Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

One Man's (Idiotic?) 2013 Baseball Predictions

The major league baseball season opened up on Sunday night with the Rangers traveling to Rangers Ballpark in Arlington South to face the Astros. Most of the teams started up yesterday, and the rest of the league will get underway today. With the season getting underway, it's time once again to make ... More >>

The Astros: Out of Their League?

The Houston Astros take on a new season in a tough division with things all-new — uniforms, owner, manager, team and rules — not to mention a new/old mascot. And road trips to Dallas.

Houston Astros 2013: Season Win Total Prediction (And Four Other MLB Season Win Total Predictions)

Maybe it's because football keeps our attention year round (what up, Ed Reed?), maybe it's because we're right in the middle of March Madness, or maybe it's just because as a city we've been beaten down by a half a decade of mediocre to bad baseball, but goddamn, this baseball season snuck up on me! ... More >>

Boom Goes The Astros' Dynamic Pricing Model: Get Ready To Shell Out The Big Bucks

Are you an Astros fan? Do you love going to Opening Day? Do you have a good credit score? Well, if you want to attend this Opening Day against the Texas Rangers, you better have a fantastic credit score because you're going to need to get a bank loan to buy a ticket. The Astros have more than doubl ... More >>

Dallas Baseball Fans Suck, Former Ranger Star Josh Hamilton Says

Josh Hamilton is no longer a Texas Ranger, meaning the Dallas-Fort Worth area is deprived of its chance to spot the recovering alcoholic in bars and be subjected yet again to his Jesus-centric quotes. Maybe he should stick to proselytizing, because all he's doing now is pissing off Dallas fans. Ha ... More >>

Bo Knows Bo: Bo Jackson Turns 50 Years Old, Smashes Old Age Over His Knee

Today Bo Jackson turns 50 years old. The former baseball and football star was one of the most exciting players to watch in the late '80s and early '90s. He was able to incite excite in not sports fans young and old. Dem legs, you guys. And he knew how to sell shoes. He did double-duty with t ... More >>

20 Reasons To Buy 2013 Astros Season Tickets (No, Really)

You've probably forgotten about baseball by now. The Astros season ended a long time ago, and unless you live in St. Louis or New York, the odds are that nobody really gives a damn about the Cardinals and Yankees. It might be nice if the Detroit Tigers make the World Series if Kate Upton shows up to ... More >>

Complaints and the Media

Brian Downing: Alleged Alabama Teabagger Pleads Not Guilty (w/ VIDEO)

On the evening of January 9, 2012, the Alabama Crimson Tide beat the LSU Tigers in the BCS National Championship Game. They beat them like a drum to the tune of 21-0. The game was so lopsided that LSU amassed a grand total of 92 yards in total offense, five first downs and didn't cross midfield unti ... More >>

The Albert Pujols Schadenfreude Post

To understand the magnitude of Albert Pujols's six-week slump to start the 2012 season (and I'm not going to lie, calling it a "slump" feels like a VERY lazy understatement), you have to remember the starting point from whence he came when he signed with the Los Angeles Angels this off-season. That ... More >>

In Which John Royal Predicts the Winner of the 2012 World Series

The major league baseball season officially started last week when the Oakland A's and Seattle Mariners played two games in Tokyo. Most of the other teams open on Thursday, and the Astros get started on Friday when they host the Colorado Rockies. Thus, here are my predictions for this season. NATI ... More >>

Football! AFC and NFC Title Game Best Bets!

You can't spell "elite" without E-L-I. Really, you can't​We interrupt this Texans-grieving for an update on the Alabama tea bagger and my AFC and NFC title game picks! (I'm pretty sure when my parents sent me off to college, they didn't think I'd be typing that sentence in my job.) The main c ... More >>

The Year In Astros Baseball: Thank God That's Over

​So let's continue our look back at the sporting year that was 2011 by taking a look at the Top 25 events to happen to the Houston Astros. 1. They finished with the worst record in team history, which was quite the accomplishment seeing as how the Astros were pretty damn bad for most of the ... More >>

So How Much Do You Really Know About the Astros and the DH?

​There has been a strange uproar over the Astros' possible move to the American League. There's been whining over start times, bitching about Bud Selig, and much, much discussion about the designated hitter not being real baseball. And while people are upset, it needs to be noted that the As ... More >>

MLB Realignment -- I Want The Astros In The American League (And I'm Bright!)

