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1996 Houston Astros season

Major League Baseball team season From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The 1996 Houston Astros season was the 35th season for the Houston Astros, a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 32nd as the Astros, third in the NL Central division, and 32nd at The Astrodome. The Astros entered the season with a 76–68 record, in second-place and nine games behind the division-champion Cincinnati Reds, while having missed the playoffs by one game behind the Colorado Rockies in the NL Wild Card race.

LeagueNational League
BallparkThe Astrodome
Record82–80 (.506)
OwnersDrayton McLane, Jr.
Quick facts Houston Astros, League ...
1996 Houston Astros
LeagueNational League
DivisionCentral
BallparkThe Astrodome
CityHouston, Texas
Record82–80 (.506)
Divisional place2nd
OwnersDrayton McLane, Jr.
General managersGerry Hunsicker
ManagersTerry Collins
TelevisionKTXH
Prime Sports Southwest
RadioKILT (AM)
(Bill Brown, Milo Hamilton, Larry Dierker, Vince Controneo, Bill Worrell)
KXYZ
(Francisco Ernesto Ruiz, Danny Gonzalez)
← 1995
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On April 1, pitcher Shane Reynolds made his first of five consecutive Opening Day starts for the Astros, who hosted the Los Angeles Dodgers but were defeated, 4–3. In the amateur draft, the Astros selected pitcher Mark Johnson in the first round, at 19th overall, and pitcher Roy Oswalt in the 23rd round.

First baseman Jeff Bagwell and second baseman Craig Biggio represented the Astros for the National League at the MLB All-Star Game, the second for Bagwell, and fifth for Biggio. On September 29, the Astros retired Nolan Ryan's jersey number 34, where he pitched nine seasons.

The Astros finished in second place in the NL Central with an 82–80 record, six games behind the division-leading St. Louis Cardinals. In the NL Wild Card race, the Astros ranked third, eight games behind the Dodgers. This was the Astros' fourth consecutive winning season—unprecedented in club history—and third consecutive with a second-place finish in the division.

Following the season, Biggio won the Gold Glove Award, the third of his career, while relief pitcher Billy Wagner was selected to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team.

Offseason

The Astros concluded the 1995 campaign with a final record of 76–68 (.528), for a second-place ranking in the National League (NL) Central division, 9 games behind the division-champion Cincinnati Reds. In the Wild Card chase, Houston finished as runners-up to the Colorado Rockies for the NL title by one game.[1] Hence, for the second straight campaign, the club finished within one game of a playoff berth, having last qualified in 1986. For the fourth consecutive arc, since 1992, Houston had concluded with a record of at least .500—unprecedented in any prior instance in franchise history—while also matching the 1979, 1980, and 1981 clubs with three successive winning campaigns for longest string of winning seasons in franchise annals.[2] The 1995 Astros also set club records for runs scored (747) and on-base percentage (.353 OBP), while posting the second-highest batting average to the 1994 squad (.278, .275).[3] Moreover, second baseman Craig Biggio became the first Astro to be recognized with both the Silver Slugger and Gold Glove Awards in the same year on multiple occasions, and, the first Astro to win either award for the position at second base.[4]

Prior to this season, the Astros hired former pitcher Brent Strom as a coach, his first coaching stint for the Astros.[5]

Regular season

Summary

April

More information Opening Day starting lineup, Uniform ...
Opening Day starting lineup
Uniform Player Position
19Brian L. HunterCenter fielder
7Craig BiggioSecond baseman
5Jeff BagwellFirst baseman
14Derek BellRight fielder
16Derrick MayLeft fielder
17Sean BerryThird baseman
3Rick WilkinsCatcher
24Orlando MillerShortstop
37Shane ReynoldsPitcher
Venue: Astrodome • Los Angeles 4, Houston 3

Sources:[7][8]

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The Astros hosted the Los Angeles Dodgers for Opening Day, April 1. Houston chose Shane Reynolds as the starting pitcher, while Los Angeles countered with Ramón Martínez. The Astros crossed the plate first as shortstop Orlando Miller singled in Sean Berry. Reynolds kept the Dodgers scoreless until the fifth, when Eric Karros singled home a run, and Todd Hollandsworth cleared the bases with a double. The Astros responded during the bottom of the sixth, when Jeff Bagwell led off with the club's first home run of the season, and Derrick May lifted a sacrifice fly which scored Derek Bell to reduce the Astros' deficit to 4–3. However, the score held as Reynolds took the defeat, while Martinez tossed a quality start to earn the victory.[9]

May

The Nolan Ryan Exhibit Center in Alvin, Texas.

