On the whole I'd rather

... watch an Astros-Brewers World Series but I don't think that's going to happen.

[Long sidebar: When Jim Crane purchased the Houston franchise from Drayton McLane in 2011, he not only paid an inflated price (among other reasons, for reneging on a 2008 handshake deal to buy the team) and a small -- comparatively -- penalty to settle a racial discrimination case against his trucking company, he also had to agree to switch leagues with Bud Selig's franchise ... the Brew Crew.  Crane had already missed on buying the Texas Rangers in 2010 despite being the apparent high bidder because Bud didn't like him.  You can read about all of this here, except for the NL-AL flip-flop part, which you can find at Crane's Wiki page.  It says (original MLB.com link there is dead) McLane had agreed with Selig to do this before selling, but Crane wrangled $35 million back from Uncle Drayton and the league -- presumably the other owners -- to hold to that arrangement.

One more thing: Crane sued McLane a few years later because Comcast couldn't sign up cable and satellite carriers for the fees they wanted to charge for the games.  This was during the bad years, when the 'Stros lost 100 games in three consecutive seasons.  How the lawsuit eventually worked out is of little consequence -- just another quarrel over a few million dollars between two billionaires, after all -- but Comcast's sports network for Astros and Rockets games eventually went defunct and was replaced by ATT.  The team improved, people wanted to watch again, the rest is history.

So a Houston-Milwaukee Fall Classic would contain some elements of retribution -- or poetic justice if you prefer -- for the winner and the loser.]

I'm not as mad about the blown Joe West/Altuve home run call as everybody else is.  That's a hard one to get right in real time.  Slow motion replay showed, to me, that Mookie closed his own glove before the ball got there (pick it up at 0:25); no fan interference.  Even if West gets it right the first time or it gets overturned, and all else being equal from there, Benintendi's bottom-of-the-9th grab sends the game into extras.  Point being: teams of destiny seem to get the breaks like that, as well as diving catches with the bases loaded for the final out, and the other stuff.

Verlander tonight, hopefully back to Boston with Gerrit Cole, who looked a little intimidated last time in Fenway, and then Keuchel, who's been no great shakes all season, but if it even gets to seven I'd be shocked.  As for the Dodgers, they will have Kershaw again in a seventh game should that be necessary, which I doubt.

Dodgers-Red Sox, the networks are thrilled.  Kenley Jansen wears tighty whities.

Update: This best encapsulates the Astros' season, especially if you believe -- as I do -- that everything in life ultimately comes down to luck.

Whataburger defeats White Castle in split decision

It was a close contest all night, as both men spoke rapidly, sweated profusely (Ted guzzled more water than Brett Kavanaugh), and lashed at each other like a couple of guys with bullwhips.

Yes, Beto brought the boxing gloves, although there were only a few knockdown punches thrown by the challenger.  Ted's smirks, snorts, and chortles were his defense.  This review summarizes the conservative POV as well as any I found: accurate in its description of Cruz's obnoxious condescension, amiss in its interpretation of how the Cuban Canadian's authoritarian demeanor goes over with anyone not a MAGAt.

Just consider the stunning hypocrisy of the Zodiac Killer's close.

Ted Cruz devotes his closing statement to painting a fear-mongering nightmare picture of all the horrors a vote for his opponent would bring and then bizarrely asks “Do we choose fear, or do we choose hope?” What?

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) October 17, 2018

Also painfully unaware of the studio's lighting away from his podium.

Ted Cruz stepped into the stage center for his closing statement. The lighting says he shouldn’t have. #TexasDebate pic.twitter.com/b5Wisay54d

— Josh Klemons (@jlemonsk) October 17, 2018

Yes, Ted Cruz is as tough as Texas a stale bag of shitty out-of-state hamburgers.  A man who eats his own boogers (when he's not eating Trump's ass, that is) but who cannot stand the taste of avocados is simply not someone to be trusted on his culinary decisions, to say nothing of his judicial or legislative ones.  We have nevertheless been blessed by Jeebus with all three of these wisdoms for the past six years, and if that's not enough to convince you that there is no God, you aren't open to persuasion.

When the local Fox affiliate loses you, you've lost.

I simply don't have confidence -- as many of you are already aware -- that Beto will represent my interests often enough to give him my vote.  I just can't bear to watch him be more Joe Manchin than Bernie Sanders should he make it to Washington.  For many of you reading this, he's good enough, so good on ya.  Like most of our options this election year, "not the GOP" comes up aces more often than not.  We're all going to make as best of the situation as we can.

Last night a poll revealed the numbers may be tightening back up, so that development bears watching.  Here's some related reading.

#TexasDebate: Three key moments (Vox)

Scott Braddock at QR: Beto learns to make a fist

TexTrib: O'Rourke swings harder

With respect to tomorrow night, two updates about whether it will be Beto-only or that Cruz will join.  From RG Ratcliffe at Texas Monthly (first link, top) with the CNN Tweet embedded (via Patrick Svitek at the TexTrib).

This likely was the final debate between Cruz and O’Rourke. CNN is hosting O’Rourke to a town hall in McAllen on Thursday. Cruz turned down the offer of one of his own, but asked Tuesday if the Thursday event could be converted into another debate. CNN officials said the network would agree if O’Rourke would. Since Cruz at the close of this debate referred to it as their last, that does not appear to have worked itself out.