HOUSTON — Baseball fans don't have to wait until March to see action at Minute Maid Park.
The Astros Foundation is hosting the first annual Cactus Jack HBCU Classic this weekend. It's a round-robin baseball tournament featuring six Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), including Houston's Texas Southern University and Prairie View A&M.
A highlight of the 9-game tournament will be traditional HBCU in-state rivalry games between TSU and Prairie View A&M, as well as Louisiana's Southern University and A&M College and Grambling State University and Mississippi's Jackson State University and Mississippi Valley State University.
Cactus Jack HBCU Classic Schedule
Friday, February 17
11:05 a.m. Prairie View vs. Grambling St.
3:05 p.m. Texas Southern vs. Mississippi Valley St.
7:05 p.m. Southern University vs. Jackson St.
Saturday, February 18
11:05 a.m. Mississippi Valley St. vs. Jackson St.
3:05 p.m. Southern University vs. Grambling St.
7:05 p.m. Prairie View vs. Texas Southern
Sunday, February 19
11:05 a.m. Grambling St. vs. Mississippi Valley St.
3:05 p.m. Jackson St. vs. Prairie View
7:05 p.m. Texas Southern vs. Southern University
*Game times are subject to change
How to watch the HBCU Classic
All three of Saturday’s games will be televised on AT&T SportsNet SW and available on the channel in the entire Astros five-state viewing area. The games will also be streamed on Astros.com and on the Astros' Twitter and Facebook pages.
Butch Alsandor and Gerald Sanchez will be calling the first game on Saturday, with Todd Kalas and Michael Bourn calling those final two games of the day.
Outside of the Astros viewing area, MLB Network will air live the 11 a.m. CT Saturday game between Mississippi Valley St. and Jackson St. MLB Network will also air the other two games on tape delay at a later time.
About the Astros Foundation
The Astros Foundation, the official 501(c)(3) team charity of the Houston Astros, "seeks to harness the passion of baseball fans to support youth baseball and softball programs, the recognition and honor of our nation’s military, childhood cancer awareness, domestic violence awareness and efforts to reduce homelessness."
Their cornerstone initiatives include the Community Leaders program, the Astros Youth Academy and the Astros RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) Program. For more information on the Astros Foundation, please visit www.astros.com/foundation.
About the Cactus Jack Foundation
The Cactus Jack Foundation was launched by Houston rapper Travis Scott in 2020. Its mission is "to empower and enrich the lives of youth by providing access to education and creative resources to ensure long-term success. The foundation believes the youth should not be prevented from attaining their lifetime goal and is committed to extending educational opportunities to all, regardless of their circumstances to achieve their dreams."
Travis Scott Bobblehead giveaway
The partnership with the Cactus Jack Foundation for the tournament supports their longstanding commitment to raising money and providing scholarship opportunities for students to attend HBCUs.
"It is a cause that is important to Travis Scott given his family’s longtime legacy supporting HBCUs," the Astros said.
To celebrate the Cactus Jack Foundation’s involvement in the tournament, the Astros Foundation will be distributing Travis Scott Exclusive Bobbleheads each day of the tournament to 2,500 ticketed fans in attendance.
They did take some heat on Twitter from fans who made reference to Scott's Astroworld Festival tragedy where 10 fans were killed when the crowd surged during his performance.
Other commenters were excited about the Bobblehead.
We reached out to the Astros for their response but haven't heard back yet.