On May 7 against Philadelphia, Jeff Bagwell reached the 500th run batted in (RBI) of his career with two home runs and four RBI.[10] By hitting his second upper-deck home run at Three Rivers Stadium on May 29 – it travelled 459 feet (140 m) – Bagwell joined longtime Pirate Willie Stargell as the only players to homer twice into the stadium's upper deck.[11]

Backup catcher Jerry Goff set a National League record and matched the MLB record on May 12 with six passed balls, tying Geno Petralli and Rube Vickers.[12] Goff's miscues led to five unearned runs, allowing the Montreal Expos to defeat Houston, 7–6. At the plate, Goff homered and collected two hits;[13] however, in spite of his strong offensive performance, the Astros optioned him to the Triple-A Tucson Toros following the game. This turned out to be his last appearance in the major leagues.[12][14]

On May 24, Craig Biggio's two-run, ninth-inning blast tied the game and sent it into extra innings. Later, Astros outfielder John Cangelosi stroked a 10th-inning RBI single to finish off the Chicago Cubs for the 8–7 win.[15]

For the month of May, Bagwell batted .360 with .740 SLG, 10 HR, 31 RBI, scored 22 runs, and stole four bases. He was named NL Player of the Month, his fourth career monthly award.[16]

June

On June 6, southpaw Billy Wagner notched a three-inning bout for the first time, going 3+1⁄3 total frames while surrendering three runs. Wagner struck out five.[17]

On June 14, Bagwell tied a major league record with four doubles in one game against the San Francisco Giants.[18] Bagwell's achievement was the first in the major leagues since Billy Hatcher on August 21, 1990, as a member of the Cincinnati Reds.[19] He joined Kevin Bass on June 27, 1987, as the second Houston Astro to slug four extra-base hits in a single game, also punishing San Francisco Giants pitching.[a][20] Craig Biggio went deep and plated three, while Brian Hunter doubled and drove in three. Mike Hampton (5–3) tossed six sturdy innings while Billy Wagner closed out the final three frames for his first career save. Billy "The Kid" whiffed four of nine batters faced.[21]

Billy Wagner whiffed a career-best seven on June 20, accounting for seven of eight total outs in an appearance of 2+2⁄3 innings. Wagner diffused two bases on balls and one safety with no runs surrendered.[17]

July

On July 24, pinch hitter Ray Montgomery connected for a tenth-inning walk-off home run off Ron Villone of the San Diego Padres, also scoring Ricky Gutiérrez.[b][22] This was also Montgomery's first and only major league blast.[23] James Mouton also went deep among three hits. The final score was Houston 6, San Diego 4.[24]

During the month of July, Houston claimed five triumphs via walk-off safeties.[25]

September

With one month remaining in the season, the Astros held a 2+1⁄2-game lead over the St. Louis Cardinals.[26]

However, the Astros lost 17 of their final 25 games—including a season-high nine-game losing streak[27]—and wound up losing the division lead, ultimately landing in second place and six games behind the first-place Cardinals. The Astros dismissed manager Terry Collins following the season.[26]

Retirement of Nolan Ryan's uniform number 34

Houston Astros 1982 postcard of Nolan Ryan.

