Home field advantage has been a privilege no Houston-based team has had the luxury of over the last two weeks. Hurricane Ike has torn through the Texas coast, destroying not only trees, but also any possible momentum in Houston sports.
Milwaukee… we have a problem
The Houston Astros have fallen victim to this trend toward the final stretch of their 2008 campaign. Prior to Ike’s arrival, the Astros were a team on fire. The hottest team in baseball was making a run for the 2008 playoffs after erasing an almost insurmountable deficit in the wildcard standings.
The Good Guys had won 14 out of their last 15 games dating back to August’s series with Cincinatti. Houston had pulled within two games of wildcard leader Milwaukee and were preparing for a home series against the Chicago Cubs.
Then Ike hit.
With the Category 2 storm knocking on the doors of Minute Maid Park, the home series the Astros were supposed to enjoy was postponed. Not only were two of the three games moved to a later date, but their locations were also changed – Milwaukee was to be Houston’s home away from home.
Despite wearing their home colors, it was hardly a home series at all. The Astros began a quick nosedive that turned their playoff hopes into a near impossibility.
The skid began with the no-hitter Cubs’ pitcher Carlos Zambrano threw against the Astros on Sept. 14. Since then, Houston acquired six more losses in eight games – including a series in Florida – and plummeted back to five games the wildcard race.
"The thing is we had days at the end of the season that we could have played a single game plus a doubleheader if need be," Astros relief pitcher Doug Brocail told the Houston Chronicle.
"And to make us go up and play at (Milwaukee) like we had to on no sleep, it was absolutely ridiculous."
Now, the Houston/Milwaukee Astros face two final series at home against the Cincinnati Reds and the Atlanta Braves, which they will have to win while hoping for a timely skid by the New York Mets, Brewers or Philadelphia Phillies. The last game of the season will be played against the Cubs should that game decide a playoff contender. Their odds of making the playoffs have been cut in half.
Football needs some home cooking
Houston football is in serious need of a homecoming after a long stretch of road trips.
Since their blowout victory against Southern in August, the Cougars have yet to play another game at Robertson Stadium. Hurricane Ike dealt the same hand to the Cougars as it did to the Astros on the weekend of its arrival.
Saturday’s game against Air Force, scheduled for Robertson Stadium, was relocated to Gerald J. Ford Stadium on the Southern Methodist University campus in Dallas. The Cougars hit the field wearing their Scarlet jerseys, but nothing about the situation felt like home.
Houston fell to the Falcons 31-28, the second of three consecutive losses. Including Saturday’s game against East Carolina, Houston will have spent four consecutive weeks away from their home turf.
The Houston Texans’ season, while young, has already seen more away games than any other team.
After losing their season-opener in Pittsburgh, the Texans were scheduled to come home to face the Baltimore. However, it turned out to be another home game left for later. The Texans instead took an early bye in Week 2 of the season, pushing back their early home game against the Ravens to a late Week 10. With Week 3 in the books, the Texans’ record sits at 0-2 after losing in Tennessee.
Texans’ fans won’t see a home game until Week 5, when they take on division rival Indianapolis.
Some will argue there was more to these teams losing the way they have. A game here is the same as a game there, and most athletes will be the first to admit it. Pitching, as well as quarterback controversy, may be to blame for the losses, but don’t underestimate the power of the home crowd.
