20 Most Influential Sports Decisions of the 2010s, #10-1

10.) Kevin Durant leaves for the Warriors

The moment that for some ruined the NBA. If The Decision was the rocky start of something special - more on that later - Durant's decision, released in a column on the Player's Tribune hilariously titled 'The Hardest Road' was the natural end result. His Thunder memorably blew a 3-1 lead to a 73-win Warriors team. Then he joined them and they easily won back to back titles without breaking much of a sweat. It changed the course of an NBA in a more negative way than The Decision did, essentially making two seasons fait accomplis, which resulted in some laggning ratings by the second year - something that has continued onwards after his injury and departure. Kevin Durant's decision was incredibly short-sighted in some ways, as he genuinely felt peeople would understand what he did. They did not, especially when Durant's goals were accomplished - winning two titles and two Finals MVPs - and realized it wasn't all that it was cracked up to be.


9.) Zaza Pachulia slides under Kawhi Leonard's Foot

While I do think Durant joining the Warriors made the NBA season meaningless in a competitive sense, in the 2017 playoffs, when the Spurs were winning by 25 in the second half of Game 1, with Kawhi going absurd, it didn't seem so clear. And then when Kawhi went up for a three, Zaza Pachulia slid his foot under and Kawhi got injured. He missed the rest of the series that the Warriors would end up sweeping. Worse, this injury begat many others and started a tear-down in trust between Kawhi and the Spurs. He would only play a dozen or so more games in that uniform, divorcing one of the supposedly great perfect marriages between team and player. He left for Toronto where he would get his revenge on teh Warriors. But if not for that injury, maybe the Spurs win? Even if they don't, they push the Warriors and maybe Kawhi stays in San Antonio long term. Toronto probably doesn't ahve their title. So much could have been different.


8.) The Blackhawks hire Joel Quenneville



7.) Peyton Manning picks Denver

I almost went with 'The Colts Cut Peyton Manning' but I don't really want to relitigate one of the most painful sports moments of my life. All I'll say is I hated the decision then and hated it more now. Anyway, if you put aside the questions around his ability to throw, the idea of having Peyton Freaking Manning, four-time MVP, on the free market was surreal. There was no decision, no free agent road trip. It ended pretty quick. Manning picked Denver. It seemed odd at the time, but instead, it unlocked a talented team, gave the Brocnos a talisman to build around and attract umpteen free agents with (e.g. Demarcus Ware) and ultimately have a brilliant four year stretch with 50 wins, two trips to teh Super Bowl and a title. Manning won a record 5th MVP, with the most voluminous season in NFL history, a stunning outcome for a guy who could barely throw a ball when he was injured in 2011. It birthed a great Patriots-Broncos rivalry for a handfull of years. It gave the NFL a slew of great, memorable games, and another amazing farewell tour. It gave us the last competitive yaers of the AFC until maybe this very 2019 season. Peyton Manning was the NFL's talisman too, with ratings starting to fall for the first time in decades in the 2016 season, the first year without him. His decision to go to Denver changed so many things, but ultimately just proved that in the last 20 years, after the Patriots, the best team was 'Team X QBed by Peyton Manning'.


6.) The Astros hire Jeff Luhnow

In 2011, teh Astros lost over 100 games. They finally admitted they needed a serious reset. They needed it years earlier, but Drayton McLane, the former owner, put it off. In the end, it was inevitable, and McLane sold the team to Jim Crane. He agreed to move them to the AL, and then cleaned house to a ridiculous degree, and hired Jeff Luhnow to do it. Years later, we would understand the depths to which Luhnow's makeover of the franchise, as it extended to a personality that would be brash and seemingly dubious as well. But before those accusations, they painstakingly tanked and then painstakingly built a supernova, one that won 100+ games three years in a row, brought in dozens of exciting young players. They went for it, with a series of high-profile trades for dominant pitching. They were rewarded with a World Series, and came a few outs away from another. The Astros started the decade as the laughingstock of the MLB. They ended it as the most hated franchise, both for the winning, and sadly, their cheating.


5.) Real Madrid hires Jose Mourinho

It's easy to talk about Carlo Ancelotti, who re-set Madrid's mentality, led them to La Decima, and brought in Zidane as a lead assistant who then would lead Madrid to the most ridiculous heights ever, winning three straight Champions Leagues. And yes, the true glory days of Real Madrid was that 2014-2018 run. However, none of that happens if Real Madrid didn't hire Jose Mourinho in 2010, getting him fresh off his treble-winning season with Inter Milan, and a year after Madrid went on an all time spending spree getting Ronaldo and Kaka. In 2009-10, Madrid was no where close to Pep's Barcelona - which was born the year before. Then Mourinho came in, and did as he does, slowly building a team to bother, disrupt, and eventually dethrone Barcelona domestically, in a rousing 2011-12 season that would set La Liga records for poitns and goals (later Barcelona teams tied or broke these). He unlocked a deadly counterattack with Ronaldo, Benzema, Di Maria, Ozil and others, generating the mentality that would remain in the Ancelotti and Zidane eras. It is good for the memeory that Madrid won a La Liga title with Mourinho, because ultimately his three straight semifinals defeats spelled his doom. The modern Madrid renaissance is most due to Ronaldo, then probably the combination of Ancelotti and Zidane, but the genesis of it all was when Mourihno went over and instilled his routine of hard work and annoyingness to an incredible wealth of talent.


4.) Pete Carroll escapes to the NFL to avoid sanctions

A few days into 2010, it was clear USC may be hit hard with sanctions. Pete Carroll was seen as someone who may or may not go back to the NFL, but there was no urgency given his amazing success in sunny California. The sanctions were the push, and he absconded to Seattle. On his third attempt at running an NFL team, it finally worked, and from 2010-2015, before Russell Wilson became a monster of his won, it was the Carroll imprint and defense that led the most dominant regular season team of that run. Carroll's defense started slow, but mid-way through 2011 the LOB was already underway, taking a Tarvaris Jackson led team to nearly wildcard. In 2012, he had the stones to pick a 3rd round rookie to start over the guy they gave $30mm to. His defense revolutionized the sport and neutralized one of the greatest offenses ever in their Super Bowl win. For four straight years, they led the NFL in scoring defense - the first time that had ever happened. All this started with a guy escaping his program that was about to be hit hard, and a decade later, USC hasn't really recovered. Carroll's reputation as a brilliant defensive mind and someone whose rah-rah style worlking in the NFL certainly did.


