Hey, That Guy's an Astros Fan! Volume 3

Previously on Hey, That Guy's an Astros Fan we spoke to ESPN's Robert Flores, the Baseball Hall of Fame's Brad Horn, and today we bring you stand-up comedian John Wessling.

John was a semi-finalist on Last Comic Standing 2 this summer on NBC. He's also appeared on the Loco Comedy Jam and SiTV's Latino Laugh Festival after touring theaters opening for George Lopez. After starting comedy in Kansas City in 1995, he's been a traffic reporter and a rock radio morning show writer and co-host. He's been touring all over the country and beyond ever since. John was a stand-out performer at the 2004 Montreal Just For Laughs Comedy Festival. He headlines at comedy clubs all over the US and Canada and in his spare time he grows hair for www.locksoflove.org. You can visit John's official website here.

AC: What's your earliest Astros memory?

JW: My dad worked in oilfield service stuff when I was a kid and I would ride in the truck riding from jobsite to jobsite with him all summer. He found that the only thing that would shut me up was listening to Astro games on AM radio. Milo Hamilton was my first babysitter.

AC: Favorite all-time Astro?

JW: Nolan Ryan. He'll either be commissioner of baseball or Governor of Texas in the next ten years.

AC: Best moment in Astros history?

JW: Hmmm. It's a tie. Clinching the 2005 NL championship over the Cards and the combined 6-man no-hitter at Yankee Stadium.

AC: If you could have hired any manager available, who would it have been and why?

JW: Buck Showalter. Nobody gives him credit for building the core Yankee team that Joe Torre won so many titles with OR for building the D-backs from the ground up...who went on to beat those Yanks in 2001. Whenever I see Buck on ESPN, no matter what he's talking about he's usually right.

AC: Who disappointed you the most in 2009?

JW: Lance Berkman. He's by far my favorite Astro and he was cold as a dead fish all year. I'd like to see more leadership and personality from him in the future.

You can read John's thoughts on sports at Ripped Foul.

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Hey, That Guy's an Astros Fan! Volume 2

Click the link for Volume 1 of "Hey, That Guy's An Astros Fan!" with SportsCenter anchor Robert Flores.

Today we bring you an off-day treat while we wait for someone to get canned for this season - a second volume of "Hey, That Guy's an Astros Fan!" That Guy in question is Brad Horn, Senior Director of Communications and Education at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. They're not all Yankees/Mets/Red Sox fans up there.

Brad, prior to his position at the Hall of Fame, spent six years with the Texas Rangers, including the 1999-2000 seasons as assistant director of public relations. A native of Houston and a TCU graduate, Brad Horn - most importantly - is an Astros fan.

AC: What's your favorite Astros memory as a fan?

BH: Billy Hatcher's home run in the 14th inning of Game Six of the 1986 NLCS to tie the game at 4-4. I remember coming home from school to catch the game, starting in about the 7th inning. I thought for sure we were going to win it at that point, and with Mike Scott set to go in Game 7, I was ready for the World Series. Jesse Orosco had other ideas.

AC: Tell us your coolest Hall-of-Fame-related Astro story.

BH: Meeting Shaun Dean in 2005. Fan who caught two home run baseballs in the Astros' 18th inning playoff game, including Chris Burke's game-winner. Then, he is gracious enough to donate them to the Hall of Fame. Meeting him in Houston and then being able to share his excitement when he came to Cooperstown later that off-season.

AC: What's the best aspect of working at the HOF?

BH: The people and the stories. Baseball captures us and ignites the emotions unlike anything else in our society. To see people of all walks of life beam at experiencing part of baseball history, or being a part of the game, from Hall of Famers to major leaguers to regular fans, makes all of the efforts worthwhile.

AC: Which Astro would bring the biggest crowd for an Induction - Biggio or Bagwell?

BH: That's like asking a parent which is his favorite child. You can't separate Biggio and Bagwell. They go together like Hall and Oates, Captain and Tenille, Mexican food and Margaritas. Let's just hope that the voters feel as passionately about their Hall of Fame chances as Astros fans do.

AC: Who is the nicest Hall of Famer you have encountered?

BH: We are fortunate to have so many "good" people who are involved with the Hall of Fame and are who Hall of Famers. I have many, many favorites among our 65 living Hall of Famers, but they don't come any nicer than Harmon Killebrew, Ozzie Smith, Hank Aaron, Monte Irvin, Bruce Sutter, Goose Gossage. The list goes on and on.

AC: Who is your favorite all-time Astro?

BH: Alan Ashby. In a landslide. I don't personally collect any baseball memories or autographs, but I have one prized possession, and it is in my office in the Hall of Fame. An Alan Ashby bat lamp, circa 1983, made from a Alan Ashby Big Stick personal model bat barrel, with an orange plastic "lamp shade" shaped like an Astros helmet. I turn it on the mornings after an Astros win in my office, it stays dark after an Astros loss.

Captip to Brad for answering some questions about his citizenship in Astros County, and I bet Brad is working in the dark a lot lately...

Know someone who's an Astros fan for Volume Three? Email astroscounty@hotmail.com

"Hey! That Guy's an Astros fan!" Volume 1

In the first installment of "Hey! That Guy's an Astros Fan!" we speak with SportsCenter anchor Robert Flores.

Flores is a Houston native, graduating from UH, and later became the sports director for KWTX-TV in Waco KEYE-TV and in Austin at KEYE-TV. He joined ESPN in 2005.

Astros County asked questions, Robert Flores provided answers:

AC: How hard is it to be an Astros fan in Bristol?
RF: I wouldn't say it's hard but it can be lonely. There aren't alot of us up here. This is mostly Red Sox/Yankee country.
(Ed. Note: This is absolutely true. I lived in upstate New York for three years, and no one up there even realizes there is a Major League team in Houston. Yankees fans were raging angry when Chien-Ming Wang got hurt in Houston, mainly because they couldn't figure out why he was running in Houston in the first place. For them it's where Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens went to the same farm that sick pets go to, but then they came back.)

AC: What's your favorite Astro memory?
RF: My favorite Astros memory is back in 1986 a friend and I slept in the Astrodome parking lot for tickets to Game 1 of the NLCS against the Mets. Mike Scott went out and helped the Astros to a 1-nothing win. The Dome was electric that night.

AC: How long before the Astros get back to respectability?
RF: I think they're respectable now, especially in the last two weeks. Now, when will this franchise start winning divisions and going back to the playoffs and World Series? That's a tougher question. Their starting pitching isn't great and their farm system needs replenishing. Their most recent drafts can help, but it will take time.

AC: Who is your favorite Astro of all time?
RF: Cesar Cedeno. In fact that's the name of my fantasy baseball teams. I used to love to watch him leg out a double or triple and see his batting helmet fly off his mini-fro. The Astros didn't have many stars in those years, but he was definitely fun to watch.

AC: How long have you been an Astros fan?
RF: I've been an Astros fan since I was born. There wasn't even a choice. The only thing I regret about the 2005 World Series run is that I wasn't living in Houston at the time.