During a pre-game ceremony on September 29, 1996—the final day of the regular season—the Astros retired Nolan Ryan's jersey number 34. During his tenure in Houston, the "Ryan Express" became the fourth major league pitcher to notch his 3,000th strikeout (July 4, 1980),[28] the first to whiff each of 4,000 (July 11, 1985) and 4,500 batters (September 9, 1987), tossed his record fifth no-hitter (September 25, 1981),[29] and earned his 250th career victory (August 27, 1986).[30]

In 282 games started with Astros, Ryan went 106–94 with a 3.13 earned run average (ERA), gaining two All-Star team selections while claiming two each of league ERA titles (1.69 in 1981, 2.76 in 1987) and strikeout titles (270 in 1987, 228 in 1988).[31] Ryan became the first Astro to earn multiple ERA titles,[32] and just the second to lead in strikeouts multiple seasons, following J. R. Richard.[33] Ryan departed Houston as the Astros' career record holder for strikeouts (1,866), for most 10-K games with 53, as well having tossed the third 16-strikeout game in franchise history (September 9, 1987).[34]

Ryan became the second major leaguer to have his jersey number retired by three teams on which they played, joining Frank Robinson.[35]

To cap off the contest, catcher Tony Eusebio lined a double to left field to score James Mouton for a walk-off, 5–4 decision in ten innings over the Florida Marlins.[25] This brought Houston to a winning record for the campaign at 82–80.[36]

Performance overview

With a final record of 82–80, the Astros increased their win total by six from the year prior, while their winning percentage dropped 0.022 points, a season shortened by a players' strike to 144 games. After their late-season collapse, the Astros produced a fifth consecutive season since 1992 with a record of at least .500—unprecedented in franchise history. The 1996 team was the fourth consecutive with a winning record, surpassing the 1979, 1980, 1981 clubs which set the prior record with three successive winning campaigns. The Astros maintained their consistency and extended this new record through the 1999 campaign.[2]

The Astros hoisted 12 victories via walk-off hit[25] to lead the Major Leagues, and their most since 1992.[37] Derek Bell led the club with three (April 2, July 20, and July 21).[25] Meanwhile, Orlando Miller swatted two of Houston's three walk-off home runs, and was one of eight players in the Major Leagues to hit multiple such home runs.[c][38]

Jeff Bagwell recorded the first of six successive campaigns of each of 100 runs scored, 30 doubles, 30 home runs, 100 RBI and 100 BB, through 2001, a Major League record.[d][39] Bagwell connected for 31 homers, while establishing single-season club records with 48 doubles and 120 RBI. Derek Bell, who drove home 113 runs, joined Bagwell to generate the first instance in which the club rostered multiple hitters with 100-plus RBI during the same season.[27]

Starting pitchers Shane Reynolds and Darryl Kile both struck out upward of 200 batters.[27] It was the third season in franchise history that the Astros boasted at least two such hurlers (1969, 1987).[e][40]

Biggio was recognized with the Gold Glove Award at second base for the third consecutive year. Among Astros Gold Glove winners, only César Cedeño and Doug Rader had won more (5 each, both consecutively).[41]

Season standings

More information Team, W ...
NL Central
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
St. Louis Cardinals 8874 .543 — 48‍–‍33 40‍–‍41
Houston Astros 8280 .506 6 48‍–‍33 34‍–‍47
Cincinnati Reds 8181 .500 7 46‍–‍35 35‍–‍46
Chicago Cubs 7686 .469 12 43‍–‍38 33‍–‍48
Pittsburgh Pirates 7389 .451 15 36‍–‍44 37‍–‍45
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Record vs. opponents