3.) The Warriors replace Mark Jackson with Steve Kerr

The Warriors were really good before Steve Kerr got there. Stephen Curry was already a brilliant sharp-shooter, but with a penchant for getting injured. Klay was a reasoanbly good 3-and-D guy. With David Lee and Harrison Barnes, they had goo dplayers up top. They made the playoffs twice, first pushing the 2013 Spurs to six games, and then losing a seven-game war with teh Clippers in 2014 that is more remembered for the Donald Sterling ouster happening mid-series. They were good, but clearly in the mid-tier of the West. Then, the Warriors fired Mark Jackson, for seemingly myriad reasons, replaced him with a TV announcer, and unleashed a brand of basketball we've never seen. It was centered around ball movement, around flexibility, around going small, and around realizing you had two all-time talents, including the unrivaled best shooter ever. The players obviously were special, and when Durant joined it became a gluttony of riches, but Kerr put the pieces together. He had the vision to unshackle this insane group of talent, and keep them cohesive. He did ti, and if not for some good foresight, they may have languised as a 53-29 team for a decade.


2.) The Patriots draft Rob Gronkowski

Coming into the 2010 draft, the Patriots were at their lowest point in almost a decade. They went 10-6 in 2009, going 2-6 on the road. They were blown out 33-14 by the Ravens at home in the wild card round, down 0-24 by the end of the first quarter. The Patriots were easily the team of the 2000s, but they seemed to end the decade at a low point. Ten years later, they ended up being the team of the 2010s, making the Super Bowl five times in the next nine years, winning it three times. The biggest driver of this era-defining extension of dominance? Drafting Rob Gronkowski. In 2010, he had a quiet eight TD rookie season, quiet only compared to the player he would become as soon as the following season when he had 1,300 yards and 17 TDs. Gronkowski transformed the Patriots offense. Brady's splits with and without Gronk are staggering, going from Aaron Rodgers like efficiency to Andy Dalton. From 2011-2013, the Patriots playoffs losses all featured either an injured Gronk (2011) or absetn (2012-2013). After that, their only time they edidn't make the Super Bowl with a healthy Gronk in the playoffs was 2015, when he nearly single-handidly led a win against one of the best defenses ever in the 2015 Broncos. In his first semi-average season in 2018, Brady started falling off (yes, they won the Super Bowl anyway - thanks Sean McVay), and in the first post-Gronk season he's really started to tail off. Obviously, the Patriots success in the 2010s was about a lot more than one guy, but Gronkowski was one of the greatest X-Factors of all time.


1.) LeBron takes his talents to South Beach

Could it be anything else? Everything about the NBA in the 2010s other than maybe the continued Spurs brilliance in 2010-2016 has its genesis in LeBron's decision back in June 2010 to go to Miami. He started the player empowerment era right there, the same thing that led KD to leaving for Golden State, or all the flurry of moves this past offseason. LeBron was the trendsetter, he was the mastermind. He, Wade and Bosh went to Miami and banded together the most hated team of all time, re-energized the league for years. The drama, the storylines, the fact the NBA is a 12-month sport now. All of that stems from the decision to go to Miami. His going back to Cleveland and that miracle only really happens because of the nature of how he left Cleveland. The NBA became the social media sport in the 2010s, and while there were larger societal reasons behind that, the nature of it being covered like the sports world's TMZ. LeBron dominated the 2010s with his play, with being a constant presence in eight straight NBA finals. It was his decade - easily the athlete of the decade as well. But the biggest moment, the one that begat all other moments, was him taking his talents to South Beach on live TV.

20 Most Influential Sports Decisions of the 2010s, #20-11

20.) The Nets trade the world for Garnett and Pierce

So, what this didn't do is ultimately matter in leading the Celtics to winning a title. If anything, six years later the Nets are better built for the future with the prospect of Kevin Durant returning next year. But what that did was gut a franchise to the lowest of lows, give the Celtics undue credit for mostly being there to take advantage of the Nets' idiocy, and give them so much draft capital that it led to years and years of speculation-turn-ire at the Celtics for not doing anything. When they finally pushed their chips in (somewhat) and traded away one of their picks from teh Nets, it was for Kyrie Irving, which in reality didn't work too well. In the end, it was a trade that showcased some of the worst, if entertaining, elements of the NBA, in a decade where interests in transactions overtook the actual game.


19.) Neymar's Multiple Sagas

First he went to Barcelona in an extremely shady transfer where a lot of money was essentially shoveled to Neymar's dad somewhat off the books. Then he performed excellently in his four years at the Camp Nou, even if the first was somewhat a disappointment. In Barcelona's treble-winning 2014-15 season, he was at times their best player - especially early on when Messi got injured and Neymar's brilliance kept them afloat. Hsi transfer and profligacy at Barcelona was the beginning fo the teardown of Barcelona's 'More than a Club' arrogance, while him finally escaping Barcelona - mostly to escape Messi's shadow - was the perfect end result. His time at PSG hasn't live up to his Barcelona heyday, but his transfer away seemed to break financial fair play, break the sports axis, with one of the most profitable clubs actually bullied out of a player. It was stunning to see, and while Barcelona has had domestic success, their losses in Europe have only gotten worse.


18.) Andrew Luck Retires

Obviously, it's actual impact on the decade of 2010-2019 is minimal, only really destroying the 2019 Colts chances (though they woudl be quite strong) but it might be the most stunning single decision by any athlete in teh decade. We had seen young in-their-prime football players retire before (in fact, a pair of them doing so the same offseason is slightly higher up the list), but never a QB. Andrew Luck started this decade as one of the most hyped QB prospects ever. He ended it after a successful eight seasons, but left with everyone wanting just a little bit more. After we got some time to digest it, and saw his heartbreakingly raw press conference, it made a bit mroe sense. He was purely just mentally and physically exhausted from never ending rehab. If anything, I could have listed the decision to play an injured Luck in 2015 that started him on the downslope that would end with his retirement. It sneaked in at the very end of the decade, but it was still a lasting, poignant, and truly shocking, moment.


17.) Chris Bosh is forced to retire

Chris Bosh was quietly maybe the second best player for the Heatles. He was having a great season the year LeBron left for a very good Heat team. And then he fell ill with a heart issue. He never recovered to the point he could play again. There was some ugliness in how fixable his condition was, but at a high level, an easy first ballot HOFer, who was still in his relative prime, had to step away, short-circuiting what could have been an interesting run for the Heat in a weak Eastern Conference in 2015 (weaker than normal, at least) one by a very iffy Cavaliers team. It robbed us of a potential Eastern Conference Finals between the Cavs and his former team. It robbed a truly great player (and let's remember, Bosh joining Miami was huge - it was a very much a big three) of a deserved ending.


