Mike Scott

Astros Opening Day 2013: Fans Weigh In With Hopes & Opinions On AL Baseball

For as long as I remember, I've been a baseball fan. Which is kinda strange considering I never played Little League, didn't learn how to hold a bat or catch a ball until my best friend taught me in high school, and my father's favorite sports team are fútbol-playing goats (Las Chivas Rayadas de Gu ... More >>

4:50 a.m.: The 15 Best Fishing Songs We Could Find

Rocks Off never thought we'd say this, but the country eye candy behind "Pretty Good at Drinkin' Beer," Billy Currington, turned out to be pretty wise. He was smart enough to record the song "Bad Day of Fishin'" anyway, which contains the sage advice "a bad day of fishing beats a good day of anythin ... More >>

Do The Right Thing, Astros. Retire J.R. Richard's Number

Let's stipulate that the Houston Astros have retired too many numbers, especially for a franchise that's been to just one World Series. Let's also stipulate that most of the retired numbers are for players who, while fan favorites, really didn't do anything to deserve having their numbers retired. L ... More >>

Astros Rebuilding: Going Back to the Future Can Be Fun

The 1991 Houston Astros finished the season with a record of 65-97. They were last in the old NL West, and they were one of the worst teams in the majors. But the fans who watched the team that season had reasons to be excited about the future. Jeff Bagwell had been converted from third to first ba ... 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 >>

The All-Time Ultimate Astros Roster

The Astros are celebrating their 50th season in major league baseball this year. The team's going to be rolling out the throwback uniforms on Friday nights, and they'll probably find other ways to celebrate their history before making a new start of it in the American League next season. I thought ... 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 >>

"Don't Mess With Texas" Ads & Athletes: Mixed Success, in Five Examples

You may have noticed that TxDOT has been re-running classic ads from their 25-year-old "Don't Mess with Texas" campaign. It's part of a contest to pick the best. The ads tend to work best with musicians; Stevie Ray Vaughan is the classic, of course, but Willie Nelson and George Strait also shine. ... More >>

Carlos Lee, Team Leader? Well, the Astros Have Had 25 Worse Ideas

Believe it or not, this guy's not actually running the Houston Astros​Astros Manager Brad Mills traveled to Panama last week to meet with his left fielder/first baseman/slacker Carlos Lee.  The trip was billed as a bonding mission.  And while there's nothing wrong with a manager an ... More >>

Lance Berkman & Roy O: Don't Retire Their Numbers, Drayton

JR Richard: Here's one number that should be retired​With the trades of Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman last week, the talk has started about whether the Astros should consider retiring their numbers once they retire. Now as much as I like to the honor the history of baseball and some of the great te ... More >>

Game Time: The Oswalt Redemption

Lance Berkman -- next to go? -- at a Furry convention​"I guess it comes down to a simple choice really...get busy livin' or get busy dyin'." -- Andy DufresneIf you're a true competitor, at some point the front office ineptitude goes beyond constraining, and the losing becomes suffocating.For Roy ... More >>

Houston's 10 Best Sports Moments*

*And the 5 most heartbreaking...

Houston's Top Ten Sports Moments: Another View

The bosses came out their Top 10 Greatest Houston Sports Moments today, so I thought I would share mine.1. September 25, 1986: The magic number for the Houston Astros to clinch the NL West is one game. The Astros are playing a midweek day game against the San Francisco Giants, the team that just ... More >>

Game Time: Best of the Best -- Top 10 Moments from Clutch City Rockets (w/video)

Consensus Number One​I am a total sucker for lists.This makes me like roughly 95 percent of society; the fact that I openly admit I'm a sucker for lists makes me a little more unique. There are so many list books, list columns, list blog posts (many by yours truly) that it seems by admitting you ... More >>

5 Ways Lady Gaga Could Spice Up The Astros' Season

Photo illustration by John Seaborn Gray​Last Friday night, Rocks Off's favorite pop star, Lady Gaga, bum-rushed her way around Yankee Stadium during the opening game of the New York Yankees three-game homestand against crosstown rivals the New York Mets. Somehow she talked her way past secur ... More >>

Dogging the Dome

An extensive investigation has uncovered secret plans for the Astrodome's future.

Sharp-Dressed Fans

Billy Gibbons and other Houstonians share their favorite Astros memories.

Lonesome Onry and Mean: Now We Have Already Started Our 2010 Top 10 List

With all the pressure to list the Best Albums of 2009, Lonesome Onry and Mean is going to go ahead and leap forward and make a prediction about our Top 10 list for 2010. We've already received a number of advances for the coming year, and two have completely blown us away. Irish accordion virtuoso ... More >>

St. Patrick's Day Special: The Waterboys, "Fisherman's Blues"

Fun Fact: Waterboys frontman Mike Scott's 1995 solo debut Bring 'em All In was based on his experiences at Scottish eco-commune the Findhorn Foundation, a founding member of the Global Ecovillage Network.

John Royal's Top 25 Random Baseball Facts

There's this new list craze going around Facebook in which you list 25 random things about yourself. And the geniuses at the Big League Stew baseball blog got hold of this and made it into a list of 25 Random Things About Yourself As It Relates to Baseball. Thus... 1. I am happiest in a baseball ... More >>

John Royal's Top 25 Random Baseball Facts

There's this new list craze going around Facebook in which you list 25 random things about yourself. And the geniuses at the Big League Stew baseball blog got hold of this and made it into a list of 25 Random Things About Yourself As It Relates to Baseball. Thus... 1. I am happiest in a baseball ... More >>

The Best Houston Astros Home Grown and Acquired Rosters of All Time

So I was fooling around on the interwebs yesterday, and between the launch of the MLB Network, the naming today of the new class for the Baseball Hall of Fame, and the coming of spring training, I was in a bit of a baseball mood. And I came across this blog detailing the All-Time Rosters for variou ... More >>

Top Ten Astrodome Sports Moments

Astros-Brewers: Corey Hart Still Looking Good

Aftermath: Geto Boys at Warehouse Live

John Royal’s Roster of the Greatest Astros Ever

Who's On Deck for the Houston Astros in 2008?

The Astros' post-Biggio era begins with a lot of unanswered questions, but the biggest one of all is: Just how bad are things going to get?

Jose de Jesus Ortiz. Really, What More Can We Say?

For a Sucky Team, the Astros Sure Have Retired a Lot of Numbers

Way to Go, Biggio

You Know, Because Almost Dying for the Team Would Generally Be Considered a Good Thing

If It's Not Scottish, It's Crap!

Wack puts this whole Franz Ferdinand thing into context

Encore or Bust?

Stressing about the 'Stros begins anew

J.R. Richard: The Human Condition

Tuam Raiders

For Irish rockers the Saw Doctors, the local is universal

Strike Three, They're Out

News Hostage

Rotation

Wanna Buy a RoboDome?

The city's sports tycoons maneuver for inside position, and the questions mount: Who needs it? Why? At what cost?

Picks