Minnesota Twins

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 Screwball Economics of Major League Baseball

As another season begins, MLB faces an unsustainable future - and you're picking up the tab.

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.

One Man's Baseball Bucket List

The thought of baseball season is depressing for some people, primarily because the Astros are going to be so damn bad. But that doesn't bother me. I'm a baseball addict, and while the Astros will be bad, it's not really going to matter because I'll be watching baseball -- and thanks to Comcast Spor ... More >>

Tyler Duffey, J.T. Chargois: The Minnesota Twins Hope The Rice Owls Can Save Them

It's been a tough month or so for Rice Owls pitcher Tyler Duffey. There's the disappointment that comes from the way the season ended, losing in the conference tournament and not making it past the NCAA Regionals this past weekend. And nothing can compare to what happened in late August when his mot ... 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 >>

Moneyball

Field of Statistically Knowable Dreams

11 Modest Suggestions For Jim Crane

​After the Astros lose to the Chicago Cubs this afternoon, the 2011 MLB season will be one-thirds complete. And while it was expected the Astros would be bad, being the worst team in the National League was not expected -- an injury-depleted Minnesota Twins are the only thing keeping the Astr ... More >>

The Beauty of Short Hops: Or, Come Back Ken Tremendous, A Nation Turns Its Lonely Eyes To You

​Author Michael Lewis wrote this book around the turn of the century that has dominated baseball discussion, for good and bad, ever since. This book, Moneyball, dealt with the efforts of Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane to field a competitive team despite not having the payroll to comp ... 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 >>

Miguel Cabrera's DUI Handbook

Miguel Cabrera lights up a mugshot like Tom DeLay​One of the businesses I speak for on my radio show is longtime Texas DWI defense attorney Gary Trichter. Among the talking points that I continually hammer home for listeners is the fact that Gary Trichter co-authored the textbook for DWI defen ... More >>

One Guy's Thoughts On The Sports Year: 25 Things To Remember

So with the end of the year fast approaching, I thought I would take some time to revisit some of the highlights, and lowlights, of this past sports year. Your list is probably different, but these are the things that caught my attention this year. maxim.com Thanks for everything, Jenn​1. ... More >>

Game Time: The Caballo Chronicles, Volume 2: A Look at MLB's 20 Biggest Contracts Ever

​This is my second go round living in Houston. Prior to moving back here in the summer of 2007, the last time I was an H-town resident was between 1994 and 2001. As an Astro fan, that means I was here when the Bagwell/Biggio nucleus finally broke through in 1997 and made the playoffs, I was he ... 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 >>

Make The Astros Better: Forget Free Agents

Photo by Aaron M. Sprecher​A friend sent me this Richard Justice blog post over the weekend, then he asked, given the premise that Drayton McLane was going to allow unlimited spending for next season's team, just what it was that I would do.  First, unlike one of Justice's suggestions, I woul ... More >>

The Astros May Suck, But At Least You Can Listen To Jim Deshaies

So I'm watching the Astros/Twins game on Sunday afternoon, and it gets to be that inning for the trivia question. The question this time asks Jim Deshaies and Bill Brown to name the four Minnesota Twins that have been named as American League MVPs. So they start tossing out names of great Minnes ... 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 >>

Cecil Cooper, Standup Comic

Thanks to Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Chron, I'm able to bring you the comedy stylings of Houston Astros manager Cecil Cooper. Only problem is, according to Ortiz, Cecil Cooper wasn't joking. "We should win 90 games this year," Cooper told the press yesterday. The Astros are going to "go under ... More >>

Cecil Cooper, Standup Comic

Thanks to Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Chron, I'm able to bring you the comedy stylings of Houston Astros manager Cecil Cooper. Only problem is, according to Ortiz, Cecil Cooper wasn't joking. "We should win 90 games this year," Cooper told the press yesterday. The Astros are going to "go under ... More >>

Astros Spring Training: Six Straight Walks? Not Good.

Photo by hyperscholarI'm sure that several of you saw the score of yesterday's Astros game. It was 12-2 spring training loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. It's spring training, and I'm one of those who believes that the final score is meaningless in spring - though Tampa's manager Joe Maddon did use the ... More >>

Astros Spring Training: Six Straight Walks? Not Good.

Photo by hyperscholarI'm sure that several of you saw the score of yesterday's Astros game. It was 12-2 spring training loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. It's spring training, and I'm one of those who believes that the final score is meaningless in spring - though Tampa's manager Joe Maddon did use the ... 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 >>

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 >>

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

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

MLB All-Star Game: Shucks, No Home Field Advantage in the Word Series for the Astros This Year

Astros-Giants: Big Puma Still on the Prowl

Astros-Dodgers: All Hail Big Puma

Astros-Cubs: One Win (and Two Losses) for the ‘Stros, But Still None for a Starting Pitcher

Play Ball: John Royal’s MLB Predictions

Top Ten Bizarre Baseball Injuries

A Day in the Life of Cable Sports Programming

Trade Talk: Miguel Tejada, Jose Valverde, Chris Burke, Mark Prior and Lance Berkman

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

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

Dreaming with the Astros

Could Terry Ryan Be a Good Candidate for Astros GM? Maybe. Will He Be? Probably Not.

What's Craig Biggio Got to Do with Paula Marshall? Not Much, But Hear Us Out.

Sure, Phil Garner and Tim Purpura Are Out, and Cecil Cooper and Tal Smith Are In, But None of That Matters So Long As Drayton McLane Is Still Around…

This Could Be One Serious Tuesday. Let's Hope Purpura Doesn't Do Something Stupid.

An Accountability Moment

We've Got a Man-crush on Hunter Pence

Miss Cleo Answers the Bell

John Royal's MLB Predictions

Take Me Out...

...to the ball game. Lauding baseball-in-rock's finest moments.

This Week's Day-by-Day Picks

Meltdown at Fox

Several staffers move over to Channel 39's start-up effort

Night & Day

June 18 - 24, 1998

Press Picks