16.) The Penguins hire Mike Sullivan

Let me take you back to early 2016, mid-season in NHL terms. The Penguins were languishing - a team that had taken a long slow fall from their 2009 Stanley Cup title. Despite having two of the maybe six best players in the NHL (admittedly, Crosby was injured for a lot of 2010-2012), the Penguins were clearly on teh decline. They were a division winner in 2014, and blew a 3-1 lead to the Rangers. The next year, they snuck into the playoffs, and were beaten easily 4-1 by the Rangers again. It was supposed to be clear we were living in a post Penguins world.... until they hired a guy named Mike Sullivan, who had the balls to make a guy named Matt Murray his starter, and they won back-to-back Stanley Cups, cementing Sidney Crosby's place in the Top-10 of players all time, Malkin as a sure-fire Top-50 type guy, Phil Kessel a folk hero, and of course Matt Murray the same. Despite having won a Stanley Cup in 2009, Crosby was seen as something of a disappointment until 2016, but after back-to-back Cups and Conn Smyth trophies, his resume is unassailable, as was the Penguins dominant run.


15.) Patrick Willis and Calvin Johnson Retire at 28

Andrew Luck retiring was shocking. If not more shocking, definitely more troubling for a league deep in the throws of the concussion crisis, was two players on track for first-ballot HOF status retiring the same offseason before they each turned 30. Patrick Willis had made 1st team All Pro every season of his career but one when he stepped away. Calvin Johnson had put up some of the most dominant seasons for a receiver ever. They both stepped away in their primes, leaving millions on the table. Hopefully they'll both end up in the HOF - Willis is quite close to a lock. But even then, their decision cemented in everyone's mind the worst-case scenario for football, the idea that truly dominant players could leave hte game - and in future maybe not even play the game in the first place - because they feared lasting brain damage. The first time I really remember serious discussion about concussions was in 2009 (the year James Harrison memorably hit Jerome Harrison). Years later, it reached its apex when two hall of famers walked away.


14.) The Colts accuse the Patriots of deflating footballs

In terms of mental drain and time spent on a story, this might be number one. Something that happened in the tail end of the 2014 season was still a story by the tail end of the 2016 season, when Tom Brady won the Super Bowl and got his MVP trophy from Roger Goodell the same year he was suspended. In terms of actual impact, given the Patriots went 14-2 and won teh Super Bowl the year of hte suspension, it was minimal. On the whole though, it represented the NFL at its absolute worst, with needless drama, litigation and overblowing a small matter into something ridiculous. Did Tom Brady probably have two lackeys deflate footballs? Probably - I mean one guy was literally nicknamed the deflator. Did it actually matter? Probably not other than to make Brady feel comfortable. Did the NFL overblow it for no reason? 100%, with 300-page reports and way more about the PSI levels than you ever need to know. It started with an innocuous tweet from Bob Kravitz - a Colts reporter - late into the morning after the Patriots 45-7 thrashing of the Colts in teh 2014 AFC Championship Game, and it wouldn't end for 750 days.


13.) Miguel Cabrera's Triple Crown beats out Mike Trout

By 2019, Mike Trout is inarguably seen as the best player in baseball, and a player who has had the best start to a career since insert-all-time-great-here. By 2019, he would win the MVP for a sub-.500 team despite missing 20 games, and having a player on a historically-good team be about as good. This coming three years after winning another MVP for a non-playoff team in 2016. Why? Well, because the world screwed Mike Trout of an MVP in 2012, a decision that still looms significant in terms of how the casual fans view baseball. In 2012, it was the statheads that were arguing that this obviously good 5-tool player was better than the guy that got the first triple crown in 70 years. By the end, the statheads had moved way beyond that argument, and casual fans know what WAR is or what OPS is or understand defense matters. There's a few tentpole award decisions in baseball that have seemed to have reverberated over time - the first probably being when Zack Greinke and Tim Lincecum won the Cy Youngs in 2009 with neither guy winning more than 16 games. For the MVP it took a few years longer, but the real catalyst was overvaluing trip crown numbers.


12.) Jim Harbaugh Fall's Out with the 49ers

The 49ers went 2-14, 4-12, 5-11, 7-9, 8-8, 7-9, 6-10 from 2004 through 2010. Then they hired Jim Harbaugh away from Stanford. He had limited NFL experience as a coach (tough had some as a QB). The team he inhereted had a talented defense, but had what was seen as a bust in Alex Smith at QB. Harbaugh saw in that team one that looked a lot like he did - hardworking, tough, underdogs. He molded them in that fashion, and they immediately went 13-3, and came a few muffed punts away from making the Super Bowl. They made it the next year, after Harbaugh made the tough decision to bench Alex Smith for Colin Kaepernick. The next year they nearly beat Seattle in Seattle - narrowly losing to the same Seahawks team that would win the Super Bowl 43-8. And then the rumblings began of his fight with owner Jed York. York, as you would imagine, won the battle, and Harbaugh left for Michigan. The 49ers spiraled to the death until Kyle Shanahan rescued him. Harbaugh built up Michigan but hasn't been able to really get anywhere important. It was a pure lose-lose. It short-circuited one of the best stories in the NFL, and it all happened so quickly.


11.) The Giants don't trade Madison Bumgarner when he has velocity issues

OK, so there's no real evidence the Giants were planning on trading Bumgarner - at most there are a few stories they listened to offers, But if we go back before the 2010 season started, the Giants were a middling team that was only at all interesting because Tim Lincecum had won back-to-back Cy Youngs. They had a guy they drafted in teh Top-10 in 2008 named Madison Bumgarner, who was a great prospect. But then all of a sudden he lost his velocity - going form about 94-95 to 90-91. The Giants held on to him. They ended up promoting him, and at 20 years old he threw eight shutout innings in Game 4 of the 2010 World Series - a series the Giants would win in 5. Bumgarner threw another near-shutout in the 2012 World Series. Then threw a for-real shutout in the 2014 World Series - and threw five more shutout innings in Game 7 on two days rest. The Giants won three world series in five years, a fact that still seems a bit unbelievable all these years later. Buster Posey was probably their best player, but Bumgarner their most iconic, and if they listened to many scouts, it may not have ever happened.