More information Team, ATL ...
1996 National League record
Source: MLB Standings Grid – 1996
Team ATL CHC CIN COL FLA HOU LAD MON NYM PHI PIT SD SF STL
Atlanta —7–57–55–76–76–65–710–37–69–49–39–47–59–4
Chicago 5–7—5–85–76–65–88–56–67–57–64–96–67–55–8
Cincinnati 5–78–5—7–63–97–64–83–96–610–25–89–39–45–8
Colorado 7–57–56–7—5–88–56–73–97–56–67–58–55–88–4
Florida 7–66–69–38–5—7–56–75–87–66–75–73–95–76–6
Houston 6–68–56–75–85–7—6–64–98–410–28–56–68–42–11
Los Angeles 7–55–88–47–67–66–6—9–38–47–66–65–87–68–4
Montreal 3–106–69–39–38–59–43–9—7–66–77–54–89–48–4
New York 6–75–76–65–76–74–84–86–7—7–68–53–106–65–7
Philadelphia 4–96–72–106–67–62–106–77–66–7—7–54–86–64–8
Pittsburgh 3–99–48–55–77–55–86–65–75–85–7—4–98–43–10
San Diego 4–96–63–95–89–36–68–58–410–38–49–4—11–24–8
San Francisco 5–75–74–98–57–54–86–74–96–66–64–82–11—7–6
St. Louis 4–98–58–54–86–611–24–84–87–58–410–38–46–7—
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Game log

