The 1965 season was the first and only full season for Lum Harris as manager, the second in franchise history, having replaced Harry Craft late during the previous year. On April 12, Bob Bruce made the Astros' Opening Day starter, who hosted the Philadelphia Phillies, but were defeated, 2–0.
In the first-ever MLB amateur draft, the Astros' first round selection was shortstop Alex Barrett at fourth overall. Rookie second baseman Joe Morgan established club records on July 8 with six hits—tying the major league record—and 13 total bases for a single game, during a 9–8 defeat to the Milwaukee Braves over 12 innings. Pitcher Turk Farrell represented the Astros at the MLB All-Star Game, his fifth career selection.
The Astros concluded the season with a record of 65–97, a third consecutive in ninth place and 32 games behind the NL pennant and eventual World Series-champion Los Angeles Dodgers. The 97 losses represented a franchise-worst record for Houston at the time, which was one more than the 96 losses the club had for each of their first three seasons of existence. It later matched by the 1975 and 1991 teams, and exceeded in 2011 with 106 losses.
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
Exterior view of the Astrodome (left) and scoreboard in 1969 (right).
The venue was designed as a defense against the oppressive heat and humidity of the Houston summer. Loosely based on the classic 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, accentuated by accoutrements not prior-featured or rarely seen at sports facilities. Every seat in the venue was theatre-style, the first stadium so configured. Additionally, it was one of the first stadiums allocated with 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.
The Astros' Turk Farrell threw the game's official first pitch and baseball indoors was underway.[1] Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle recorded each of the stadium's first hit, home run,[2] and run scored.[3] During the third inning, catcher Ron Brand smoked a triple for the home team's first hit in their new stadium.[1]Player-coachNellie Fox, another future Hall of Famer, furnished the first walk-off hit at the Astrodome to settle the contest outright in the bottom of the 12th inning.[3]
During a pre-game ceremony on Opening Day and at the regular-season opening ceremony of the Astrodome, April 12, 1965, the Astros officially retired jersey number 32 in honor of former Colt .45s pitcher Jim Umbricht. Umbricht had died on April 8, 1964, following a battle with cancer and having returned to play for Houston the season earlier, in 1963. Aged 33 years old, his jersey number was the first to be retired by the team.[7]
The Astrodome hosted a standing-room-only attendance of 48,546. Distinguished guests included Commissioner Ford Frick, National League President Warren Giles (also at the first exhibition game), and a contingent of NASA personnel, who witnessed baseball's tribute to the Space Age through the Astrodome. There, the Houston Astros hosted the Philadelphia Phillies. Twenty-two of the 24 NASA astronauts were in attendance, and, for the ceremonial first pitch, each simultaneously tossed to one of 22 members of the Astros.[8]
The Phillies pride themselves as the victors in the Astrodome's regular-season christening, 2–0, spearheaded by a fantastic shutout masterpiece by starter Chris Short. He limited baseball's Spacemen to four hits, while fanning 11 for a game score of 88. Philadelphia's Tony Taylor stroked a double leading off the contest for the first regular-season safety in the history of baseball indoors. Meanwhile, the Astros' Bob Bruce hurled seven innings with two runs surrendered to take a loss. Dick Allen slugged a two-run home run to give Philadelphia their first tallies in the top of the third inning. Joe Morgan swatted a single leading off the bottom of the fourth for Houston's first standard-season base hit in their new environs.[9]
Rusty Staub christened the first regular-season walk-off safety at the Astrodome on April 23, singling home Al Spangler in the bottom of the twelfth inning, icing a 4–3 decision over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Dave Giusti plugged the final two frames in relief to secure the victory. Bruce, the Astros starter, logged his first double of the season during the third off his mound opponent, Bob Veale (the National League's reigning strikeout leader), to score John Bateman. Bruce surrendered two runs over 7+1⁄3innings pitched.[12]