NFL 2019: Week 14 Power Rankings and the Rest

32.) Cincinnati Bengals  (1-11  =  179-298)
31.) New York Giants  (2-10  =  230-339)
30.) Washington Redskins  (3-9  =  173-290)
29.) Miami Dolphins  (3-9  =  200-377)
28.) New York Jets  (4-8  =  204-280)
27.) Detroit Lions  (3-8-1  =  280-315)
26.) Arizona Cardinals  (3-8-1  =  255-351)
25.) Jacksonville Jaguars  (4-8  =  220-292)
24.) Atlanta Falcons  (3-9  =  260-323)
23.) Arizona Cardinals  (3-8-1  =  255-351)
22.) Carolina Panthers  (5-7  =  280-320)
21.) Denver Broncos  (4-8  =  198-237)
20.) Oakland Raiders  (6-6  =  237-324)
19.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers  (5-7  =  340-347)
18.) Los Angeles Chargers  (4-8  =  244-241)
17.) Cleveland Browns  (5-7  =  246-272)
16.) Philadelphia Eagles  (5-7  =  274-284)
15.) Pittsburgh Steelers  (7-5  =  236-225)
14.) Chicago Bears  (6-6  =  212-208)
13.) Dallas Cowboys  (6-6  =  310-236)
12.) Los Angeles Rams  (7-5  =  283-250)
11.) Tennessee Titans  (7-5  =  276-234)
10.) Minnesota Vikings  (8-4  =  319-242)
9.) Houston Texans  (8-4  =  293-271)
8.) Buffalo Bills  (9-3  =  257-188)
7.) Green Bay Packers  (9-3  =  289-255)
6.) Seattle Seahawks  (10-2  =  329-293)
5.) Kansas City Chiefs  (8-4  =  348-265)
4.) New Orleans Saints  (10-2  =  298-248)
3.) New England Patriots  (10-2  =  322-145)
2.) San Francisco 49ers  (10-2  =  349-183)
1.) Baltimore Ravens  (10-2  =  406-219)


Projecting the Playoffs

AFC

1.) Baltimore Ravens  =  13-3
2.) New England Patriots  =  13-3
3.) Kansas City Chiefs  =  11-5
4.) Houston Texans  =  10-6
5.) Buffalo Bills  =  11-5
6.) Tennessee Titans  =  9-7

NFC

1.) San Francisco 49ers  =  13-3
2.) New Orleans Saints  =  13-3
3.) Green Bay Packers  =  11-5
4.) Dallas Cowboys  =  8-8
5.) Seattle Seahawks  =  12-4
6.) Minnesota Vikings  =  10-6


Looking Ahead to Next Week's Games

16.) Miami Dolphins (3-9)  @  New York Jets (4-8)  (1:00 - CBS)
15.) Cincinnati Bengals (1-11)  @  Cleveland Browns (5-7)  (1:00 - CBS)
14.) Carolina Panthers (5-7)  @  Atlanta Falcons (3-9)  (1:00 - FOX)
13.) Los Angeles Chargers (4-8)  @  Jacksonville Jaguars (3-9)  (4:05 - FOX)
12.) New York Giants (2-10)  @  Philadelphia Eagles (5-7)  (MNF - ESPN)
11.) Washington Redskins (3-9)  @  Green Bay Packers (9-3)  (1:00 - FOX)
10.) Detroit Lions (3-8-1)  @  Minnesota Vikings (8-4)  (1:00 - FOX)
9.) Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5)  @  Arizona Cardinals (3-8-1)  (4:25 - CBS)
8.) Denver Broncos (4-8)  @  Houston Texans (8-4)  (1:00 - CBS)
7.) Indianapolis Colts (6-6)  @  Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-7)  (1:00 - CBS)
6.) Tennessee Titans (7-5)  @  Oakland Raiders (6-6)  (4:25 - CBS)
5.) Dallas Cowboys (6-6)  @  Chicago Bears (6-6)  (TNF - NFLN)
4.) Seattle Seahawks (10-2)  @  Los Angeles Rams (7-5)  (SNF - NBC)
3.) Baltimore Ravens (10-2)  @  Buffalo Bills (9-3)  (1:00 - CBS)
2.) Kansas City Chiefs (8-4)  @  New England Patriots (10-2)  (4:25 - CBS)
1.) San Francisco 49ers (10-2)  @  New Orleans Saints (10-2)  (1:00 - FOX)

The Azores

When my sister first floated the idea of doing a family trip over Thanksgiving, what had been to date a sacred day in our extended family, it was a bit unsettling. In the end, it was a great idea, one that could loop in my Mom's 60th birthday as well. In the end, it was also her who suggested us look at the Azores, the mysterious islands deep in the Atlantic Ocean, an overseas Portuguese province a few hours away from both Lisbon, and more conveniently, Boston.

The trip would be short, and probably less action packed than most of our family trips in our times traveling together, but the relaxed, beautiful setting of the island made that laid-back approach a lot more apt. The island itself is probably as good of a small island vacation as I could dream up. It had beaches and cliffs and beautiful ocean views, sure, but also had lakes in craters of volcanoes, incredible, lush, hilly greenery, tons of hiking, great food, and a really cool vibe. Yeah, I really liked the Azores - with the best part it being just four-to-five hours away from the East Coast.

What was interesting about the Azores was how green it was. There were parts that bordered on lush jungle - particularly the really nice botanical garden 'Parque Terra Nostra' - but others that were deep evergreen forest. And finally just an abundance of rolling green hills and farmland. It truly was a bounty of lush beauty. I had in mind a picture of a more dirt-grass, hillscape, but instead it was lush as could be.

Aside from this, the Azores is also a lot smaller than I expected, about three hours lengthwise and literally 20 minutes from North to South. There are various points on top of hills where you can see both Northern and Southern shorelines of Sao Miguel island (where their regional capital - Ponta Delgada - is and where we stayed during our trip). It was such a weird experience in that way. Inside that 80x10mile box was a wealth of food and tourism.

Like a lot of the places I travel to, the memories of the food will not escape me. The nice dinners we had were all so good and different, mostly around Ponta Delgada town. First was at Chandalier, a fancy sit-down type place with a great menu. My family and I split four of their five appetizers, and I got a main of beef cheek braised in red wine, which was excellent. Portuguese cuisine is noted for its seafood - which was abundant in the Azores - and pork, and I tested these two out time and time again.

