Astros: Houston, We Have a Rivalry! The Silver Boot Means so Much More Now

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Adding fuel to the rivalry fire (Villains).

Jul 13, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor (73) reacts to hitting a triple in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Los Angeles beat Texas 10-7. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

Every good rivalry needs some villains. For the Astros, I’ve identified a few. Rougned Odor, the outstanding second baseman who is slick in the field and dangerous at the plate is not just a good ball player, he is also a hot head with a flair that is very unpopular among his opponents. In fact, the youngster has already incited a brush up with the Astros in 2015. A bench clearing yelling match was spurred on by Odor’s lack of haste in getting into the batter’s box and Astros catcher Hank Conger took exception. Ever since that moment, the attitude between the two teams has been a little chippy. Odor is not going anywhere and will likely contribute to some Astros pains in the coming years.

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Another villain to get Astro fans’ blood boiling is Delino Deshields Jr. The former top Astros farm hand was grabbed up in the Rule 5 draft after Houston left him off the protected 40 man roster. He has gone on to play well atop the Ranger lineup and seems to relish in beating his former organization. After an Astros beat writer had tweeted that the Astros needed to get out-of-town after a recently lost series to Texas, Deshields retweeted with a jabbing “Yeah you do.” Houston may end up paying dearly for allowing the Rangers to steal such a talent to use against them.

Next: A brief look at the Rangers future

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