Bob Aspromonte blasted the home team's first home run at the Astrodome on April 24 during the bottom of the sixth off Vern Law of the Pirates. The next inning, Wynn also took Law deep.[10] As a result, a home run event by the home team cued "The Home Spectacular," an animated visual graphics display that quantified 474 feet (144m) on the center field wall.[13]
May
On May 1, the Astros swept a doubleheader of the Chicago Cubs, extending a winning streak to ten games for a club record. Though Houston would tie this record over a number of occasions, it remained the record until 1999.[14]
Two prominent Astros obtained milestone firsts on May 8 at Wrigley Field. Joe Morgan connected for his first major league home run to deep right field. The blast occurred in the top of the sixth inning off Lindy McDaniel of Chicago, extending the Astros' lead to 8–5.[15] Meanwhile, right-hander Larry Dierker procured his first Major League victory through finishing off the final 4+1⁄3innings[b][16] of relief of Don Nottebart. Seven of the Astros starting nine collected multi-hit games as Rusty Staub and Jimmy Wynn also went deep for an 11–6 Houston triumph. Wynn doubled and led the Astros with 3 RBI.[17]
For the first time, on May 22, ABC's broadcast of the Major League Baseball Game of the Week featured the Astrodome. Viewers were thrilled by a massive Willie Mays home run that propelled the San Francisco Giants over the Astros to win the contest, 10–1.[18] On May 23, the Giants, able to leverage a three-run, inside-the-park home run—a result of the ball getting caught in the roof of the Astrodome—won, 5–2, over Houston. This was the final game as a Houston Astro for starter Ken Johnson, who received news after the contest that had been traded to the Milwaukee Braves for outfielder Lee Maye.[19]
Due to pop flies routinely misjudged as induced by the glare through the roof of the Astrodone, clear glass panes costing about $20,000 were installed on May 24. Consequently, these conditions created inadequate lighting to sustain the grass, which led to the installation of AstroTurf the following season.[20]
With the scored tied 2–2 on June 4 going into the ninth inning, Houston Astros catcher Ron Brand connected for a three-run homer into the left field bleachers off Bob Gibson for the decisive runs in an Astros' 5–2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.[23] After 140 relief appearances, on June 6, Claude Raymond made the first of seven starts over his major league career. He tossed a complete game against the Cardinals. holding them to just seven hits and one run as the Houston won, 10–1.[24]
The Astros passed the one-million mark in attendance for the first time on June 25,[3] surpassing the prior year's total[25] in under half a season.[26] Eighteen-year-old Larry Dierker outdueled an ageless Warren Spahn—a quarter-century Dierker's senior—to lead the Astros to a 6–1 triumph over New York. Joe Morgan ignited the scoring with a two-run triple.[3]
Joe Morgan's six-hit game
On July 8, rookie second baseman Joe Morgan established clubs records with six hits and 13 total bases, including two home runs, and also collected three RBI and four runs scored at Milwaukee County Stadium. The six hits tied the major league record for one game. His feats carried through Astros through an eventual 12-inning, 9–8 loss to the Milwaukee Braves.[Note 2][Note 3][27] This was the first multi-home run game of Morgan's career, with both drives courtesty of Tony Cloninger offerings.[15]
Early July
Morgan scored his second career multi-home run game just two days after his record performance. On July 10, took Galen Cisco deep in the top of the fourth inning at Shea Stadium, and in the top of the ninth, Tug McGraw. His performance was instrumental in a 9–1 clobbering of the New York Mets.[15]
MLB All-Star Game
Turk Farrell made the MLB All-Star Game, hosted at Metropolitan Stadium. His fourth selection as an Astro, this extended his own club record. Outfielder César Cedeño was chosen to four All-Star Game to match Farrell for the club record in the 1976 edition.[d] This stood as club record until Craig Biggio would receive his fifth selection in the 1996 All-Star Game[28]
Later July—August
During a span of eight outings initiated July 26, right-hander Dave Giusti retired 27 consecutive batters faced until August 14 to establish a club record. It remained as the club record 44 years until 2019 when surpassed by starting pitcherJustin Verlander, who accumulated 32. In 2022, Ryan Pressly also reached 32, which usurped Giusti for the club record for relief pitchers.[29]