The next night we had dinner at A Terra, which had a great preparation of Leitao - or suckling pig - with the skin perfectly crisp and softened by a nice sauce. It also had a great rump steak and rockfish cooked whole. The third dinner was the most homely, at the buzzing A Tasca, a place that peaks in crowd probably between 10-11pm. We arrived at 9pm, shared various sausages includ9ing a chorizo flambeed at the table, and then mixed mains of fish, pork cheeks again and limpets - little mussel-like things found often in that area. The final dinner was literally at a home, where we were given a carefully created, farm-to-table, five-course meal with each made with heart and love.

Our lunches were more ad-hoc but still great. Most of them consisted of eating sandwhiches made of sweet, sweet Portuguese Pao bread, with jam, cheese (made from the countless, truly countless, cows on the island) and chorizo. Those were excellent in their simplicity. Portugal is not always known as a food heaven, which is wrong, but I do think the Azores may be Portuguese food at its best.

The drink wasn't flowing as much as it does on my solo trips, but the little craft beer I had was excellent. Most of what I had (and what I ended up bringing back home) was bought in a cheese store near the Mercada Graca in the heart of Ponta Delgada. This cheese store (translated to 'King of Cheese') sold great cheese and honey, but also in their fridge in the back sold Korisca beer, with about six or seven different types - my favorite being the Passionfruit IPA.

The one bar we did go to during our time was named Ta Genta, a cocktail bar down a bright alley from A Tasca - a perfect people watching spot in the heart of Ponta Delgada, another place that was much more crowded when we left around 12:30 than it was when we arrived at 11:30.

The tourism for the Azores is quite good as well. Most of it is natural beauty - though there are a couple of nice churches and beaetuiful little lanes throughout. What is nice is each half of the island has their own stars - with the East having Lagoa Fogo (and Lagoa Furnas and its hot springs) and the West having Sete Cidades, an area with two large lakes. Most of these lakes are in volcanic craters.

There are countless hikes - the one we did was a two-hour out-and-back to Lagoa Fogo, which is visible from lookouts well above, but requires the hike to reac the lake level. It was stunning, with the calm, cool air making it easier than similar hikes I've done. The island's lakes are probably the most notable tourism feature, and they are all various forms of beautiful and stunning, both from the lookouts placed on teh sides of countless hairpin turns, or from ground level.

The coasts of the Azores feature beautiful cliffs with colorful rock layers, and volcanic-black sand below. The Westernmost point, fit with a hot spring, was truly stunning experience. I don't know if I can name a place that packs beaches, forests, mountains, and farmland as well in as little geographical space as the Azores.

When it came time to leave after four days, my Mom openly said this should be the first trip of many, and I believe her. It is so close, though a non-stop from New York or Newark would do wonders. It is so beautiful, so peaceful, so in-the-middle-of-nowhere - really just pull up Google maps and get surprised on how 'in-the-middle-of-the-Atlantic' the Azores are. We will be back, whether for the food, or hikes, or both.

The Hypocrisy and the Loss

I haven't yet written about the Astros scandal because I don't know exactly what to say. The one thing I absolutely won't say is that they didn't cheat. They so obviously did, they so obviously had a system in place to steal signs, relay them to batters, apparently using drums and other things. They absoluteyl did this. There's no defense there.

Where is the defense, then? Well, it probably resides in the same two arguments I made fun of and berated Patriots fans for using for years after Spygate (more on the overall comparison to the mindset of Patriots fans shortly). The first was 'well, everyone does it!' and the second (and in this case more interesting one) is 'it didn't really help!'. Both have always been such hollow defenses when it was Bostonians and Massholes making them in defense of their team that was caught red-handed stealing signals.

I used to always think "how can you use the 'everyone did it' excuse... that's like the first lesson we teach kids is that that is not an excuse!". But now? Well, I have to say that I think probably a lot of teams do something a bit untoward, if not outright cheating like the Astros.

The second excuse always grated me because well, if Bill Belichick was such a genius, why the hell did he do this sign stealing scheme. Clearly, it helped. Well, with teh Astros, we actually have tangible proof that it might not have mattered. The Astros were across the board better on the road in 2017 than at home, and at least in the current iteration of the scandal, it seems their scheme was limited to home games. The Astros hit, slugged, OBPed and everything else better on the road. They even had a lower 'chase rate' (the rate which you swing at pitches out of the strike zone). There's no logical reason for this. You should do a lot better, you would think, if you knew it was a fastball or a off-speed pitch coming. Somehow, the Astros didn't.

All this said, I do want to mention the one area where I do think I am different than Patriots fans. Yes, I think the scandal is overblown, and likely all teams were doing it, and it didn't seem to have a tangible impact, but at the end, it does make me feel a bit worse about the Astros and being a fan of them. It sucks knowing we cheated (even if others did). It somewhat ruins a whole lot of amazing memories in the 2017 series - specifically that amazing, hauntingly mesmerizingly beautiful Game 5 win against the Dodgers. I won't stop loving the fact I watched my team win a World Series, but I do love it ever slightly less.

That one simple fact - that having my team uncovered as have cheated does impact my love of the team - does separate me from Patriots fans, which only became more blindingly subservient to their team after Spygate (and then Deflategate and every other Gate), using the fact they were caught cheating as a rallying cry. And maybe a lot of Astros fans will do the same, but not me.

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

The Patriots are the NFL's best team (or at worst, the second best), but I'll tell you this, Tom Brady has regressed. He is not long for this NFL world. He may want to play until he's 45, but he won't be able to. The signs are already there, with him having easily his worst season in a long time, with teh normally impregnable Patriots offense slipping to mediocrity - bouyed by a suddenly historically good defense, of course.

And you know what, at the same time the Brady era seems to ptoetnailly be nearing its close (and I can't restate this enough, they very, very easily could still win the Superbowl this year), I've never been more excited to be an NFL fan in a long time. The Brady era is over, but with it the Ben, and Rivers and nearly Rodgers and others as well. This is the era with Russell Wilson as the old fogey, and the guys like Mahomes, Watson, Jackson, Wentz, Dak and others leading the future - and a damn bright future it is. Particularly in teh AFC, the conference that sat dormant letting the Patriots dominance actually end up more stark in the 2010s than it was in the 2000s.

The NFL is in a great place at the moment. It doesn't seem as unbalanced as a few years. Maybe it is, of course, because we have a couple of historic defenses, but this season has been great. No more than this past week. I thought it set-up well with three great primetime games and all three delivered. You had the Raiders holding on to a 26-24 win in their last primetime game in Oakland. Then the Vikings and Cowboys in a thriller down to the wire, and finally that incredible, bonkers Seahawks 49ers game, which showed so many ills for the 49ers (especially Jimmy G who just isn't that good right now) but still showed them win because their defense was dominant.

