From the Newest Member of What the Heck, Bobby?

Hi everyone! My name is Dustin, and I am stoked to be a part of What the Heck, Bobby? I'm a long-time WTHB reader, and now, I'm writing this, my first column, as a part of the WTHB team.

First off, I would like to tell you a little about myself. I was born in Phoenix, but I have lived in Houston for virtually my entire life. Because of my upbringing in H-Town, I am an avid Houston sports fan. And yes, being a Houston sports fan is downright painful at times. As for my sporting background, I played football at Cy-Woods High School, and I consider the fact that I grinded my way through all 4 years a miracle. I was a defensive back, and I was putrid. And, I almost made it through 4 years. I ended up tearing my ACL before a game against Cy-Fair during my senior year. Yes. I tore my ACL, my meniscus, and strained my MCL. Before the game. That was definitely the nadir of my career.

What are my ambitions? I'm trying to figure that out. I wanted to be a lawyer at first, but my passion for sports has always trumped everything. Now, I have aspirations of working in pro sports in some capacity. I am particularly interested in baseball scouting, even though I have never played the game competitively at any level. I would love to see Houston kids play integral roles for the Astros, much like the Braves have done with their home region. 

I admit that in my childhood, I was more of a Rockets fan than an Astros fan. My first sports memory was of the Rockets beating the New York Knicks in Game 7 of the 1994 NBA Finals. I had that game recorded on a VHS tape; I think I've watched that game at least 50 times. As I've matured, though, I find myself being more and more appreciative of what the Astros mean to this city. In over 50 years, some true greats have worn that cap with the H in the star and that open-star cap. I certainly don't know everything about the Astros, but I'd sure love to learn more about them. 

When Randy Johnson took this city by storm in 1998, I was completely oblivious to that. I was 6 years old at the time, and baseball was a completely foreign concept to me. I am probably one of a few people in my age group to never see an Astros game in the Astrodome. My first game was in 2000, back when the ballpark was still called Enron Field. The Royals were in town that night, and I saw a 9-5 victory for the Stros. Like I've said, I was more of a Rockets fan when I was a child; I followed the Astros only casually. January 12, 2004 was when that changed forever. That was the day that Roger Clemens announced that he would sign with the Houston Astros. That transaction was the game-changer for me; the Rocket was essentially the reason why my Astros fandom achieved die-hard status. Unfortunately, all of this does not apply to the rest of my family; out of all the members of the Nguyen family, I'm the only one who is even remotely interested in baseball. They only watch when I'm with them, but surprisingly, they willingly watch with me.

I've never attended a Minor League game before. I've been wanting to go to Corpus Christi for a while, but for some reason, that plan hasn't come to fruition yet. I can confidently say that it's gonna happen in 2014. I have always had a passing interest in the minors; but I seriously got into it as the Astros began their descent to the foot of the MLB table. I absolutely love what Jeff Luhnow and Co. have done for this system. Personally, I don't think we'll have to wait long to see his vision for the club become reality. From reading Jayne's interviews with various players on the blog, it is apparent that the guys in the system have fully bought into the Astros' new philosophy, and I love the competitive nature that is being bred within the system. These guys in the minors legitimately want that opportunity to become a part of the Astros' Reconstruction and upcoming Renaissance.

You've probably heard this about 38,550 times, but the last 3 years have been extremely hard to stomach and just plain agonizing for Astros fans. But, I couldn't be more excited for the future. I'm ready. I'm ready for the Astros to take back the city from the hordes of Arlington, Yankee, and Red Sox fans. For those of us who have stuck through these Dark Ages, the payoff is going to be huge.

You can follow me on Twitter here: @itsDTrain. My tweets are about anything and everything. Have an Instagram? You can follow me there as well. My name there is the same as my Twitter name. I think 75% of my Instagram pictures are at Minute Maid Park.