Houston Astros: Why the team will likely get snubbed at the ESPYS

Best Team

So last year’s ESPY’s saw the Golden State Warriors win the award for Best Team. I mean there isn’t any argument towards that. But, I think to a degree it’s a bit unfair because they were expected to win the championship once Kevin Durant joined their squad. You expected the Warriors to win it all. You didn’t expect the Cubs to win the World Series although you had a feeling 2016 could be their year.

But the Warriors won the award and the Cubs were denied the chance to achieve their dream. This makes me wonder when was the last time a baseball team won the award for best team. Let’s see here.

ESPY’s Winners for Best Team (August-June)

2017: Golden State Warriors

2016: Cleveland Cavaliers

2015: U.S Women’s Soccer Team

2014: Seattle Seahawks

2013: Miami Heat

2012: Miami Heat

2011: Dallas Mavericks

2010: New Orleans Saints

2009: Los Angeles Lakers

2008: Boston Celtics

2007: Indianapolis Colts

2006: Pittsburgh Steelers

2005: Boston Red Sox

Why the anti-love for baseball?

So it’s been about 13 years since a baseball team won the Best Team Award at the ESPY’s. That came from the 2004 Boston Red Sox, who ended an 86-year curse to win the World Series. That was a big deal back then. The 2016 Cubs broke a 108-year title drought and they didn’t win best team?

Perhaps the argument that baseball is slow, boring, and not popular have really made fans decide to go for sports that are fast-paced, contact and flashy. I don’t have a problem with fans who think baseball isn’t as good as football or basketball.

The same could be said for hockey. Houston Astros fans, since the ESPY Awards started, only one hockey team (1994 New York Rangers) won the title for the best team. Why does baseball or hockey not get the same love as the two other big four sports? Hockey’s championship run is the best since there is nothing better than overtime hockey where the first to score a goal wins.

Difference between Baseball/Hockey and Basketball/Football

Hockey is just as unpredictable as baseball in terms of where the brakes will go. Football and basketball have unpredictability, but there is a level of predictability that can almost assure you the Patriots, Warriors, or LeBron James will win or reach the championship. You don’t get that predictability much in baseball or hockey. There are more #8 seeded upsets in hockey than in basketball. In baseball, you have four in seven chances to win the World Series instead of one-and-done like the Super Bowl. Would you like to have another chance to beat the team that beat you in one game right away?

Houston Astros for Best Team

So far, the Houston Astros are in the same club as the Alabama Crimson Tide football team. Joining them will be the Super Bowl winner, the NBA Finals champion, the March-Madness (men’s college hoops) top dog, the Women’s college basketball queen, and the Stanley Cup Finals king. Had the United State’s men’s soccer team actually made the World Cup and won it all, they would be on there too.

NFL

Right now, the NFL is down to four teams: Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots, and the Minnesota Vikings. Houston would have a legitimate chance of beating the Patriots because, well, it’s the Patriots and you expected them to win. Plus, who wants New England to win the award? They could, but they haven’t won it at all. This leaves the other teams. If any of the other three teams win the Super Bowl, there’s a chance fans will cast their vote for any of those teams because they don’t have as much of a tradition as the Patriots when it comes to winning.

NCAA

College sports won’t get enough recognition like the professional teams. That’s hard to say since students are living out their dreams of playing on the national stage. Alabama seems like a strong favorite, but there hasn’t been a winner from college since Oklahoma back in 2001.

NBA

The NBA is a sport that has garnered a lot recently. But the only teams I see winning the award from this league right now are the Warriors, the Boston Celtics, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and God I hope it happens, the Houston Rockets.

NHL

Like college sports, the NHL isn’t getting credit in this category. Perhaps because of the unpredictability, NHL has had slim odds of winning it all. But do they really care about this award? Sure, it would be an honor if one of them wins it, but they would rather win the most coveted trophy of all: the Stanley Cup.

Conclusion

The Houston Astros might have a great chance if people recognize what they did to win the title. They beat the three teams with the highest payroll and have a tradition of winning (Red Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers) just to win the World Series. They also won a championship for the city that went through the worst natural disaster since Hurricane Katrina. Hey, didn’t the Saints win the award for Best Team in 2010? They won it five years after Katrina. So it’s a possibility that it could happen. But then again, the awards are held in Los Angeles. How many people out there want to see us win the ESPY Award for Best Team after we beat them in the World Series?

Okay! These are two awards that might or might not go our way. Perhaps we should look into an award that we could get.