Yes the game nearly ended in a tie, but that too was reminiscent of one of my weirdly favorite games of recent years, the Seahawks 6-6 tie against Arizona in 2016 (yes, I am fully serious). That game was fascinating, with dominant DL play, great individual defense, superhuman scrambles by Russell Wilson, the throttling of a 'conventional' QB in Garoppolo. All of it.

That is what the NFL can be in 2019, and it sets us up for a great second half. No undefeated teams. Scores in the two to three loss range, that are all quite capable if not perfect. That's good. perfection isn't fun. The ruthless beat of the Patriots drum is boring. The AFC has been boring for a decade now (or at least a half-decade, since Manning retired). The NFC has often been about which of the many qualified teams get a chance to beat Goliath - and most came close, if not doing so in the 2011 Giants and 2017 Eagles. It feels different this time.

It's interesting to note that all the best QBs of the year with few exceptions are African-American (or half, in Mahomes's or Wilson's case), but other than maybe Lamar Jackson, they are succeeding because they are also dominant pocket and oin the move passers. These aren't gimmick schemes stolen from college, this is the real deal, and it is so fun.

It has been an awful decade if you like parity or not seeing half the league beholden to a soulless, dominant team of Massholes, but there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel here.

NFL 2019: Week 11 Power Rankings & The Rest

32.) Cincinnati Bengals  (0-9  =  137-259)

31.) Miami Dolphins  (2-7  =  119-268)

30.) Washington Redskins  (1-8  =  108-219)

29.) New York Jets  (2-7  =  130-238)

28.) New York Giants  (2-8  =  203-289)

27.) Atlanta Falcons  (2-7  =  191-259)

26.) Arizona Cardinals  (3-6-1  =  222-281)

25.) Cleveland Browns  (3-6  =  171-221)

24.) Detroit Lions  (3-5-1  =  217-237)

23.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers  (3-6  =  260-279)

22.) Denver Broncos  (3-6  = 149-170)

21.) Chicago Bears  (4-5  =  162-157)

20.) Los Angeles Chargers  (4-6  =  207-194)

19.) Jacksonville Jaguars  (4-5  =  179-189)

18.) Indianapolis Colts  (5-4  =  194-193)

17.) Pittsburgh Steelers  (5-4  =  193-181)

16.) Oakland Raiders  (5-4  =  208-240)

15.) Los Angeles Rams  (5-4  =  226-191)

14.) Tennessee Titans  (5-5  =  203-197)

13.) Carolina Panthers  (5-4  =  225-228)

12.) Philadelphia Eagles  (5-4  =  224-213)

11.) Buffalo Bills  (6-3  =  174-150)

10.) Kansas City Chiefs  (6-4  =  284-239)

9.) Dallas Cowboys  (5-4  =  251-170)

8.) XXXXXXXX

7.) Houston Texans  (6-3  =  238-191)

6.) New Orleans Saints  (7-2  =  204-182)

5.) Minnesota Vikings  (7-3  =  262-182)

4.) Green Bay Packers  (8-2  =  250-205)

3.) Baltimore Ravens  (7-2  =  300-189)

2.) New England Patriots  (8-1  =  270-98)

1.) XXXXXXX

Projecting the Playoffs

AFC

1.) New England Patriots  =  13-3

2.) Baltimore Ravens  =  12-4

3.) Houston Texans  =  11-5

4.) Kansas City Chiefs  =  11-5

5.) Oakland Raiders  =  10-6

6.) Tennessee Titans  =  9-7

NFC

1.) San Francisco 49ers  =  13-3

2.) Green Bay Packers  =  13-3

3.) New Orleans Saints  =  11-5

4.) Dallas Cowboys  =  10-6

5.) Minnesota Vikings  =  11-5

6.) Philadelphia Eagles  =  10-6

Looking Ahead to Next Week’s Games

Byes: Green Bay Packers (8-2), Tennessee Titans (5-5), Seattle Seahawks (X-X), New York Giants (2-8)

14.) New York Jets (2-7)  @  Washington Redskins (1-8)  (1:00 – FOX)

13.) Buffalo Bills (7-3)  @  Miami Dolphins (2-7)  (1:00 – CBS)

12.) Cincinnati Bengals (0-9)  @  Oakland Raiders (5-4)  (4:25 – CBS)

11.) Dallas Cowboys (5-4)  @  Detroit Lions (3-5-1)  (1:00 – FOX)

10.) Arizona Cardinals (3-6-1)  @  San Francisco 49ers (X-X)  (4:05 – FOX)

9.)

8.)

7.)

6.)

5.)

4.)

3.)

2.) New England Patriots (8-1)  @  Philadelphia Eagles (5-4

1.) Houston Texans (6-3)  @  Baltimore Ravens (7-2)  (1:00 – CBS)

NFL 2019: Week 10 Power Rankings & The Rest

Tier I - The "Race for Tua" Quinto

32.) Washington Redskins  (1-8  =  108-219)
31.) Miami Dolphins  (1-7  =  103-256)
30.) New York Jets  (1-7  =  96-211)
29.) Cincinnati Bengals  (0-8  =  124-210)
28.) Atlanta Falcons  (1-7  =  165-250)


Tier II - The "Well, That Happened" Duo

27.) New York Giants  (2-7  =  176-255)
26.) Cleveland Browns  (2-6  =  152-205)


Tier III - The "Solidly Bad Spoilers" Trio

25.) Chicago Bears  (3-5  =  142-144)
24.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-6  =  230-252)
23.) Denver Broncos  (3-6  =  149-170)


Tier IV - The "Pretender Contenders" Quadro

22.) Pittsburgh Steelers  (4-4  =  176-169)
21.) Jacksonville Jaguars  (4-5  =  176-189)
20.) Detroit Lions  (3-4-1  =  204-217)
19.) Arizona Cardinals  (3-5-1  =  195-251)


Tier V - The "Soft Underbelly of the AFC" Quadro

18.) Los Angeles Chargers  (4-5  =  183-168)
17.) Indianapolis Colts  (5-3  =  182-177)
16.) Tennessee Titans  (4-5  =  168-165)
15.) Oakland Raiders  (4-4  =  182-216)


Tier VI - The "Less Soft Underbelly of the NFC" Duo

14.) Carolina Panthers  (5-3  =  209-204)
13.) Philadelphia Eagles  (5-4  =  224-213)


Tier VII - The "Bad Good Teams" Duo

12.) Buffalo Bills  (6-2  =  158-131)
11.) Seattle Seahawks  (7-2  =  248-230)