More information #, Date ...
1996 Game Log: 82–80 (Home: 48–33; Away: 34–47)
April: 13–14 (Home: 5–8; Away: 8–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
1April 1Dodgers3–4MartinezReynolds (0–1)Worrell34,3750–1
2April 2Dodgers5–4Jones (1–0)Cummings—20,4921–1
3April 3Dodgers5–2Hampton (1–0)NomoJones (1)14,8582–1
4April 5Padres4–10TewksburyKile (0–1)—28,6292–2
5April 6Padres4–8 (13)HoffmanSmall (0–1)—24,5102–3
6April 7Padres2–17BergmanSwindell (0–1)—16,2582–4
7April 8Giants6–2Hampton (2–0)VanLandingham—13,4883–4
8April 9Giants1–3 (10)JudenTabaka (0–1)Beck13,5883–5
9April 10Giants5–11FernandezKile (0–2)—14,1833–6
10April 11@ Reds9–4Reynolds (1–1)Portugal—18,9464–6
11April 12@ Reds10–8 (10)Jones (2–0)MooreTabaka (1)24,9605–6
12April 14@ Reds3–5SchourekHampton (2–1)Brantley—5–7
13April 14@ Reds8–9ShawYoung (0–1)Brantley21,5525–8
14April 16@ Mets9–6Reynolds (2–1)IsringhausenJones (2)13,7956–8
15April 17@ Mets7–5Kile (1–2)WilsonJones (3)12,0657–8
16April 19Reds13–5Brocail (1–0)Schourek—22,7288–8
17April 20Reds1–6SmileyDrabek (0–1)—34,0988–9
18April 21Reds7–5Jones (3–0)Brantley—27,8459–9
19April 22@ Giants11–8Reynolds (3–1)Leiter—8,86710–9
20April 23@ Giants8–4Kile (2–2)VanLandingham—8,43911–9
21April 24@ Dodgers2–5ValdezBrocail (1–1)—26,66611–10
22April 25@ Dodgers4–6NomoDrabek (0–2)Worrell33,53011–11
23April 26@ Padres2–3WorrellHampton (2–2)Hoffman21,25411–12
24April 27@ Padres6–0Reynolds (4–1)Ashby—38,30912–12
25April 28@ Padres3–2Kile (3–2)BergmanJones (4)27,20813–12
26April 29@ Padres0–2HamiltonBrocail (1–2)—8,97913–13
27April 30Braves5–7SmoltzJones (3–1)McMichael17,79513–14
May: 14–14 (Home: 7–6; Away: 7–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
28May 1Braves3–0Hampton (3–2)Avery—18,54614–14
29May 3Expos4–1Reynolds (5–1)CormierJones (5)19,63315–14
30May 4Expos1–2VeresHernandez (0–1)Rojas22,81015–15
31May 5Expos0–5FasseroBrocail (1–3)—25,20715–16
32May 6@ Phillies11–5Drabek (1–2)Hunter—15,90616–16
33May 7@ Phillies7–5Young (1–1)SpringerJones (6)16,56917–16
34May 8@ Phillies1–2 (10)RyanTabaka (0–2)—16,28417–17
35May 9@ Expos11–4Kile (4–2)Rueter—12,47018–17
36May 10@ Expos2–5FasseroDougherty (0–1)Rojas30,31518–18
37May 11@ Expos9–10 (13)DyerDougherty (0–2)—26,08418–19
38May 12@ Expos6–7UrbinaHampton (3–3)Rojas19,34518–20
39May 13@ Cubs0–6TrachselReynolds (5–2)—22,61018–21
40May 14@ Cubs6–3Kile (5–2)NavarroJones (7)17,56219–21
41May 15@ Cubs7–5Wall (1–0)CastilloJones (8)16,09320–21
42May 16@ Cubs1–13TelemacoDrabek (1–3)—15,90220–22
43May 17Pirates4–2Reynolds (6–2)LieberJones (9)22,88221–22
44May 18Pirates1–2 (11)CordovaYoung (1–2)Plesac21,01021–23
45May 19Pirates4–3Jones (4–1)Lieber—18,81522–23
46May 20Cardinals3–5OsborneDrabek (1–4)—14,54722–24
47May 21Cardinals2–8StottlemyreReynolds (6–3)—17,93522–25
48May 22Cardinals2–5BenesKile (5–3)Mathews15,35322–26
49May 24Cubs8–7 (10)Jones (5–1)Patterson—23,91023–26
50May 25Cubs5–2Drabek (2–4)NavarroJones (10)34,32624–26
51May 26Cubs7–2Reynolds (7–3)Castillo—33,24525–26
52May 27@ Pirates5–3Kile (6–3)Smith—8,90626–26
53May 28@ Pirates5–6MiceliSwindell (0–2)Cordova7,18226–27
54May 29@ Pirates7–4Morman (1–0)DarwinJones (11)11,67927–27
55May 31@ Cardinals4–6OsborneSwindell (0–3)Fossas37,62527–28
June: 15–12 (Home: 8–4; Away: 7–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
