What's better than going to Minute Maid Park and watching your red-hot Astros!? Watching the game with an all-you-can eat wristband, that's what! For the first time in the ballpark's history, Uncle Drayton has decided to catch on to a trend that other ballpark's have found successful. For only $35, you will receive a game ticket for section 434 with an all-you-can eat wristband to a designated Thursday game of your choice in which......

As the Astros start their Spring Training schedule today in Osceola County, the college baseball season has been underway for a couple of weeks now. The annual Houston College Classic returns to Minute Maid Park this weekend as one of the premier regional showcases of top-level NCAA baseball. Starting on Friday and continuing through Sunday, the Juice Box will be host to an almost non-stop flow of games. The teams participating in the tourney are:......

Good morning, Houston. Remember the city's smoking ban, which went into effect in September? Well, so does KPRC. The station checked around and found something that will shock you to your very core: Houstonians are still smoking in bars and restaurants! No, really. One of the bars Channel 2 visited was Henry Hudson's Pub on the west side, where reporters found customers and the bartender smoking — and "we even bought a pack of......

>> City offers $15.5M for possible stadium site: The Chronicle reports that the city has said it'll pay more than $15.5 million for five downtown blocks that could become the site of a stadium for the Dynamo. The parcel is bounded by Texas and Walker on the north and south and Dowling and Hutchins on the east and west; it's just east of the Lofts at the Ballpark and immediately south of a vast......

From local Houston headlines, we bring you these weekend news bits... • A bicyclist is in serious condition after being struck and dragged by MetroRail in the Medical Center. The bicyclist was wearing headphones and riiding between platforms. The incident occurred Friday afternoon around 4:45pm. • A car crashed into the State Grille on Alabama after losing control of the vehicle and jumping a curb. The driver had to be cut out of his......

The Houston Astros have acquired Arizona Diamondbacks All-Star closer Jose Valverde. In exchange for Valverde, the Astros have shipped Chad Qualls, Chris Burke and Juan Gutierrez to the Diamondbacks. In 2007, Valverde led all MLB closers with 47 saves with a 2.66 ERA. This marks another home run in the Ed Wade era who has made a major overhaul for an Astros team who suffered its second losing season since 2000. "In Jose Valverde,......

The Texans pleasantly surprised us yesterday. Here we were all ready for another defeat, and suddenly Sage "Best Backup QB In The League" Rosenfels makes us feel all better. The picture that accompanies the top link today captures the feelings of many Texans fans today, we'd imagine. But there's more than just football going on this time of year; read on and see! - The lovely and talented Stephanie Stradley at AOL Fanhouse has a......

Houstonist has an active and amazing Flickr photo group. We receive many, many photos of Houston and the surrounding areas every day and unless you are an active visitor to our photo pool many of these photos go unnoticed. So in a weekly effort to bring you more amazing photos from Houstonist readers and photographers, we are going to feature a block of photos submitted to our Flickr photo group. The images will be dug......

Somewhere, Marvin Zindler is rolling over in what is no doubt a very lavish coffin. While this article in the Chron todaylooks into the health inspections at sports venues makes no particular mention of slime or its proximity relative to the ice machine, you can be sure that Marvin would've known and would've shouted it from the rooftops. Or at least from somewhere near Dave Ward's elbow. The stadiums reviewed under the auspices of the......

Craig Biggio's final weekend as an Astros player will feature a particularly fun blast from the past. Biggio, who has played catcher, second base, and several outfield positions throughout his 20 year career in Houston, will catch the first two innings or so of Saturday's game against the Atlanta Braves. The original plan had called for Biggio to be matched with ace Roy Oswalt, but Oswalt is skipping his final start of the season so......

Today’s Photo of the Day comes from flickr user and Houstonist photo contributor AlphaTangoBravo. Bonus after the ball game. Fireworks! If you have a passion for Houston and photography, consider joining over 380 of Houston's best photographers in the Houstonist Flickr Photo Group. If Houstonist uses your photo for Photo Of The Day, submit it here. For more great photography check out the Houston Photobloggers.......

Ever wanted to be that lucky schlub who gets to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Major League Baseball game? Are you good at whoring yourself out for attention? Great! The Astros and AT&T are standing by to scratch both of those itches for you. The 'stros are partnering with AT&T to allow a fan to throw out a first pitch at an Astros game this season, and all you have to do......

The Chicago Cubs (and their inexplicable legion of local fans) arrived Monday at Minute Maid Park on top of the NL Central division, ready to put some distance between themselves and the Brewers in the standings. The Astros had other plans. Led by strong pitching performances by Wandy Rodriguez, Woody Williams, and Roy Oswalt, the Astros swept the series and bumped the Cubs below Milwaukee in the NL Central race. The offense was on for......

Minute Maid Clubhouse Tours Be one of the first to see inside the Astros Clubhouse. The Houston Astros Tour Department is now offering fans an inside look at the Houston Astros Clubhouse. Fans of all ages will visit the Astros Locker Room while making stops at the Training Room, Weight Room and Batting Cage facility. This tour is limited to the first 75 people in each timeslot and tickets must be purchased in advance......

Today’s Photo of the Day comes from flickr user and Houstonist photo contributor portseye. This flurry of activity was taken downtown near Minute Maid Park after a baseball game which is about the only time you have this much free access to the streets around the stadium. If you have a passion for Houston and photography, consider joining over 335 of Houston's best photographers in the Houstonist Flickr Photo Group. If Houstonist uses your......