"I'm smart! Not like everybody says... like dumb!"​Your Houston Astros lost 4-1 to the Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon to drop their record on the 2011 season to 24-42, the worst record in all of Major League Baseball. The Astros are a bad baseball team that is thoroughly uninteresting. As ... More >>

One Man's Predictions for This Baseball Season

​Believe it or not, it's time, yet again, for the Major League Baseball season to get underway. That's good news for those of us who enjoy watching the best players in baseball play the best sport ever created. That's bad news, however, for us Astros fans because, well, the Astros suck. But ... More >>

Game Time: Houston Astros 2010 Silver Linings, Volume 1: Their Players Stay Awake All Nine Innings!

Nap time for Mr. Griffey​Having spent about fifteen years in the corporate world prior to getting into radio three years ago, I always promised myself that I would never be the radio guy who complains about actually having to go cover games. There are fans who would gnaw off their right arm to ha ... More >>

One Man's 2010 Baseball Predictions (Cover Your Eyes, Astro Fans)

​The major league baseball season officially starts this weekend with two so-called major league teams playing on Sunday night (New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox). I was going to try and do a little Astros preview for today, but they're still trying to figure out who exactly is healthy and who ... More >>

Being A Fan In Houston Basically Sucks, ESPN Reports

Photo by Bukowsky18ESPN has put together another one of its Best Fan Experience lists, where they rank ballparks, arenas and stadiums for atmosphere, convenience, team success, and other highly arbitrary and pseudo-scientific categories.Houston doesn't come out too well.The top three are the L ... More >>

This Season's MLB Predictions: The American League

With baseball season due to start next week, I thought I should put myself on the line and make some predictions. I'm going to do the American League today. I'll follow up with the National League and postseason picks tomorrow, and I'll give a more in-depth look at the Astros on Monday. So here' ... More >>

The Mt. Rushmore of Texas Sports

ESPN is about to start on one of those stupid SportsCenter promotion things that has helped to make SportsCenter virtually impossible to watch. But over here at Ballz, we like stupid things - I'm sure that many of you think anything I write is stupid and virtually impossible to read anyway. So I' ... More >>

The Mt. Rushmore of Texas Sports

ESPN is about to start on one of those stupid SportsCenter promotion things that has helped to make SportsCenter virtually impossible to watch. But over here at Ballz, we like stupid things - I'm sure that many of you think anything I write is stupid and virtually impossible to read anyway. So I' ... More >>

MLB Playoffs: Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox Move Up

MLB Playoffs: Cubs Lose, Cubs Lose. Brewers Too.

Notes on the Baseball Playoffs

Notes on the Baseball Playoffs

Tampa Bay Goes All the Way: John Royal’s MLB Postseason Picks

Will Hurricane Ike End Up Being a Houston Astros Killer?

Astros-Mets: Houston Takes Two of Three from New York, But St. Louis and Milwaukee Keep Chugging Along

John Royal’s Mid-Season MLB Progress Report and Predictions

Astros-Dodgers: Speaking of Predictions, Guess Who Got Last Month Right

Cantinflas and Fence Hoppers

Roger Clemens Is Not Alone: More Famous Dalliances between Athletes and Entertainers

Play Ball: John Royal’s MLB Predictions

Spring Training: Milo Hamilton, Harry Caray, Drayton McLane, Roger Clemens and Ria Cortesio

God’s Team, Jobu, Matt Holliday and Drayton McLane

John Royal's MLB Playoff Predictions: Satan Is Our First Base Coach, Go D-Backs!

John Royal’s MLB Awards: Why Wait for the World Series?

We Would Call This an MLB Playoff Preview, But We Really Don't Know What's Gonna Happen

Re: Are Umpires Racist? Maybe.

An Accountability Moment

That Hunter Pence Sure Is Dreamy. Too Bad the Game Was a Nightmare.

You Close Your Eyes for a Minute, and They Give Up Six Runs

Sinking the Mariners

It Had to Happen Sooner or Later

Miss Cleo Answers the Bell

John Royal's MLB Predictions

Ball Busters

The battle over Bonds's record-setting homer looks quaint four seasons later

Play Ball

The greatest in the game come to Houston