The Sunday Read: World Series trip, not rivalry, fueling Rangers ahead of ALCS
October 15, 2023
(AP photo/Kevin M. Cox)
HOUSTON — With their cheating ways revealed by MLB and their hubris on full display in the face of scandal, the Houston Astros became the most hated franchise in American professional sports in 2020.
Hated by baseball fans. Hated by their peers.
They beat out the Yankees, whose deep pockets and 27 world titles have created a legion of haters, and the New England Patriots, who ran afoul of NFL rules a couple times under coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady en route to multiple Super Bowl titles.
The Astros’ fan base, which seems to believe that America’s pastime was invented at the corner of Crawford and Texas streets, can be down right repugnant on social media. Obnoxious would be upgrade.
