Stan Norfleet and Chris Gordy of Next Up recap the Houston Astros defeating the Oakland A's 9-2 in the first of a four-game series at Minute Maid Park. Third baseman Alex Bregman broke out of his recent slump, recording two homers and four RBIs. Spencer Arrighetti started on the mound and picked up his first Major League win, earning five strikeouts in five innings. The Rockets landed the No. 3 overall pick during the NBA draft lottery, making that four consecutive years the Rockets have a top-four pick in the draft. Ben DuBose, editor of The Rockets Wire, joins to discuss whether the Rockets will draft a prospect or trade away the pick for a veteran player. Stan and Chris talk with KPRC reporter Aaron Wilson about Texans rookie minicamp, congratulate Julia Morales of Space City Home Network for making MLB history and more.

Ben DuBose, editor of The Rockets Wire, joins Next Up to discuss the Houston Rockets landing the No. 3 overall pick during the NBA draft lottery. The pick comes from the Brooklyn Nets as a part of the 2021 deal for James Harden, while the Rockets' own pick goes to the Oklahoma City Thunder from the Russell Westbrook trade in 2019. As this is the fourth consecutive year that the Rockets have a top-four pick in the draft, "it's a good time to be a Rockets fan," DuBose said. Even though the Rockets saw a 19-win increase in their regular season record, they did not make the postseason, and DuBose says there are holes in shooting and defending that can be addressed with his pick. "You can always use more shooting," something that Kentucky Wildcats guard Reed Sheppard could provide, or a strong defender "who has a little bit of a different presence" than Alperen Şengün, such as UConn Huskies center Donovan Clingan.

KPRC reporter Aaron Wilson joins Next Up to recap the Houston Texans rookie minicamp. Texans draft picks took the field Friday and Saturday in their first practices as NFL players. Wilson also discusses the Texans trading for former Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Ben Skowronek, the competitive receiver group, the regular season schedule and a possible Nico Collins contract extension.

Chris Gordy of Next Up recaps the Houston Astros winning the weekend series 2-1 against the Detroit Tigers. Justin Verlander started on the mound Sunday in a 9-3 win and pitched seven scoreless innings, giving up two hits and two walks while striking-out out eight. Verlander bounced back after allowing seven runs over five innings against the New York Yankees. Kyle Tucker hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning to lead MLB with 13 home runs this season. The Astros are now 6.5 games behind the Seattle Mariners for the division lead and continue to get stronger as starting pitchers return from injury. However, Cristian Javier took the loss during his return to the mound on Saturday, and Jose Urquidy struck out three but allowed three runs on three hits and one walk over two innings in his first rehab start in Sugar Land. Spencer Arrighetti will start Monday as the Astros return to Minute Maid Park to host the Oakland A's. Chris also talks about the Rockets getting the No. 3 overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, reviews Texans rookie minicamp, comments on the NFL season opener and more.

Stan Norfleet and Chris Gordy of Next Up react to the Houston Texans trading for former Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Ben Skowronek. The Texans traded a 2026 sixth-round pick in exchange for Skowronek and a 2026 seventh-round pick. Skowronek is entering the last year of his contract and was expected to be released by the Rams, but instead, he will be joining Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, Tank Dell, John Metchie III, Noah Brown and Xavier Hutchinson. With special teams value and blocking skills, will Skowronek have an impactful role on the Texans roster? The Texans have agreed to terms with six draft picks and many of them are reporting to rookie minicamp, taking the practice field Friday and Saturday. Stan and Chris also recap the Astros avoiding the series sweep against the New York Yankees with a 4-3 victory Thursday. Yordan Alvarez and Jon Singleton homered in the first inning to give the Astros an early lead, and starting pitcher Ronel Blanco went into the sixth inning, giving up just two runs on four hits while striking out five. However, Ryan Pressly struggled in the eighth inning, forcing Josh Hader to pitch multiple innings and earn a save.

Stan Norfleet and Chris Gordy of Next Up react to the Houston Texans trading for former Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Ben Skowronek. The Texans traded a 2026 sixth-round pick in exchange for Skowronek and a 2026 seventh-round pick. Skowronek is entering the last year of his contract and was expected to be released by the Rams, but instead, he will be joining Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, Tank Dell, John Metchie III, Noah Brown and Xavier Hutchinson. With special teams value and blocking skills, will Skowronek have an impactful role on the Texans roster? The Texans have agreed to terms with six draft picks and many of them are reporting to rookie minicamp, taking the practice field Friday and Saturday.

Stan Norfleet and Chris Gordy of Next Up discuss the Houston Astros losing four straight games after back-to-back defeats at the hands of the New York Yankees. Spencer Arrighetti started on the mound, pitching five innings in which he allowed five runs on eight hits and three walks. Kyle Tucker recorded another home run, but Alex Bregman has only two hits in his last 20 at-bats, and Yordan Alvarez went 0-5 at the plate last night in the 9-4 loss. Brian Bogusevic, former Astros outfielder and Space City Home Network analyst, joins to preview the Astros attempting to avoid a series sweep tonight with Ronel Blanco starting on the mound. Stan and Chris compare Joe Espada and Dusty Baker, react to J.J. Watt's latest comments about NFL and NBA players switching sports and more.

Brian Bogusevic, former Astros outfielder and Space City Home Network analyst, joins Next Up to recap the Houston Astros losing 9-4 on the road to the New York Yankees on Wednesday. The Astros lose back-to-back games at Yankee Stadium, extending their losing streak to four and drop to a 12-24 record. Spencer Arrighetti started on the mound, pitching five innings in which he allowed five runs on eights hits and three walks. Kyle Tucker recorded another home run, but Alex Bregman has only two hits in his last 20 at-bats and Yordan Alvarez went 0-5 at the plate last night. The biggest issue with the Astros is the "under-performance by players who should be doing better," Bogusevic said. As the Astros struggle early in the season, many have pointed blame towards first-year manager Joe Espada, but Bogusevic disagrees. "I don't see anything beyond a performance issue" from the players. "What would [another manager] come in and do?" J.P. France joined other starting pitchers on the injured list earlier in the week, but Cristian Javier is expected to return to the mound this weekend. If the Astros want to go on an extended-winning streak, "it probably starts with starting pitching."

Stan Norfleet and Chris Gordy of Next Up recap the Houston Astros losing 10-3 to the New York Yankees in the series opener Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. Ace Justin Verlander had one of the worst starts of his Astros career after previously holding a 2.08 ERA through his first three starts of the season. The Yankees earned seven runs and three home runs against Verlander. Kyle Tucker recorded a home run, but Alex Bregman continued to struggle, going 0-4 at the plate and dropping his average to .195. The Yankees extend their season series lead over the Astros following a four-game sweep to start the year in Houston. Stan and Chris react to J.P. France joining the starting pitchers on the injured list, evaluate general manager Dana Brown's grade of the Astros season so far, discuss the Texans after their division opponent Tennessee Titans got stronger by signing wide receiver Tyler Boyd and more.