If any of you can recall from last week, not having CSN Houston telecast coverage of Astros games was really affecting my passion of the game in a very negative way that I thought could be fixed by being able to watch a game. But because I was able to attend today's game, I expected to have my soul fill with warm passionate juice, of cloves and cinnamon with a hint of goose. But that interestingly was not the case. I watched the game, as I always do. I watched the game, to it I paid attention to. But no longer did I feel in my heart the undivided loyalty I knew needed to be due.
I suppose at the heart of it, I just watched the game, rather than immersed myself in it. And that's a big problem. One of the things I realized was that loyalty requires attention almost all the time, especially with this team. A changing teamscape and new players coming in at all times requires a stronger nail to keep that thin cotton thread of fandom from failing. It's like an athlete whose heart rate must keep up with the stress that's being put on the body. But with no daily TV coverage to broadcast the team, it's harder to gauge just how well a player is doing. Statistics can tell the mind great things, but it is the physical batter in the box that tells the most. What we see is most unintelligible in a logical voice, but what our brains recognize out of the corners of our eyes can create a intense sea of joy and ecstasy. It is the reason why passion requires sensible input, such as being able to see the game from an individual perspective. Lack of TV coverage interrupts that beating of the heart, and hearts must beat constantly. Thus the reason why one beat from today's game had little influence. Hence the reason why I am still very much dead.
But what I was able to gather from today's game, I could understand that the team had a very much improved game, winning a series opener against the Angels with a score of 7-6. It was also one of those more stereotypical game outcomes. Jordan Lyles pitched 5 good innings, including the first when he gave up that air glider of a homer. By good innings I mean that he didn't wallow in any one inning, and worked fairly efficiently, if not effectively in the 1st.
José Altuve had a liner of homer that I think might have hit one of the Community Leaders billboards. If not, it was very close.
After some fans sitting in section 116 yelled out "You Suck, CJ", Chris Carter blasted a telling 3-run bomb into the boxes. At first I thought those fans were referring to our previous #23, Chris Johnson (CJ), but then I realized the Angels pitcher was CJ Wilson.
Anything after the 5th inning I don't really have a recollection of, since I left fairly early. I do know that Dallas Keuchel gave up a HR because I was walking past the boxes on my way home and saw the ball come flying toward me. Unfortunately the ball hit the wall and I didn't get the chance to grab a souvenir, but oh well. I also heard that José Veras pitched a scoreless inning to get the save. That's exciting.
Anyway, friends. Let's hope we can win another one tomorrow. As for me, I'll be hoping for that train that doesn't seem to be coming; I'll be hoping for CSN Houston. But it seems the longer the station remains trainless, the more I'm forced to live, not as a traveler, but as a resident. And who knows. Maybe when that train finally comes, I'll be too entrenched in the land I've made familiar that I'd be returning to a place I no longer recognize. Hopefully it won't reach that stage. Optimism is here now. And to all of you out there who may be feeling the same, good night, and good luck.