1965_Houston_Astros_season
1965 Houston Astros season
Major League Baseball team season
The 1965 Houston Astros season was the franchise's first season in the Houston Astrodome, as well as its first season as the Astros after three seasons known as the Colt .45s. It involved the Houston Astros finishing in ninth place in the National League with a record of 65–97, 32 games behind the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. The Astros were managed by Lum Harris.
| 1965 Houston Astros | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | National League | |||
| Ballpark | Harris County Domed Stadium | |||
| City | Houston, Texas | |||
| Record | 65–97 (.401) | |||
| League place | 9th | |||
| Owners | Roy Hofheinz | |||
| General managers | Paul Richards | |||
| Managers | Lum Harris | |||
| Television | KTRK-TV | |||
| Radio | KPRC (AM) (Gene Elston, Loel Passe, Harry Kalas) | |||
| ||||
On December 1, The Houston club changed its nickname from Colt .45s to Astros. The move resulted from objections by the Colt Firearms Company to the club's sales of novelties bearing the old nickname.[citation needed] Despite the trademark issues, the "Astros" nickname matched the futuristic ambiance of the revolutionary domed stadium. The nickname was also appropriate since Houston was, by then, the home of NASA's astronaut program. The scoreboard retained subliminal references to the old nickname, as it featured electronically animated cowboys firing pistols, with the "bullets" ricocheting around the scoreboard, when an Astros player would hit a home run. Early on, the groundskeepers also wore astronaut spacesuits to promote that futuristic image.
Astrodome
On April 9, the former Houston Colt .45s took the field and officially became the Houston Astros. They inaugurated indoor baseball in the Astrodome with a 2–1 exhibition win over the New York Yankees.
The stadium was designed as a defense against the oppressive heat and humidity of the Houston summer. Loosely based on the old Roman Colosseum, the Astrodome was dubbed the Eighth Wonder of the World. As with many stadiums of that era, such as RFK Stadium and Shea Stadium, the Astrodome was a multi-purpose stadium, designed for both football as well as baseball.
Besides its roof, the Astrodome was revolutionary for a number of other reasons. It was one of the first stadiums to have individual, theatre-type seats for every seat in the venue. Additionally, it was one of the first stadiums to have luxury seats and club seating, at the time a relatively new concept in sports venues. It also had an "exploding scoreboard", which would show various animations after a home run or a win, as well as messages and advertising.
Notable transactions
- January 31, 1965: Bob Watson was signed as an amateur free agent by the Astros.[1]
Rookie Joe Morgan set club marks for at-bats, runs, hits and triples.
Season standings
| National League | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 97 | 65 | 0.599 | — | 50–31 | 47–34 |
| San Francisco Giants | 95 | 67 | 0.586 | 2 | 51–30 | 44–37 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 90 | 72 | 0.556 | 7 | 49–32 | 41–40 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 89 | 73 | 0.549 | 8 | 49–32 | 40–41 |
| Milwaukee Braves | 86 | 76 | 0.531 | 11 | 44–37 | 42–39 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 85 | 76 | 0.528 | 11½ | 45–35 | 40–41 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 80 | 81 | 0.497 | 16½ | 42–39 | 38–42 |
| Chicago Cubs | 72 | 90 | 0.444 | 25 | 40–41 | 32–49 |
| Houston Astros | 65 | 97 | 0.401 | 32 | 36–45 | 29–52 |
| New York Mets | 50 | 112 | 0.309 | 47 | 29–52 | 21–60 |
Record vs. opponents
Sources: | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | CHC | CIN | HOU | LAD | MIL | NYM | PHI | PIT | SF | STL | |||||
| Chicago | — | 7–11 | 8–10 | 8–10 | 9–9 | 11–7–1 | 8–10 | 5–13 | 6–12 | 10–8–1 | |||||
| Cincinnati | 11–7 | — | 12–6 | 6–12 | 12–6 | 11–7 | 13–5 | 8–10 | 6–12 | 10–8 | |||||
| Houston | 10–8 | 6–12 | — | 5–13 | 4–14 | 14–4 | 6–12 | 8–10 | 3–15 | 9–9 | |||||
| Los Angeles | 10–8 | 12–6 | 13–5 | — | 10–8 | 12–6 | 9–9 | 9–9 | 10–8 | 12–6 | |||||
| Milwaukee | 9–9 | 6–12 | 14–4 | 8–10 | — | 13–5 | 6–12 | 9–9 | 10–8 | 11–7 | |||||
| New York | 7–11–1 | 7–11 | 4–14 | 6–12 | 5–13 | — | 7–11–1 | 4–14 | 5–13 | 5–13 | |||||
| Philadelphia | 10–8 | 5–13 | 12–6 | 9–9 | 12–6 | 11–7–1 | — | 8–10 | 8–10 | 10–7 | |||||
| Pittsburgh | 13–5 | 10–8 | 10–8 | 9–9 | 9–9 | 14–4 | 10–8 | — | 11–7–1 | 4–14 | |||||
| San Francisco | 12–6 | 12–6 | 15–3 | 8–10 | 8–10 | 13–5 | 10–8 | 7–11–1 | — | 10–8 | |||||
| St. Louis | 8–10–1 | 8–10 | 9–9 | 6–12 | 7–11 | 13–5 | 7–10 | 14–4 | 8–10 | — | |||||
Opening Day starters
Notable transactions
- April 24, 1965: Don Larsen was traded by the Astros to the Baltimore Orioles for Bob Saverine and cash.[2]
- May 23, 1965: Ken Johnson and Jim Beauchamp were traded by the Astros to the Milwaukee Braves for Lee Maye.[3]
- June 14, 1965: Gus Triandos was purchased by the Astros from the Philadelphia Phillies.[4]
- July 10, 1965: Frank Thomas was purchased by the Astros from the Philadelphia Phillies.[5]
- August 20, 1965: Gus Triandos was released by the Astros.[4]
- September 1, 1965: Frank Thomas was traded by the Astros to the Milwaukee Braves for a player to be named later. The Braves completed the deal by sending Mickey Sinnerud (minors) to the Astros on September 11.[5]
Roster
| 1965 Houston Astros | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
Other batters
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Manager
Coaches
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Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
