CSN Houston announces 2013 Astros television schedule
New Astros TV Home Will Air 157 Games Along with Exclusive Programming
HOUSTON -- Comcast SportsNet Houston (CSN), a partnership between the Houston Astros, Houston Rockets and the NBC Sports Group, today announced the network's Astros telecast schedule and related programming for the 2013 season.
CSN Houston will air 157 Astros games, along with Astros Pregame Live and Astros Postgame Live, all in HD. Astros Pregame Live begins a half hour prior to each game, while Astros Postgame Live features an extensive wrap up with highlights and analysis, coverage of Astros manager Bo Porter's press conference, and locker room interviews with Astros players.
The network's first regular season Astros broadcast is Tuesday, April 2, at 7 p.m. when the Astros face the Texas Rangers. The Astros and Rangers square off 19 times this season as American League West foes, and 17 of those games will air on CSN Houston.
Early-season TV highlights on CSN Houston include nine-straight road games at American League West opponents (at Seattle, 8-10; at LA Angels, April 12-14; at Oakland, April 14-17) and a stretch of seven straight road games against American League East adversaries (at Boston, April 25-28; at New York Yankees, April 28-May 1).
Interleague Play returns and CSN Houston will carry a full slate of games against National League Central opponents with traditional foes like the Chicago Cubs (June 21-23), Cincinnati Reds (Sept. 16-18), Milwaukee Brewers (June 18-20), Pittsburgh Pirates (May 17-19) and St. Louis Cardinals (June 25-26, July 9-10).
Related programming includes Astros Bases Loaded, a weekly show debuting Thursday, March 28 at 6:30 p.m., in addition to expanded coverage on Sports Talk Live and SportsNet Central. SportsNet Central is the place for Astros fans to turn with half-hour newscasts at 6 p.m., 10 p.m. and midnight (no 6 p.m. on weekends). Fans can find even more analysis on SportsTalk Live, which airs live Monday-Friday from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and features roundtable discussions with team insiders covering the hottest sports stories and topics throughout the region.
Bill Brown returns to the play-by-play chair for his 27th season calling Astros TV action. He will be joined by Alan Ashby (color analyst) for approximately 100 games. Ashby will slide to the play-by-play chair when Brown is not available, and former Astros third baseman Geoff Blum will move to the color role for those games. Brown will also contribute to an additional 40 Astros Pregame Live telecasts.
Marius Payton, Cory Hepola, and Bill Doleman will serve as studio hosts throughout the season on Astros Pregame Live and Astros Postgame Live. Studio analysts will include former major leaguers Eric Young and Mike Stanton, as well as former Astros manager Art Howe. CSN Houston's studio coverage will also feature surprise guest analysts throughout the season.
To complement on-air coverage, CSNHouston.com will deliver comprehensive Astros and MLB coverage, 24/7, through the course of the season. Fans can stay on top of the latest developments with special web-exclusive videos, analysis and breakdown, and more. CSNHouston.com is the most extensive local source for exclusive online video, player and coach interviews, press conferences and content from Comcast SportsNet's SportsNet Central and SportsTalk Live. Follow CSN Houston on Twitter @CSNHouston and search #AstrosTalk for the latest Astros news and updates.
CSN Houston is available in both standard and high definition to all local cable, satellite and telco TV providers and today is carried by:
* Coastal Link (channels 31/131 in Brazoria County, Texas).
* Comcast Cable (channels 39/639 in the Houston area; 86/1688 in Houma, La Place, Monroe and Shreveport, Lou.; 269/1687 in Little Rock, Ark.).
* Consolidated Communications (channels 42/723 in the Houston area).
* EnTouch (channels 73/473 in the Houston area).
* Phonoscope (channels 35/293 in the Houston area).
Fans with other TV services should visit IWantCSNHouston.com for the latest distribution developments and to tell their cable, satellite or telco TV provider to add Comcast SportsNet to their channel lineup. Follow Comcast SportsNet Houston on Twitter: @CSNHouston for the latest news and information about the network.