Dan Beyer: "Not only are the Astros good for baseball because they can play that villain role, but they're good at baseball the same way that the Patriots were good at football. I find their role in the game interesting because the Patriots were irrelevant before Bill Belichick and Tom Brady came along. They were just kind of around, and the Astros were the same way. Now when you look at their success, you look at what is in the background with their scandal, and now you look at what they did the last couple of years, and they haven't gone away. I find them so intriguing. The Astros are a good team that are good for baseball, and I think the parallels are there when you talk about them and the New England Patriots."
George Wrighster: "The thing why baseball doesn't do well nationally is because there aren't many stars that transcend the game. I've said for a long time that baseball needs rivalries, it needs villains, it needs people to hate. While baseball purists would hate it, that's what the game needs. I 100% agree with you Dan!"
Dan Beyer and George Wrighster explain why the Houston Astros continuing to be top contenders in the American League is great for baseball. The guys compare the Astros' combination of controversy and sustained success to that of what the New England Patriots have done for the better part of the last 20 years. The guys explore how the shadow of the Astros' cheating scandal still remains over many baseball fans, producing a league-wide villain who has given the top contenders, like the Yankees, major trouble, and recently ended the long winning streak of a likable Mariners team.