56June 1@ Cardinals4–5 (10)BaileyHernandez (0–2)—34,95827–29
57June 2@ Cardinals0–2StottlemyreKile (6–4)—32,70327–30
58June 4Rockies16–8Hampton (4–3)Thompson—18,41828–30
59June 5Rockies4–1Wall (2–0)Reynoso—14,95429–30
60June 6Rockies7–14RitzDrabek (2–5)—22,11229–31
61June 7Phillies11–5Reynolds (8–3)Crawford—22,58530–31
62June 8Phillies7–3Wagner (1–0)Springer—23,73931–31
63June 9Phillies2–1Young (2–2)WilliamsJones (12)30,18032–31
64June 10@ Rockies10–9Wall (3–0)Reynoso—48,00733–31
65June 11@ Rockies5–7AlstonYoung (2–3)Ruffin48,01433–32
66June 12@ Rockies0–8FreemanReynolds (8–4)—48,02433–33
67June 13@ Giants8–12LeiterKile (6–5)—10,52733–34
68June 14@ Giants9–1Hampton (5–3)VanLandinghamWagner (1)10,75834–34
69June 15@ Giants4–3Wall (4–0)WatsonJones (13)18,53035–34
70June 16@ Giants7–8DeLuciaMorman (1–1)—27,62435–35
71June 17Reds5–4Young (3–3)ShawJones (14)24,97736–35
72June 18Reds4–6 (10)BrantleyHernandez (0–3)—20,50536–36
73June 19Reds7–10PortugalHampton (5–4)Brantley38,21836–37
74June 20@ Dodgers4–2Wall (5–0)NomoJones (15)49,65637–37
75June 21@ Dodgers11–3Drabek (3–5)Candiotti—33,27338–37
76June 22@ Dodgers0–3MartinezReynolds (8–5)—37,84438–38
77June 23@ Dodgers3–4WorrellHernandez (0–4)—35,46738–39
78June 25@ Padres9–4Jones (6–1)Sanders—13,45839–39
79June 26@ Padres4–3Wall (6–0)WorrellWagner (2)12,38840–39
80June 28Mets2–7ClarkDrabek (3–6)Henry24,56940–40
81June 29Mets9–1Reynolds (9–5)Person—35,45441–40
82June 30Mets9–3Kile (7–5)Isringhausen—35,98142–40
July: 15–12 (Home: 10–3; Away: 5–9)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
83July 1Marlins6–2Hampton (6–4)Brown—18,51343–40
84July 2Marlins4–3 (12)Johnstone (1–0)Mathews—18,89744–40
85July 3Marlins4–3Drabek (4–6)LeiterJones (16)24,53745–40
86July 4@ Braves5–2Reynolds (10–5)SmoltzHernandez (1)49,06046–40
87July 5@ Braves7–1Kile (8–5)Schmidt—36,89647–40
88July 6@ Braves2–4BieleckiHampton (6–5)—41,61947–41
89July 7@ Braves1–9MadduxWall (6–1)—28,71647–42
90July 11@ Mets2–8ClarkDrabek (4–7)—18,55747–43
91July 12@ Mets3–1Reynolds (11–5)JonesWagner (3)17,40548–43
92July 14@ Mets7–5 (11)Hernandez (1–4)MlickiJones (17)—49–43
93July 14@ Mets3–10HarnischHampton (6–6)—33,50549–44
94July 15@ Marlins5–15PallWall (6–2)—15,80749–45
95July 16@ Marlins2–3PerezJones (6–2)—15,61049–46
96July 17@ Marlins2–11LeiterReynolds (11–6)—16,34549–47
97July 18Braves2–3SmoltzJones (6–3)Wohlers35,82249–48
98July 19Braves7–6Kile (9–5)WoodallWagner (4)39,09050–48
99July 20Braves2–1Wagner (2–0)Maddux—49,67451–48
100July 21Braves4–3 (10)Hernandez (2–4)McMichael—45,56152–48
101July 22Padres1–0Reynolds (12–6)HamiltonWagner (5)21,56353–48
102July 23Padres4–7SandersHampton (6–7)Hoffman19,62053–49
103July 24Padres6–4 (10)Hernandez (3–4)Villone—19,16854–49
104July 26Dodgers4–3Darwin (1–0)GuthrieWagner (6)27,08955–49
105July 27Dodgers5–6 (11)OsunaClark (0–1)Worrell36,84155–50
106July 28Dodgers3–2Darwin (2–0)Eischen—32,91256–50
107July 29@ Reds2–1Hampton (7–7)PortugalWagner (7)22,16357–50
108July 30@ Reds4–5 (10)ShawClark (0–2)—27,01557–51
109July 31@ Reds0–10SmileyWall (6–3)—26,08257–52
August: 17–11 (Home: 10–7; Away: 7–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
110August 2Giants5–1Drabek (5–7)GardnerHernandez (2)22,68258–52
111August 3Giants4–1Reynolds (13–6)Estes—35,93059–52
