Wandy the Wizard

He's magical at times.

I find it strange to even support the man. Wandy Rodriguez caused me to curse, throw breakable objects and bang my head against the wall furiously often and ferociously fast. I used to scream about the lefty:

"This rotation is great until Wandy Freaking Rodriguez and Ezekiel "Spiderface" Astacio come into to flub everything up!"

Then I would kick a chair, or my roommate Dave.

The Astros went to the World Series that year only to get stomped by the Chicago White Sox in an ugly, one sided, low scoring sweep. It was almost automatic when the White Sox won each game, like a machine pumping out victories. It would have been dumbfounding if it wasn't expected.

Now, the Astros won't be looking at a World Series. I am a hometown fan, never leaving the bandwagon. Even when I am lonely and resigned to a one man crowd, I stay in the dark corner of the Astros' covered wagon ride, waiting until the storm is lifted by a Roy Oswalt quality start.

This year, those are few and far between.

Even stranger, the sun now comes out with Wandy Rodriguez. Lefty has a curve ball, and he's unafraid to use it. His work against the Pirates was far from masterful, but better than good. Granted, it came against the Pirates, who are easier to carve than a well cooked turkey.

So the Astros lost today, and the win yesterday was ugly. Thinking of Wandy still brings a smile.