to bring superstars in to boost the roster. In his second season as owner, he added Clyde Drexler, who was key in the second NBA title, then Charles Barkley and Scottie Pippen. He set the stage for this year’s powerhouse roster picking up James Harden in 2012, then adding Chris Paul before selling to Fertitta.
Jeff Luhnow knows a little about building a team, too. When he came to the Astros in 2011 from St. Louis, he asked for patience with his long-range rebuilding plan, then started fast. On his second day, he traded for Marwin Gonzales then made Carlos Correa and Lance McCullers, Jr., his first two draft picks in 2012.
The 50-year-old added manager A.J. Hinch then gave him Yuli Gurriel, Josh Reddick, Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran. But the key to the 2017 run came just a minute before the trade deadline when he made a deal to add ace Justin Verlander. With that, the Astros, who won the AL West by 21 games, beat three storied franchises -- the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers -- on the way to the title.
Three men. Three strong legacies. And more to come.
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A reminder that you can now purchase tickets for the 2018 Houston Sports Awards Golden Ticket Raffle. Each ticket gives you a chance to win a pair of season tickets to all Houston Astros, Houston Rockets, Houston Dynamo, Rodeo Houston & Houston Open home games/events during the 2018-19 season. In addition, the winner receives tickets for two Houston Texans home games, the 2018 AdvoCare Texas Kickoff and the 2018 Texas Bowl. Information is available at www.houstonsportsawards.com
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Astros stumble again as Braves complete gut-wrenching series sweep
Apr 17, 2024, 4:51 pm
Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander will make his season debut Friday night at the Washington Nationals.
Houston manager Joe Espada made the announcement Wednesday.
“Getting him back is huge because it brings a level of confidence to our team, a boost of confidence that we’re going to get someone who’s been an MVP, a Cy Young (winner) on the mound,” Espada said. “It's (good) for the morale and to get stuff started and moving in the right direction.”
The three-time Cy Young Award winner opened the season on the injured list with inflammation in his right shoulder. He made two rehabilitation starts, the first for Triple-A Sugar Land on April 7 before Saturday’s start for Double-A Corpus Christi.
Espada wouldn't say how many pitches the 41-year-old would be limited to but said they'll keep an eye on his workload.
“We've got to be careful how hard we push him early,” Espada said. “I know he’s going to want to go and stay out there and give us an opportunity to win, but we've got to be cautious of how hard we push him early in the season.”
Verlander wasn’t thrilled with the results in his rehabilitation starts, but he said Monday that those games were valuable in getting him prepared to come off the IL.
He allowed seven hits and six runs — five earned — in four innings against Frisco on Saturday. He struck out three, walked one and threw 51 of 77 pitches for strikes.
Verlander allowed six earned runs and struck out six while pitching into the fourth inning for Sugar Land on April 7.
The Astros have gotten off to a tough start with Verlander and fellow starters Framber Valdez and José Urquidy on the injured list. They enter Wednesday's games last in the AL West with a 6-13 record.
Espada hopes Verlander can be the boost the team needs to get on track.
“It’s good to get him back in the rotation,” Espada said. “With what he means to this club just to get him back on track, getting some innings from him (to) build our rotation with the pieces that we need to move forward is exciting.”