112August 4Giants7–6Hampton (8–7)FernandezWagner (8)33,64660–52
113August 6Expos5–7FasseroKile (9–6)Rojas17,65860–53
114August 7Expos5–13LeiterWall (6–4)—19,70360–54
115August 8Expos6–2Drabek (6–7)Martinez—26,63261–54
116August 9@ Phillies5–1Reynolds (14–6)West—21,78062–54
117August 10@ Phillies3–1Hampton (9–7)SchillingWagner (9)18,48663–54
118August 11@ Phillies10–5Kile (10–6)Williams—24,15064–54
119August 12@ Expos1–8LeiterDarwin (2–1)—35,45864–55
120August 13@ Expos4–7MartinezDrabek (6–8)Rojas17,10364–56
121August 14@ Expos8–3Reynolds (15–6)Cormier—19,13665–56
122August 16@ Cubs8–3Hampton (10–7)Castillo—37,13966–56
123August 17@ Cubs3–12TrachselKile (10–7)—39,77566–57
124August 18@ Cubs8–10NavarroBrocail (1–4)Wendell37,21066–58
125August 19Pirates2–1 (13)Morman (2–1)Morel—15,06767–58
126August 20Pirates9–4Wall (7–4)MiceliHernandez (3)19,86668–58
127August 21Pirates2–5NeagleHampton (10–8)Ericks13,35768–59
128August 22Pirates6–8WilkinsWagner (2–1)Ericks14,89968–60
129August 23Cardinals0–1OsborneKile (10–8)Eckersley35,55468–61
130August 24Cardinals3–1Reynolds (16–6)Stottlemyre—43,25869–61
131August 25Cardinals4–1Wall (8–4)BenesHernandez (4)31,60970–61
132August 26Cardinals2–3BenesHampton (10–9)Eckersley21,62470–62
133August 27Cubs6–5Morman (3–1)AdamsHernandez (5)15,37471–62
134August 28Cubs5–4Olson (1–0)Bottenfield—18,02672–62
135August 29Cubs3–4NavarroReynolds (16–7)Wendell16,15172–63
136August 30@ Pirates10–0Wall (9–4)Peters—24,61973–63
137August 31@ Pirates5–4Hernandez (4–4)EricksHudek (1)27,55974–63
September: 8–17 (Home: 8–5; Away: 0–12)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
138September 1@ Pirates5–9WainhouseDarwin (2–2)—14,14474–64
139September 2@ Cardinals7–8 (10)BenesBrocail (1–5)—32,95574–65
140September 3@ Cardinals3–12StottlemyreReynolds (16–8)—23,95574–66
141September 4@ Cardinals4–6BenesWall (9–5)Eckersley34,89174–67
142September 6Rockies2–1Hernandez (5–4)Leskanic—20,93275–67
143September 7Rockies5–4Kile (11–8)HolmesHudek (2)37,21376–67
144September 8Rockies2–5ReedReynolds (16–9)Ruffin31,31676–68
145September 9Rockies2–4RitzWall (9–6)Ruffin13,83376–69
146September 10Phillies4–3Morman (4–1)SchillingHernandez (6)12,70077–69
147September 11Phillies8–10ParrettHolt (0–1)Bottalico17,30077–70
148September 12Phillies4–1Kile (12–8)Williams—16,10378–70
149September 13@ Rockies3–6HolmesHernandez (5–5)Ruffin48,04978–71
150September 14@ Rockies3–7RitzWall (9–7)—48,13278–72
151September 15@ Rockies4–11ThompsonDrabek (6–9)—48,03878–73
152September 17@ Braves4–5SmoltzKile (12–9)Wohlers32,10978–74
153September 18@ Braves2–6MadduxHampton (10–10)—29,88578–75
154September 20@ Marlins1–3BrownReynolds (16–10)Nen21,51878–76
155September 21@ Marlins1–2HerediaWagner (2–2)—31,02378–77
156September 22@ Marlins0–6HellingKile (12–10)—17,46178–78
157September 24Mets0–4JonesWall (9–8)—39,51178–79
158September 25Mets5–4 (10)Hudek (1–0)Wallace—15,76079–79
159September 26Mets6–2Drabek (7–9)Trlicek—13,75180–79
160September 27Marlins2–3HuttonKile (12–11)Nen21,72580–80
161September 28Marlins5–1Darwin (3–2)Heredia—21,83281–80
162September 29Marlins5–4 (10)Hudek (2–0)Hammond—42,65882–80
Legend:        = Win        = Loss
Bold = Astros team member
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Detailed records