Tier VIII - The "Really Good Divisional Round Fodder" Trio

10.) Dallas Cowboys  (5-3  =  227-142)
9.) Los Angeles Rams  (5-3  =  214-174)
8.) Minnesota Vikings  (6-3  =  234-158)


Tier IX - The "May if a Few Things Break Right" Trio

7.) Green Bay Packers  (7-2  =  226-189)
6.) Houston Texans  (6-3  =  238-191)
5.) Kansas City Chiefs  (6-3  =  252-204)


Tier X - The "Potential Super Bowl Champs" Duo

4.) Baltimore Ravens  (6-2  =  251-176)
3.) New Orleans Saints  (7-1  =  195-156)


Tier XI - The "God Help Us" Duo

2.) San Francisco 49ers  (8-0  =  235-102)
1.) New England Patriots  (8-1  =  270-98)



Projecting the Playoffs

AFC

1.) New England Patriots  =  13-3
2.) Baltimore Ravens  =  12-4
3.) Houston Texans  =  11-5
4.) Kansas City Chiefs  =  11-5
5.) Buffalo Bills  =  11-5
6.) Oakland Raiders  =  9-7


NFC

1.) New Orleans Saints  =  14-2
2.) San Francisco 49ers  =  14-2
3.) Green Bay Packers  =  12-4
4.) Dallas Cowboys  =  11-5
5.) Minnesota Vikings  =  10-6
6.) Philadelphia Eagles  =  10-6


Looking Ahead to Next Week's Games

Byes: New England Patriots (8-1), Denver Broncos (3-6), Philadelphia Eagles (5-4), Washington Redskins (1-8), Jacksonville Jaguars (4-5), Houston Texans (6-3)

13.) New York Giants (2-7)  @  New York Jets (1-7)  (1:00 - FOX)
12.) Atlanta Falcons (1-7)  @  New Orleans Saints (8-1)  (1:00 - FOX)
11.) Miami Dolphins (1-8)  @  Indianapolis Colts (5-3)  (4:05 - CBS)
10.) Baltimore Ravens (6-2)  @  Cincinnati Bengals (0-8)  (1:00 - CBS)
9.) Buffalo Bills (6-2)  @  Cleveland Browns (2-6)  (1:00 - CBS)
8.) Arizona Cardinals (3-5-1)  @  Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-6)  (1:00 - FOX)
7.) Detroit Lions (3-4-1)  @  Chicago Bears (3-5)  (1:00 - CBS)
6.) Kansas City Chiefs (5-3)  @  Tennessee Titans (4-4)  (1:00 - CBS)
5.) Carolina Panthers (5-3)  @  Green Bay Packers (7-2)  (4:25 - FOX)
4.) Los Angeles Rams (5-3)  @  Pittsburgh Steelers (4-4)  (4:25 - FOX)
3.) Los Angeles Chargers (4-5)  @  Oakland Raiders (4-4)  (TNF - FOX)
2.) Minnesota Vikings (6-3)  @  Dallas Cowboys (5-3)  (SNF - NBC)
1.) Seattle Seahawks (7-2)  @  San Francisco 49ers (8-0)  (MNF - ESPN)

The Dismay in the Disaster

As I sat on a plane, furiously refreshing SI.com (somehow on an International flight on United, both MLB.com and espn.com were blocked) and watched my favorite team throw away a World Series in the span of like seven pitches, I had to think to myself that I was glad it was happening this way.

Had I not been in a plane, I would have been in a stationary dark room of my basement, trapped in a different way - not 30,000 feet high but unable to move nonetheless. It was probably better, however, to not have the video to really see the destruction in real time. For six innings, Grienke was amazing, but the Astros squandered opportunities against a bad Scherzer, leaving what should have been a 4-0 or 5-0 game at 2-0 and very much in the balance.

I may have time for a full retrospective look at this Astros team and this season, probably the best regular season team I've ever followed (certainly the best Astros regular season team). But just like they did last year in their sullen five game ALCS loss to Boston, they were unable to string together big hits, had a few bats go silent (this time Correa and Bregman, mainly), and lose all their home games in a series. I guess there is some interesting infamy of being the first team ever to go 0-4 at home in a playoff series, but that is not much comfort.

But let's not talk too much about that dismay. At the end of the day, the 2019 Astros still did give me some great moments. Both their walk-off wins over the Yankees in the ALCS were amazing, from Correa doing it way past midnight in the 11th inning, and having an all time HR pimp moment, to the incredible moment that was Altuve's series-clincher. They also gave me a whole host of moments in the regular season, be it every Gerritt Cole start in the 2nd half, or the Verlander no-hitter, or all the blowouts and great moments.

The 2019 Astros weren't without their blemishes of course. Their inability to hit in RISP and lose home playoff games has been a staggeringly sad trend these last two years (of course, this was reversed in 2017, when they won a series where teh home team won every game). And then of course there was that Taubman fiasco, which I have so many stances on. The first is I still heavily rooted for teh Astros. I'm not a fan of them beacuse of their ex-Assistant GM, nor am I a fan of them because of Luhnow - who I'll admit is a brilliant baseball mind but seems to be an unrepentant asshole and who I'm sure is the person behind the pr missteps throughout the Taubman saga. That said, I can put on a brave face but I have to be honest it didn't feel as good rooting for this team. But that is all over now.

The Astros should still be good in 2020. They will lose Gerrit Cole, but they can replace him with a back-from Tommy John Lance McCullers, a hopefully good again Forrest Whitley, a potential return to form from Aaron Sanchez, and who knows what else. The offense should still be very good, with hopefully, finally, a good healthy season from Carlos Correa. A full year of Kyle Tucker too. There is a lot to look forward to as an Astros fan. Yes, they will almost certainly not be as good as the regular-season version of the 2019 Astros, but then again neither were the 2017 Astros, a team that had Dallas Kuechel as their ace for a majority of the season but still won 100 games.

Anyway, while all this was happening, there was an ever more depressing story going on in the world of sports: the gutting of Deadspin. I don't know when I became a loyal Deadspin reader. I think it was after Will Leitch had already left and AJ Daulerio took over as Editor (around the time of the Brett Favre / Jenn Sterger story). I think my first knowledge of Deadspin was from reading Will Leitch's book 'God Save the Fan' which was gifted to me. I started reading it loyally, daily, soon after - along with what I always considered its sister site (or the very least, its offspring) Kissing Suzy Kolber. The latter side closed its doors in 2015 after losing a lot of its writers over the years.

