Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park
Minute Maid Park opened in 2000. It was originally named Enron Field, then renamed Astros Field in 2002 before the Houston Astros and the Minute Maid Company struck a partnership that included naming rights in June 2002. The Astros' first official regular-season game at the ballpark happened in April 2000, and over 3 million fans attended home games throughout the inaugural season. The MLB All-Star Game was hosted by Minute Maid Park in 2004. The 40,963-seat stadium features a retractable roof.
Houston Astros History
The Houston Colt .45s were founded in 1962, joining MLB the same year as the New York Mets. They were renamed the Houston Astros in 1965 when they began playing in the Houston Astrodome.
The franchise's first playoff appearance came in 1980, which ended in a National League Championship Series loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in six games. The Astros moved from the National League West division to the National League Central in 1994, and they competed within that division until transferring to the American League West in 2013.
In 2005, Houston reached its first World Series. It was the first Fall Classic to ever be played in Texas, but the Astros were swept by the Chicago White Sox. The Astros returned to the World Series in 2017, and this time they captured the franchise's first championship by defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games. Houston center fielder George Springer was named the 2017 World Series MVP, while second baseman Jose Altuve was named 2017 American League MVP. Altuve became the first Astro to win a league MVP since Jeff Bagwell did so in 1994.
Houston was ousted in the 2018 American League Championship Series in five games by the eventual champion Boston Red Sox, then the Astros lost the 2019 World Series in seven games after posting their third straight 100-win regular season. Also in 2019, Justin Verlander became the first Houston pitcher to win a Cy Young Award since Roger Clemens in 2004.
Bill Virdon, who managed the Astros from 1975 to 1982, is the winningest manager in franchise history with 544 victories. AJ Hinch, who led the team to glory from 2015 to 2019, is second on the list at 481.
Dusty Baker was hired as Hinch's replacement ahead of the 2020 season.
In the 2021 season, the Astros won their division and advanced out of the ALDS by beating the Chicago White Sox 3-1. They went on to face the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS, advancing only to fall to the Atlanta Braves in the World Series.
It didn't take long for the Astros to return to the World Series, however. In 2022 the Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 4 games to 2 to take home their second World Series trophy in six years.
Former Astros players to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame include Bagwell, Craig Biggio and Nolan Ryan. Biggio is the franchise's all-time leader in career hits (3,060), as well as several other hitting categories, while Bagwell is the all-team leader in career home runs (449).