Veteran right-hander Robin Roberts made his Houston Astros debut at home on August 9, tossing a four-hit shutout while leading an 8–0 whitewashing of his former club, the Philadelphia Phillies.[30] The victory was the 277th of Roberts' career.[3]
On August 16, Roberts hurled his second successive four-hit shutout, this time of the Phillies' rival, the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Astros triumphed, 3 to 0. Roberts issued two base on balls while whiffing seven.[30]
Roberts tossed another complete game in catenation on August 21, leading a 9–2 triumph over the Cubs. Roberts diffused nine hits and three walks while being charged with both runs as earned.[30]
September
Hosting the Giants on September 13 at the Astrodome, Willie Mays crushed his 500th home run, and 47th of the season. Mays golfed a Don Nottebart offering deep to centerfield leading off the top of the fourth inning, depicted by Bob Stevens of the San Francisco Chronicle as a “monstrous, 440-foot blast into the centerfield bleachers.” At the time, the only hitters Mays had trailed were Babe Ruth (714), Jimmie Foxx (534), Ted Williams (521), and Mel Ott (511). The Giants scored three more times in the fourth, and behind a complete game effort from Juan Marichal, cruised, 5–1. Houston's only tally arrived via Jimmy Wynn's 21st home run in the bottom of the first inning.[31]
The Astros concluded the 1965 epoch with a 65–97 (.401) record, in ninth place of ten National League clubs, and 32 games behind the pennant-winning Los Angeles Dodgers.[33] In their first year at the Astrodome, Houston smashed attendance records with 2,151,470, nearly tripling the showing of fans from the year prior,[25] for the second-highest total in the National League.[e][34] This was the premier campaign in which the Colt .45s/Astros franchise had claimed both of the one-million and two-million thresholds of attendees. The team next reached the 2-million barrier in 1980, during which they claimed their first-ever playoff qualification.[25]
However, the 97 defeats transformed into the franchise-worst record for Houston at the time, which surmounted the 96 losses the club had tallied in each of their first three seasons of existence. The 1975 and 1991 squads later equaled this record and, in 2011, the team overran the record with 106 losses. The 1965 iteration was the fourth of Houston's first seven campaigns in which they lost 90 or more contests, a franchise record.[25]
Houston totaled 25 home runs at the Astrodome during their first year in their new stadium, compared with 72 on the road.[10]
Meanwhile, Jim Wynn became Houston's first 40-stolen base bandit with 43, retaining the club record until Sonny Jackson pilfered 49 the following year.[g][39]
July 10, 1965: Frank Thomas was purchased by the Astros from the Philadelphia Phillies.[43]
August 20, 1965: Gus Triandos was released by the Astros.[42]
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.[43]
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
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
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
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
123From 1961–2003, The Sporting News declared one rookie position player and pitcher from each league, the NL and the American League (AL), for this award. Starting in 2004, this system was modified to selecting one rookie from each league for the award, regardless of position.
↑Larry Dierker, for single games, from 1964 to 1965, in the regular season, in career game No. 50 or less, requiring batters faced ≥ 1, sorted by ascending date.
↑For single games, from 1962 to 1966, playing for HOU, in the regular season, sorted by descending strikeouts.
↑As Major League Baseball held two All-Star Games each year from 1959 to 1962, Cedeño distinguished himself as the first Astro to make the All-Star team in four different seasons.
↑This would remain the Astros' highest attendance-placing in the league throughout all their years as tenants of the Astrodome. The club would next reach a ranking as high as second place in 2021, as tenants of Minute Maid Park, doing so for the first of four successive campaigns.
↑Wolf, Gregory H. (September 13, 1965). "Willie Mays clouts 500th home run". Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). Retrieved November 18, 2025.
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