J.J. Watt shouted out the Astros after a sack because Houston is the sports capital of the world right now
Find me a sports town enjoying itself more than Houston right now, and I'll show you a city that doesn't exist.
The mighty Astros found themselves one win away from potentially dispatching the Rays in the AL Division Series after a convincing pair of wins at Minute Maid Park this weekend, on the strength of powerhouse pitching from aces Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole.
On Sunday, the Texans dismantled the Falcons, 53-32, a dazzling display of offense and timely defense from the Texans' line, including veteran J.J. Watt, who, after sacking Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan in the fourth quarter, shouted out the Astros' Alex Bregman in celebration:
.@JJWatt pays tribute to @ABREG_1.
— Cut4 (@Cut4) October 6, 2019
(via @HoustonTexans) pic.twitter.com/BBzDY4a5yF
That's Watt mimicking this gesture from Bregman, which the third baseman routinely busts out in the dugout after crushing a dinger. Here's a helpful side-by-side:
Bregman crushed a solo homer off Rays ace Blake Snell in Saturday night's Game 2 against Tampa Bay, a crucial hit that gave Houston a 1-0 lead and set the tone for the rest of the game.
Upon returning to the dugout, Bregman celebrated with his teammates before busting out his signature move once again:
Watt is no stranger to displays of his Astros fandom. He spent his Saturday night keeping an eye on their ALDS game and watching his fiancée, Kealia Ohai, a star on the Houston Dash, even owning Twitter trolls to that effect.
So is my fiancée.
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) October 6, 2019
Calm down tough guy, I can multitask. https://t.co/dOmjFpFwIL
All this season, the Astros bullied their way through the opposition, winning an AL-best 107 games en route to an easy AL West division win and another ticket to October, where they're off to a red-hot start in their quest to make it back to, and win, the World Series.
Whether they'll fulfill that goal remains to be seen -- the postseason is a fickle beast filled with surprises, after all -- but right now, you'd be hard-pressed to find a city more focused on one collective goal.
They're even getting shout-outs on the football field, so you know they're a pretty big deal.
Adrian Garro joined MLB.com in 2016. Throughout his travels, both Bartolo Colon and Vin Scully have placed their hands on his shoulders. Not at the same time, though. That'd be amazing.