These were tentpole sites for a young sports fan. It truly was sports without 'access, favor, or discretion.' Did I love every move the site made? No, I did not. Despite being heavily liberal as a person, the sites progressive views were somewhat too much. By the way, this is not to say at all that Deadspin should have 'sticked too sports', just that I didn't agree with all their writers views on everything. Which is fine. I still found the site brilliatn, hilarious, pointed, thought-provoking, and required daily reading.

It is not gone in the sense it still exists. I can type in www.deadspin.com and it will take me to a website that looks like the site I loved - probably with a lot more ads. However, it will be new names writing stories, blindly 'sticking to sports.' It will be hollow, it will be fruitless. These first couple days, I've still typed in Deadspin a few times because it is just so familiar to do so. But overtime it will become less and less and soon thereafter it won't happen.

I hope the site gets resurrected somewhere. The writers themselves are all talented enough that they'll land somewhere (which was my feeling about Grantland when it closed as well) but what made it great was the tight vision and voice the site had, the commenters that made it so great, and its fearless style. Of course, there is some import in pointing out that the Deadspin mindset of 2019 would probably despise a lot about the site in 2010, where there was a decent amount of traficking in hot women, lewd stories and bro-ey-ness. Of course, they grew beyond that as their writers did (people like Drew Magary and Barry Petchesky penning open letters bemoaning their past selves), but the sense of in the wild remained throughout.

Deadspin was an everything site for me. I would waste a lot of time there, but also learn a lot with the various longform pieces and exposes. Certainly I'm more knowledgeable about things like the NCAA's cartel-like behavoir, or the dour world of how sports teams 'investigate' sexual assault and domestic violence issues. Of course, beyond all that dreariness, there was also a lot of fun.

Those damn perfect comments. Early on the comments had a life of their own in the Deadspin world, and while every set of commenters would look down on the next set, the overall quality never truly wavered. Laughing and learning was the core to Deadspin's allure, and all that is gone.

I'm really not ready or skilled enough to talk about the ins and outs of Deadspins fight with their PE-owners and new CEO, other than to say that the PE owners have been completely outplayed in this fight. I will forever miss Deadspin. I hope some of the great group of writers find themselves in teh same place so I can read them together. However, even if they don't, hopefully they'll be somewhere being as caustic and insightful and snarky and invasive as possible.

AL Conquered, Redux

I still remember when I first heard of Jose Altuve. It was on Keith Law's mid-season Top 50 prospects list in 2011. This was a really dark period in Astros history, as is well known. That year, they lost 100+ games for the first time. It was a long time coming. They had hemorraged talent from 2006-2010 due to a series of incredibly shortsighted moves, bad drafting and pathetic free agent decisions. They were the worst run franchise in baseball. They needed a reckoning. 2011 was that reckoning. It set off the worst three-year stretch of any team ever. It is now known as the tank that built a potential dynasty, but if we go back to 2011 by itself, it wasn't. Luhnow wasn't there yet. Drayton McLane was still the owner. They didn't lose 100+ games in 2011 because they tanked. They did because they were putrid.

But in that dark abyss, was one bright spot, a tiny infielder that Keith Law at the time said could hit for high average and had incredible contact ability. Altuve wasn't particularly high on his list, but the Astros had one of the worst farm systems in baseball, so even having one prospect on that list was a small tiny sign of things to come.

Jose Altuve came up in 2011. He was a solid 1-2 WAR player in 2012 and 2013, when teh team intentionally tanked, and lost 105 and then 111 games. Jose Altuve is the only guy on this team that had to deal with those losses, that infamy; deal with teh parade of hilariously overmatched players that ran through that clubhouse. Altuve was there through it all. For that, it is so earned, amazing and perfect that it was his home run that sent them back to the World series. 

Jose Altuve is a miracle, a 5'6" player that not only became a major leaguer, but won three batting titles, grew into having dependable power (even if the juiced ball helped him get to 30 HR this year). He grew into a damn MVP, and an earned one at that. This little guy put up 32 WAR in a 5-year stretch. He became one of the best players in baseball. The rest of the team was all planned. All the other great players on this team were brought in because they were great, or were always supposed to be good ones. George Springer is the only other guy who was there before Luhnow, but he was a Top-10 pick in the 2011 draft. Altuve was the miracle. 

The weight of what the Astros did hasn't left me yet. Of course, neither has that brief 15-minute period between Osuna blowing the game and Altuve winning it - 15-minutes wherein I was an uncontrollable mess. But I'll trade that little period of misery for the unbridled joy and boundless excitement that was Altuve's home run to end the series. The Astros are back in the World Series, beating the Yankees to do it again.

It is easier to say this when you support the team that won the series, but that was an incredible series of baseball. Both offenses were below their normal level, but so much of that has to be chalked up to the pitching on both sides being incredible. The Astros had the lowest strikeout rate as an offense. The Yankees somehow struck out loads of them. The Yankees drew so many walks with their usual patient approach, but through a combination of incredible defense and timely putching the Astros escaped time and time again.

We had of course the signature moments, from Correa's perfect walk off and celebration to end the Game 2 marathon, and of course Altuve's series ender. There was drama in so many games. The Astros went to New York in three chilly games and walked away with two wins. You even had the craziness that was the first inning of Game 5 when the Yankees rocked Verlander, complete with mystique and aura pushing Hicks ball nicely off the pole. It was that type of series, one of the better six-game sets I've seen.

The Astros are in an incredible run right now. The team looks to be great in 2020, but nothing lasts forever. Cole will likely be gone. Verlander and Greinke another year older. The Astros will have to depend on a returning-from-Tommy-John Lance McCullers, Jr., and a prospect finally making good in Forrest Whitley. The offense should still be good, but injuries have been concerns for a couple years now. Who knows what the future holds, but the present has the Astros with the chance to have one of the more dominant three-year stretches in MLB history.

The joy in that stadium was palpable even sitting in my house 1,400 miles away. The noise, the cannon, the train, all of it - with Altuve's giant grin being the capper. Jose Altuve deserved that moment, for suffering through the losses, the tank with no guarantee this would be at the end of that run. They all deserved it. Hell, us Astros fans deserved it. 

When I started this blog, I barely wrote about baseball. If I did, it was about the joy of watching Roy Oswalt be traded away from the sinking ship that was the Astros at the time. The fact I've gotten to write about two AL pennants is unbelievable. I could never have asked more than the dramatic run that was 2017, but this has been nearly as good. Now just four more wins to go.