Positional abbreviations: C = Catcher; 1B = First base; 2B = Second base; 3B = Third base; SS = Shortstop; LF = Left field; CF = Center field; RF = Right field
| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | Avg. | HR | RBI | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Ron Brand | 117 | 391 | 27 | 92 | 6 | 3 | .235 | 2 | 37 | 10 |
| 1B | Walt Bond | 117 | 407 | 46 | 107 | 17 | 2 | .263 | 7 | 47 | 2 |
| 2B | Joe Morgan | 157 | 601 | 100 | 163 | 22 | 12 | .271 | 14 | 40 | 20 |
| 3B | Bob Aspromonte | 152 | 578 | 53 | 152 | 15 | 2 | .263 | 5 | 52 | 2 |
| SS | Bob Lillis | 124 | 408 | 34 | 90 | 12 | 1 | .221 | 1 | 38 | 2 |
| LF | Lee Maye | 108 | 415 | 38 | 104 | 17 | 7 | .251 | 3 | 36 | 1 |
| CF | Jim Wynn | 157 | 564 | 90 | 155 | 30 | 7 | .275 | 22 | 73 | 43 |
| RF | Rusty Staub | 131 | 410 | 43 | 105 | 20 | 1 | .256 | 14 | 63 | 3 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
| Player | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | Avg. | HR | RBI | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Gaines | 100 | 229 | 21 | 52 | 8 | 1 | .227 | 6 | 31 | 4 |
| Jim Gentile | 81 | 227 | 22 | 55 | 11 | 1 | .242 | 7 | 31 | 0 |
| Eddie Kasko | 68 | 215 | 18 | 53 | 7 | 1 | .247 | 1 | 10 | 1 |
| John Bateman | 45 | 142 | 15 | 28 | 3 | 1 | .197 | 7 | 14 | 4 |
| Al Spangler | 38 | 112 | 18 | 24 | 1 | 1 | .214 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| Gus Triandos | 24 | 72 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 0 | .181 | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| Frank Thomas | 23 | 58 | 7 | 10 | 2 | 0 | .172 | 3 | 9 | 0 |
| Jim Beauchamp | 24 | 53 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 0 | .189 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Chuck Harrison | 15 | 45 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 0 | .200 | 1 | 9 | 0 |
| Nellie Fox | 21 | 41 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 0 | .268 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Dave Adlesh | 15 | 34 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | .147 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Sonny Jackson | 10 | 23 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | .130 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Norm Miller | 11 | 15 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | .200 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Mike White | 8 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Hoffman | 2 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .333 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Jim Mahoney | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .200 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gene Ratliff | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts
| Player | G | GS | IP | W | L | ERA | R | ER | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Bruce | 35 | 34 | 229.2 | 9 | 18 | 3.72 | 107 | 95 | 38 | 145 |
| Turk Farrell | 33 | 29 | 208.1 | 11 | 11 | 3.50 | 94 | 81 | 35 | 122 |
| Don Nottebart | 29 | 25 | 158.0 | 4 | 15 | 4.67 | 99 | 82 | 55 | 77 |
| Larry Dierker | 26 | 19 | 146.2 | 7 | 8 | 3.50 | 69 | 57 | 37 | 109 |
| Robin Roberts | 10 | 10 | 76.0 | 5 | 2 | 1.89 | 22 | 16 | 10 | 34 |
| Ken Johnson | 8 | 8 | 51.2 | 3 | 2 | 4.18 | 25 | 24 | 11 | 28 |
| Don Arlich | 1 | 1 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Don Larsen | 1 | 1 | 5.1 | 0 | 0 | 5.06 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts
| Player | G | GS | IP | W | L | SV | ERA | R | ER | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Giusti | 38 | 13 | 131.1 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 4.32 | 67 | 63 | 46 | 92 |
| Claude Raymond | 33 | 7 | 96.1 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 2.90 | 35 | 31 | 16 | 79 |
| Jack Lamabe | 3 | 2 | 12.2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.26 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 6 |
| Chris Zachary | 4 | 2 | 10.2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.22 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
| Jim Ray | 3 | 2 | 7.2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10.57 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 7 |
| Carroll Sembera | 2 | 1 | 7.1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.68 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | SV | ERA | R | ER | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Owens | 50 | 71.1 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 3.28 | 28 | 26 | 29 | 53 |
| Ron Taylor | 32 | 57.2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 6.40 | 42 | 41 | 16 | 37 |
| Mike Cuellar | 25 | 56.0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 3.54 | 24 | 22 | 21 | 46 |
| Danny Coombs | 26 | 47.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.79 | 26 | 25 | 23 | 35 |
| Ken MacKenzie | 21 | 37.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3.89 | 22 | 16 | 6 | 26 |
| Hal Woodeshick | 27 | 32.1 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3.06 | 13 | 11 | 18 | 22 |
| Don Lee | 7 | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.38 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Bruce Von Hoff | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.00 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Gordon Jones | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Oklahoma City, FRL Astros
- Bob Watson at Baseball Reference
- Bob Saverine at Baseball Reference
- Gus Triandos at Baseball Reference
- Frank Thomas at Baseball Reference
- 1965 Houston Astros season at Baseball Reference
- 1965 Houston Astros at Baseball Almanac