The 1965

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. 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 ...

season was the franchise's first season in the Houston

Astrodome The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...

, 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 The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

with a record of 65–97, 32 games behind the eventual

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

champion

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

. The Astros were managed by Lum Harris.

Offseason

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. 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 The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

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

with a 2–1

exhibition An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibition ...

win over the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

. 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 Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world to ...

, the Astrodome was dubbed the ''Eighth Wonder of the World''. As with many stadiums of that era, such as

RFK Stadium Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, commonly known as RFK Stadium and originally known as District of Columbia Stadium, is a defunct multi-purpose stadium in Washington, D.C. It is located about due east of the U.S. Capitol building, near the w ...

and

Shea Stadium Shea Stadium (), formally known as William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens, New York City.multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used by multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy tha ...

, 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 Robert José Watson (April 10, 1946May 14, 2020) was an American professional baseball player, coach and general manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman and left fielder from 1966 to 1984, most prominently as a member of ...

was signed as an amateur free agent by the Astros.

Regular season

Rookie

Joe Morgan Joe Leonard Morgan (September 19, 1943 – October 11, 2020) was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Colt .45s / Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, ...

set club marks for at-bats, runs, hits and triples.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Opening Day starters

Bob Aspromonte Robert Thomas Aspromonte (born June 19, 1938) is an American former professional baseball player and business entrepreneur. He played as a third baseman in Major League Baseball in and then from to , most prominently as a member of the newly for ...

* John Bateman * Jim Beauchamp *

Walt Bond Walter Franklin Bond (October 19, 1937 – September 14, 1967) was an American professional baseball player who appeared in 365 games over six Major League Baseball seasons between and for the Cleveland Indians, Houston Colt .45s/Astros and Min ...

Bob Bruce Robert James Bruce (May 16, 1933 – March 14, 2017) was an American professional baseball player, a right-handed pitcher who appeared in 219 games in Major League Baseball from to for the Detroit Tigers, Houston Colt .45s / Astros, and Atla ...

* Joe Gaines *

Bob Lillis Robert Perry Lillis (born June 2, 1930) is an American former infielder, manager, coach and scout in Major League Baseball (MLB). Lillis was an original member of the expansion Houston Colt .45s who remained with the club (renamed the Astros ...

Jimmy Wynn James Sherman Wynn (March 12, 1942March 26, 2020), nicknamed "The Toy Cannon", was an American professional baseball player. He played 15 seasons as a center fielder; he spent ten of his fifteen seasons with the Houston Colt .45s / Astros befor ...

Notable transactions

* April 24, 1965:

Don Larsen Don James Larsen (August 7, 1929 – January 1, 2020) was an American professional baseball pitcher. During a 15-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, he pitched from 1953 to 1967 for seven different teams: the St. Louis Browns / Baltimore O ...

was traded by the Astros to the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

for

Bob Saverine Robert Paul Saverine (born June 2, 1941) is a former Major League Baseball infielder/outfielder. He was signed by the Baltimore Orioles as an amateur free agent before the 1959 season and played for the Orioles (1959, 1962–1964) and the Washin ...

and cash. * May 23, 1965: Ken Johnson and Jim Beauchamp were traded by the Astros to the

Milwaukee Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bost ...

for

Lee Maye Arthur Lee Maye (December 11, 1934 – July 17, 2002) was an American Major League Baseball player. He played eleven seasons in the majors as an outfielder for the Milwaukee Braves (1959–1965), Houston Astros (1965–1966), Cleveland Indians ...

.Lee Maye
at ''Baseball Reference'' * June 14, 1965:

Gus Triandos Gus Triandos (July 30, 1930 – March 28, 2013) was a Greek American professional baseball player and scout (sport), scout. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher and a first baseman for the New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, and the D ...

was purchased by the Astros from the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

.Gus Triandos
at ''Baseball Reference'' * July 10, 1965: Frank Thomas was purchased by the Astros from the Philadelphia Phillies.Frank Thomas
at ''Baseball Reference'' * August 20, 1965: Gus Triandos was released by the Astros. * 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.

Roster

Player stats

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''

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''

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''

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''

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''

Awards and honors

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...

Turk Farrell Richard Joseph "Turk" Farrell (April 8, 1934 – June 10, 1977) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to , spending his entire 14-year MLB career in the National League (NL). He threw and ...

Farm system

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Oklahoma City, FRL Astros

References

External links

1965 Houston Astros season
at ''Baseball Reference''
1965 Houston Astros
at ''Baseball Almanac'' {{Houston Astros Houston Astros seasons Houston Astros season Houston Astro