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| Houston Astros | |||||
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 2024 Houston Astros season | |||||
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| Major league affiliations | |||||
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| Current uniform | |||||
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| Major league titles | |||||
| World Series titles (2) | |||||
| AL Pennants (4) | |||||
| NL Pennants (1) | 2005 | ||||
| AL West Division titles (7) | |||||
| NL Central Division titles (4) | |||||
| NL West Division titles (3) | |||||
| Wild card berths (4) | |||||
| Front office | |||||
| Principal owner(s) | Jim Crane[4][5] | ||||
| General manager | Dana Brown | ||||
| Manager | Joe Espada | ||||
| Website | mlb.com/astros | ||||
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division, having moved to the division in 2013 after spending their first 51 seasons in the National League (NL).[6][7] They are one of two major league clubs based in Texas; the Texas Rangers belong to the same division.
Established as the Houston Colt .45s, the Astros entered the National League as an expansion team in 1962 along with the New York Mets. The current name, reflecting Houston's role as the host of the Johnson Space Center, was adopted three years later, when they moved into the Astrodome, the first-ever domed sports stadium and the so-called "Eighth Wonder of the World". The Astros moved to Minute Maid Park (now Daikin Park) in 2000.[8] The team played in the NL West division from 1969 to 1993, then the NL Central division from 1994 to 2012, before being moved to the AL West as part of an MLB realignment in 2013.
The Astros posted their first winning record in 1972 and made the playoffs for the first time in 1980, before winning a total of three division titles throughout the 1980s. Spearheaded by the Killer B's, a collection of prominent hitters that included the Astros' only Hall of Fame members Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell, the Astros began reaching major prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s with four further division titles and two Wild Card appearances, culminating in their first World Series appearance in 2005 where they were swept by the Chicago White Sox.
After a major slump throughout the next decade, the team was purchased by business owner Jim Crane in 2011 for $680 million. Under Crane's ownership, the Astros embraced sabermetrics and pioneered new analytical technologies in their transition to the American League, and by the mid-2010s transformed from a historically middling franchise into one of MLB's most dominant and successful clubs, as headlined by stars such as Jose Altuve. Since then, the Astros have won over 100 games in four seasons, and have appeared in a record seven consecutive American League Championship Series, winning four of the last seven American League pennants. During this era, the Astros won the 2017 World Series, their first championship, against the Los Angeles Dodgers; however, this win drew controversy and backlash from fans after the Astros were implicated in a sign stealing scandal. They made later World Series appearances in 2019 against the Washington Nationals, 2021 against the Atlanta Braves, and 2022 against the Philadelphia Phillies, winning their second title in the latter series. Often cited as the best team in the American League, the team's sustained success since 2015 has led some to declare the Astros a dynasty.[9][10][11] They are the only team to win a postseason series in seven straight seasons. Their fifth pennant in 2022 made them the second team created in the expansion era to win five league pennants (after the Mets) and the fifth expansion team to have won two World Series championships. In 2024, the Astros clinched their AL West division title for the seventh time in eight years and became the first team to win the AL West division in four straight years since the 1971–1975 Oakland Athletics.[12]
The Astros maintain an ardent fanbase and strong global recognition, in part due to their penchant for scouting and signing international players,[according to whom?]but have also attracted enmity in the wake of the sign stealing scandal.[13][14] While in the National League, the Astros held rivalries with the Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals, but since their transition to the American League, have come to hold divisional rivalries with the Los Angeles Angels, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers (known as the Lone Star Series), as well as a recurring postseason rivalry with the New York Yankees.
From 1962 through the end of the 2024 season, the Astros' all-time record is 5,009–4,965–5 (.502). In addition to having the most postseason appearances by an expansion team, they are the only expansion era team with an all-time winning record.[15] In 2024, the Astros became the second expansion team to reach 5,000 wins.[16]
- ^ "Orbit – Houston Astros Mascot". Astros.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
- ^ "Astros officially launch new identity". Astros.com (Press release). MLB Advanced Media. November 2, 2012. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
- ^ Wohl, Dan (November 2, 2012). "With new uniforms, Astros go back to the future". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
- ^ "Group headed by Jim Crane completes purchase of Astros". MLB.com (Press release). MLB Advanced Media. November 22, 2011. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
- ^ "Astros Front Office Directory". Astros.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
- ^ Bloom, Barry M. (November 17, 2011). "Sale of Astros to Jim Crane, move to American League in 2013 approved". Major League Baseball Advanced Media LP. Archived from the original on September 12, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
- ^ "Astros Headed to American League as New Team Owner Approved". Businessweek. November 18, 2011. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved November 5, 2012.
- ^ "Minute Maid Park". Houston Astros. September 4, 2015. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved September 4, 2015.
- ^ "Astros Pass the Yankees as Best Team in the AL". August 10, 2022.
- ^ "Batting Around: Do Astros deserve 'dynasty' label after another World Series title?". November 6, 2022.
- ^ "After World Series, where do Astros rank among best dynasties of last 30 years?".
- ^ "Once 10 back, Astros clinch AL West title again". ESPN.com. September 25, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
- ^ "Is it Time to Move on from the Astros Cheating Scandal?". September 20, 2022.
- ^ "Are we done being salty about the Astros yet?". September 20, 2022.
- ^ "Houston Astros Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
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