Houston Astros chasing history after Hurricane Harvey

The Houston Astros have the chance to do something special for a city still reeling from the destruction of Hurricane Harvey.

It was February 7th, 2010. The night an entire city rejoiced, and suddenly forgot about the horrific plague that was Hurricane Katrina. Facing a fourth quarter deficit in Super Bowl XLIV, future NFL Hall of Famer Peyton Manning threw an interception that was be etched in history. Tracy Porter didn’t just catch a ball. He intercepted the grief that New Orleans felt, and in 70 yards he brought an entire city to its feet.

As we all know, Hurricane Harvey wasn’t Hurricane Katrina, but that doesn’t change the emotional and physical destruction of Houston, Texas.

So why is this being talked about on a sports site? Is this really relevant to everything else that is being covered on every national news outlet? Yes. Yes, it is.

In case anyone has forgotten, the Houston Astros are still vying for their first ever World Series title. The one title that has eluded this organization for decades is now within reach. After an extremely disappointing trade deadline, the front office has seemingly come alive in recent weeks with the additions of Cameron Maybin and Justin Verlander.

As I have stated multiple times in the past, this Astros team has been stalling for when its injury-depleted roster returned to full health. With Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, Dallas Keuchel and company all back in the lineup, the Astros have won four of their last five and are now back to 30 games above .500 at 83-53 on the year.

But why does any of this matter? This city is facing years of rebuilding, and sports don’t matter? But oh yes, they do. Sports are what make the United States the greatest country on earth. Sports have the ability to unite not only a city, but a nation. The New Orleans Saints were my example for a reason, and if Porter’s 70-yard TD wasn’t any indication, then let’s do some more digging, shall we?

The city of Houston, with all of its teams included, have only won two world championships. The Houston Rockets won back-to-back NBA Finals back in 1994 and 1995. Since then, there have been no titles, and the closest they have been was back in 2005 when the Astros lost to the Chicago White Sox in the Fall Classic.

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This season has been nothing shy of magical for this Astros organization. The Astros went 56-106, 55-107 and 51-111 from 2011 to 2013. As an organization, they held the worst record in baseball on multiple occasions and held a 164-324 mark over three years. Fast forward four years, and this team is not only a lock for the MLB postseason, but they’re a favorite to win the American League and play for all the marbles in late October.

This is a Cinderella story, and trust me, there is a strong chance it could strike midnight on these Astros. They will have to defeat some of the American League’s finest in the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians and possibly the New York Yankees, but the depth and talent of this Houston roster should overcome any and all threats in the postseason.

The New Orleans Saints had to overcome Peyton Manning in his prime on the game’s largest stage, and that is exactly what the Astros will have to do on their road into the history books.

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Some of you may be thinking I’m a sucker for the theatrics, but just think about it for a second. The confetti and cameras flashing inside of Minute Maid Park as the whole city comes together for the Astros’ first world championship, and the city’s first since 1995. Through all of the destruction of Harvey and the tears spilled, is there really a better ending for the city of Houston?

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