At a news conference at Minute Maid Park today, Craig Biggio has stated that the 2007 season will be his last. I love the game," Biggio said. "I'm going to miss putting my feet in the spikes every day. I'm going to miss the dads coming up to you and thanking you for the way you played the game, the little kids coming up to you and asking for your autograph, seeing them smile......

Remember back in May, when news broke about the possibility of building a new stadium for the Houston Dynamo downtown? Back then, everyone said negotiations between the city and the Dynamo would wrap in in -mid-July — but now that we're actually in the middle of July, that's changed. The new target for an announcement, the Chronicle reports, is September — but that doesn't mean talks are breaking down, apparently. "We believe we've made some......

It’s hot, ya’ll. But we’ve got the perfect summertime treat to beat the heat. Hidden in one of the many new strip malls that are popping up all over Chinatown-Bellaire is a humble little place called the Juice Box (not to be confused with Minute Maid Park). This place is always packed with patrons hunkering for their fruit bowls. Fruit bowls people! The fruit bowls are only $5 and come in a plastic bowl piled......

The road to 3,000 continued at Minute Maid Park, Texas as Craig Biggio came into Thursday night's contest only three hits away. In the third inning while facing Aaron Cook with a 2-2 count, Biggio lined a single into center field for career hit 2,998. Biggio would return to the plate in the fifth inning and would smack an Aaron Cook curve ball to Rockies third baseman Garrett Atkins, who then overthrew first baseman......

Alright folks...get your funmeter ready. You told, we compiled. Here y'are- Houstonist Top 10ist Outdoor Experiences: 1. An evening concert at Miller Outdoor Theater (and) Hermann Park and the reflecting pool 2. Drinking Lonestar at the West Alabama Ice House 3. Biking on the Memorial Park trails 4. Lounging in Menil Park 5. Open stadium games at Minute Maid Park 6. Rice University running track 7. The backyard at Hans' Bierhouse 8. The patio at......

Good morning, Houston. If you need another reason to wish you were in Hawaii right now, today is a public holiday in the Aloha State. Specifically, it's Kamehameha Day and the Hawaiians are celebrating the monarch who first ruled over a unified Hawaii. Interestingly, this is the only American holiday that honors a monarch. Hawaiian officials have been hard at work planning events and floral parades on each of the islands, as well as an......

Today’s Photo of the Day comes from flickr user and Houstonist photo contributor seven twenty five. It's an inviting photo of the "Juice Box" aka Minute Maid Park. This photo is just screaming, "Get out and see a game!" If you have a passion for Houston and photography, consider joining almost 300 of Houston's best photographers in the Houstonist Flickr Photo Group. If Houstonist uses your photo for Photo Of The Day, submit it......

The Astros 2007 free-fall continued at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday as they dropped their 10th consecutive loss by losing to the Reds 4-3. The Reds attacked Wandy Rodriguez (2-5) for three first inning earned runs that would put the Astros anemic offense against the wall. Reds center fielder Norris Hopper got the game started on a lead off double and then scored on Alex Gonzalez's single for the 1-0 lead. Ken Griffey Jr.......

Turns out it wasn't really all that hard to capture Andrew Dale Coley, the car thief who escaped from a private jail downtown on Monday evening — all it took was a police chief who happened to be in the right place at the right time. The chief was Rick Boyle, of UH-Downtown, who nabbed Coley while jogging along Buffalo Bayou on Wednesday afternoon. It happened around 12:20 p.m. yesterday as Boyle ran along the......

Dollar Dog Night @ Minute Maid Park Sure it's been raining for days, and so what the 'stros are in the midst of a 9 game losing streak. There's only one thing that can make either of those things better: Dollor Dogs. That's right, folks. Dollar Dog night is back at Minute Maid. What better way to soak up a $9 beer than with a few dozen $1 hot dogs? Join the Astros tonight as......

Today’s Photos of the Day comes from flickr users and Houstonist photo contributors Philosopher Queen, erci, cybertoad, mrp1001, presson_on, Jeff Balke, mx5tx and Graustark. These are all shots of local stadiums, ballparks and playing fields, all worthy of inclusion in todays collected Photo of the Day. Keep the sports related photos coming readers and contributors. Our Photo of the Day theme this week is sports. Submit your sports and Houston related images to our......

The Chronicle has a few more details today about the proposed Houston Dynamo stadium downtown — but not many. What we know: It would be an open-air stadium seating somewhere around 22,000 people, and it would likely be built on Minute Maid Park's parking lot C, the six-square-block lot on the other side of Highway 59 from the baseball stadium. Anschutz Entertainment Group, which owns the Dynamo, would pay most of the construction costs, and......

Houston Astros vs. San Francisco Giants The Astros are starting to get hot - they've won 8 of their last 12 - and they hope to continue that into a three-game series against the Giants that begins tonight at Minute Maid Park. It'll be tough for the 'Stros, who haven't won a home series against the Giants since 1999. Last year, San Francisco swept our beloved home team and showed no mercy - 10-1, 14-3,......

Good morning, Houston. We managed to miss this news the other day, but according to CNNMoney.com, Harris County has the sixth most millionaires of any county in the U.S. There are 99,504 millionaire households in Harris County — that's 8.25 percent of all households in the county and 16 percent of the state's millionaire households. Topping the list is Los Angeles County, with a whopping 268,138 millionaire households. And not among the top 10:......

Wandy Rodriguez and the Houston Astros left Minute Maid Park victorious after a 5-2 win in front of 37,230 Sunday afternoon against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Rodriguez (1-3) pitched five solid innings allowing only four hits with three strikeouts to record his first victory since July 2, 2006. Carlos Lee put the 'Stros on the board in the the first inning on a RBI single scoring Craig Biggio. The D-Backs would answer back in the......