More information National League, Opponent ...
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Notable transactions

Roster

1996 Houston Astros
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

 Outfielders Manager

Coaches

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

More information Pos, Player ...
Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
CRick Wilkins8425454.213623
1BJeff Bagwell162568179.31531120
2BCraig Biggio162605174.2881575
SSOrlando Miller139468120.2561558
3BSean Berry132431121.2811795
LFDerrick May10925965.251533
CFBrian Hunter132526145.276535
RFDerek Bell158627165.26317113
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Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

More information Player, G ...
Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
James Mouton12230079.263334
John Cangelosi10826269.263116
Ricky Gutiérrez8921862.284115
Bill Spiers12221855.252626
Tony Eusebio5815241.270119
Randy Knorr378717.19517
Kurt Manwaring378218.22004
Mike Simms496812.17618
Bobby Abreu15225.22701
Ray Montgomery12143.21414
Dave Hajek8103.30000
Jerry Goff142.50012
Andújar Cedeño320.00000
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Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

More information Player, G ...
Player G IP W L ERA SO
Shane Reynolds35239.016103.65204
Darryl Kile35219.012114.19219
Doug Drabek30175.1794.57137
Mike Hampton27160.110103.59101
Donne Wall26150.0984.5699
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Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

More information Player, G ...
Player G IP W L ERA SO
Doug Brocail2353.0154.5834
Danny Darwin1542.1325.9527
Greg Swindell823.0037.8315
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Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

More information Player, G ...
Player G W L SV ERA SO
Todd Jones5163174.4044
Xavier Hernandez585564.2278
Alvin Morman534104.9331
Billy Wagner372292.4467
Anthony Young283304.5919
Dean Hartgraves190005.2116
Jeff Tabaka180216.6418
Mark Small160105.9216
John Hudek152022.3114
Jim Dougherty120209.006
John Johnstone91005.545
Gregg Olson91004.828
Terry Clark502011.375
Chris Holt40105.790
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Awards and achievements

Grand slams

Nolan Ryan's number 34 was retired by the Houston Astros in September 29, 1996.
More information No., Date ...
No.DateAstros batterVenueInningPitcherOpposing teamBox
1 June 13 Sean Berry 3Com Park at Candlestick Point 5 Mark Leiter San Francisco Giants
2 June 25 Jack Murphy Stadium 8 Doug Bochtler San Diego Padres
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Career honors

Annual awards

More information Name of award, Recipient ...
1996 Houston Astros award winners
Name of award Recipient Ref.
Fred Hartman Award for Long and Meritorious Service to Baseball Bob Watson [46]
Gold Glove Award Second baseman Craig Biggio [47]
Houston-Area Major League Player of the Year NYY Andy Pettitte [46]
Houston Astros Most Valuable Player (MVP) Jeff Bagwell
Rookie of the Year Billy Wagner
MLB All-Star Game Starting second baseman Craig Biggio
Reserve first baseman Jeff Bagwell
Home Run Derby contestant
National League (NL) Player of the Month May Jeff Bagwell [48]
The Sporting News NL All-Star First baseman: Jeff Bagwell [49]
Topps All-Star Rookie Team Left-handed pitcher Billy Wagner
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More information Other awards results, Name of award ...
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League leaders

NL batting leaders
NL fielding leaders

Minor league system

See also: Minor League Baseball
More information Level, Team ...
Level Team League Manager
AAA Tucson Toros Pacific Coast League Tim Tolman
AA Jackson Generals Texas League Dave Engle
A Kissimmee Cobras Florida State League Alan Ashby
A Quad Cities River Bandits Midwest League Jim Pankovits
A-Short Season Auburn Doubledays New York–Penn League Manny Acta
Rookie GCL Astros Gulf Coast League Bobby Ramos
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Championships
Awards

See also

Notes

  1. [a]
    The next Astro with four extra-bas hits in one game was Jose Altuve, on May 17, 2017. Criteria: For single games, playing for HOU, in the regular season, requiring extra base hits ≥ 4, sorted by descending date.
  2. [b]
    HOU: 3 home runs in 1996—walk-off
  3. [c]
    All: 64 home runs in 1996—walk-off
  4. [d]
    Just four other players had produced six or more total seasons meeting each of the criteria: Lou Gehrig (8); and Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, and Barry Bonds (6 each). Filtered for: Number of seasons player meets criteria, in the regular season: Requiring runs ≥ 100, doubles ≥ 30, home runs ≥ 30, runs batted in ≥ 100 and bases on balls ≥ 100, sorted by descending instances.
  5. [e]
    Number of players that meet criteria in a season for a team, playing for HOU, in the regular season, requiring strikeouts ≥ 200, sorted by descending instances.

References

External links

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