With new manager Grady Hatton the Astros started the 1966 season strong.

The Astros again finished in fourth place the next year under new manager Preston Gomez.

With Virdon as the manager the Astros improved greatly in 1976 finishing in third place with a 80 – 82 record.

After finishing fourth in 1985 the Astros fired general manager Al Rosen and manager Bob Lillis.

The manager of these title teams was Larry Dierker, who had previously been a broadcaster and pitcher for the Astros.

Watson would leave the Astros after the 1995 season to become general manager of the New York Yankees and helped to lead the Yankees to a World Championship in 1996.

After being booed at the 2004 All-Star Game held in Houston, manager Jimy Williams was fired and replaced by Phil Garner, a star on the division-winning 1986 Astros.

The 2010 season was the first season as Astros manager for Brad Mills, who was previously the bench coach of the Boston Red Sox.

On September 27 2012, the Astros named Bo Porter to be the manager for the 2013 season.

But in his final game that year, playing against the Houston Astros ( led by manager Leo Durocher, who had once roomed with Babe Ruth ), he was unable to achieve this.

Houston Astros manager Phil Garner also employed a relief ace model with his use of Brad Lidge in the 2004 postseason.

* Bill Virdon, former outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, later went on to be manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, Houston Astros and Montreal Expos

* Ed Wade ( born 1956 ), general manager of the Major League Baseball Houston Astros

* Art Howe: Major League Baseball infielder with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros, and St. Louis Cardinals ; manager with the Houston Astros, Oakland Athletics, and New York Mets.

Astros owner Drayton McLane and general manager Tim Purpura announced that Bagwell would remain in the Astros organization, in the player development department, as one of the assistants to the general manager.

On November 16, 2009, Lawless was named the new manager for the Lancaster JetHawks, the Class A Advanced affiliate of the Houston Astros, for the 2010 season.

Jim Pankovits, the manager of the ValleyCats, left the Astros organization during the off-season to become the manager of Seattle Mariners double-A team the Jackson Generals.

Cuellar was traded along with Ron Taylor to the Houston Astros for Hal Woodeshick and Chuck Taylor at the June 15 trade deadline in.

With the Astros still leading in the bottom of the ninth, closer Smith allowed a lead-off bunt single to Wally Backman, who appeared to have run out of the first-base line to avoid the tag of first baseman Glenn Davis, but was called safe by umpire Dutch Rennert despite an argument from Houston manager Hal Lanier.

** Hal Lanier, Houston Astros ( NL )

He also was released by the Astros after a one-year stay ; he later said that Houston didn't agree with him.

He is the author of the controversial baseball book Ball Four, which was a combination diary of his season and memoir of his years with the New York Yankees, Seattle Pilots, and Houston Astros.

The first deal came days after the World Series, when the Marlins traded outfielder Moisés Alou to the Houston Astros for pitchers Oscar Hernandez and Manuel Barrios.

Starting pitcher Orlando Hernandez was originally supposed to start against the Houston Astros, but early rain caused the Mets to put in Maine instead.

On January 17,, Hernandez signed a minor league contract with the Houston Astros.

Hernandez would reveal in 2011 that he had stepped off the bag as the first baseman in the top of the second inning, when the Astros had runners on first and third and one out, and batter Craig Reynolds, grounded to second and the Mets tried to turn a double-play.

He ordered the roof at Minute Maid Park to be opened for games three and four of the 2005 World Series, pre-empting the authority held by the Astros.

They led the Wild Card by 1. 5 games over San Francisco and Houston on September 25, and both of those teams lost that day, giving the Cubs a chance at increasing the lead to a commanding 2. 5 games with only eight games remaining in the season, but reliever LaTroy Hawkins blew a save to the Mets, and the Cubs lost the game in extra innings, a defeat that seemingly deflated the team, as they proceeded to drop 6 of their last 8 games as the Astros won the Wild Card.

On September 14, in a game moved to Miller Park due to Hurricane Ike, Zambrano pitched a no-hitter against the Astros, and six days later the team clinched by beating St. Louis at Wrigley.

alt = A baseball player standing at first base with his glove, wearing a red jersey with the word " Astros " in front

The Astros have played their home games at Minute Maid Park since 2000.

The Astros finished the strike-shortened season at 84-69, their first winning season.

The uniform was so different from what other teams wore that the Astros wore it both at home and on the road until 1980.

The Astros finished with their best record to that point at 89 – 73 and 1½ games behind the NL winner Reds.

The rookie gave up a run in the first inning, then held the Astros at bay until the sixth inning.

In Game 3, the Astros were ahead at Shea Stadium, 5 – 4, in the bottom of the 9th when closer Dave Smith gave up a two-run home run to Lenny Dykstra, giving the Mets a dramatic 6 – 5 win.

Faced with declining attendance at the Astrodome and the inability of management to obtain a new stadium, in the off-season Astros management announced its intention to sell the team and move the franchise to the Washington, D. C. area.

Despite the early predictions for success, the Astros had a mediocre 44 – 44 record at the All-Star break.

On June 13, 2012, Matt Cain pitched the first perfect game in the 129 year history of the franchise, against the Houston Astros at AT & T Park.

However, they collapsed at the end of the season, finishing tied for third with the Houston Astros behind the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds.

The Astros honored Kile with a memorial plaque that hangs along the left field wall at Minute Maid Park under the 1997 Central Division Championship banner, the last season Kile played for Houston before signing with Colorado.

Other than Jackie Robinson ( whose number was retired by the entire MLB ), Ryan is currently the only major league baseball player to have his number retired by at least 3 different teams: the Angels, Astros, and Rangers.

alt = A baseball player standing at first base with his glove, wearing a red jersey with the word " Astros " in front

* May 5 – Matt Stairs ' home run off Houston Astros pitcher Wade Miller was estimated at 461 feet, making it the longest home run in the history of Minute Maid Park.

Eighteen teams have all hosted an all-star game at least twice since the Mets last did: Atlanta Braves ( 1972 and 2000 ), Chicago White Sox ( 1983 and 2003 ), Cincinnati Reds ( 1970 and 1988 ), Cleveland Indians ( 1981 and 1997 ), Detroit Tigers ( 1971 and 2005 ), Houston Astros ( 1968, 1986, and 2004 ), Kansas City Royals ( 1973 and 2012 ), Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim ( 1967, 1989, and 2010 ), Milwaukee Brewers ( 1975 and 2002 ), Minnesota Twins ( 1965, 1985, and 2014 ), New York Yankees ( 1977 and 2008 ), Philadelphia Phillies ( 1976 and 1996 ), Pittsburgh Pirates ( 1974, 1994, and 2006 ), San Diego Padres ( 1978 and 1992 ), San Francisco Giants ( 1984 and 2007 ), Seattle Mariners ( 1979 and 2001 ), and St. Louis Cardinals ( 1966 and 2009 ), and Washington Senators / Texas Rangers ( 1969 and 1995 ).

Minute Maid Park ( also The Ballpark at Union Station, Enron Field, and Astros Field ) is a ballpark in Downtown Houston, Texas, United States that opened in 2000 to house the Major League Baseball Houston Astros.

alt = A baseball player standing at first base with his glove, wearing a red jersey with the word " Astros " in front

Cruz represented the Astros in the MLB All-Star Game in 1980 at Los Angeles, and 1985 at Minnesota.