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The Team Spirit Extra Innings website begins where the Team Spirit books end.

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October 3, 2012: It was a long season for the Astros and their fans. The team let its young players get valuable experience, but the result was 107 losses. It was the team's 51st season in the NL, ad also their last. The team will move to the AL in 2013, led by Jose Altuve, J.D. Martinez, Matt Dominguez, Jordan Lyles, and Lucas Harrell.

April, 2012: The Astros traded their best relief pitcher, Mark Melancon, for Boston shortstop Jed Lowrie. So the question is, who will become the team's closer in the bullpen? The candidates include Brandon Lyon, Wilton Lopez, Juan Abreu, Fernando Rodriguez, and anyone else who can throw strikes under pressure.

Rusty Staub — Outfielder
Born: 4/1/1944
Played for Team: 1963 to 1968
Rusty Staub was just 19 when he joined Houston, but he soon became the team's best hitter. Staub led the NL in doubles in 1967 and played in two All-Star Games as an Astro.

Joe Morgan — Second Baseman
Born: 9/19/1943
Played for Team: 1963 to 1971 & 1980
Joe Morgan was one of baseball's most patient hitters. He led the NL in walks his first full year with the team. Morgan later became one of the game's best basestealers. He was an All-Star twice for the Astros.

Joe Niekro — Pitcher
Born: 11/7/1944
Died: 10/27/2006
Played for Team: 1975 to 1985
Joe Niekro spent half of his 22 big-league seasons with the Astros. He had one of baseball's greatest knuckleballs. Niekro won 20 games twice for Houston and was runner-up to Bruce Sutter in the 1979 NL Cy Young Award voting.

Jose Cruz — Outfielder
Born: 8/8/1947
Played for Team: 1975 to 1987
Jose Cruz was the team's best clutch hitter for many years. He was one of three brothers who played in the major leagues, and his son, Jose Jr., also was a big leaguer.

Terry Puhl — Outfielder
Born: 7/8/1956
Played for Team: 1977 to 1990
Terry Puhl was a swift runner, a great clutch hitter and a very good outfielder. His finest moment came in a losing cause during the 1980 playoffs. He batted .526 against the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League Championship Series, which was a record at the time.

Kevin Bass — Outfielder
Born: 5/22/1959
Played for Team: 1982 to 1989 & 1993 to 1994
When the Astros traded Don Sutton to get Kevin Bass, Houston fans thought they were crazy. Bass turned out to be a bargain—he gave the lineup excellent power and speed. In 1987, Bass became the 15th switch-hitter to belt homers from both sides of the plate in the same game.

Bill Doran — Second Baseman
Born: 5/28/1958
Played for Team: 1982 to 1990
Bill Doran was the player who sparked the Houston offense in the 1980s. He was good at getting on base and very aggressive on the basepaths. Doran could also hit the ball over the fence if a pitcher made a mistake.

Mike Scott — Pitcher
Born: 4/26/1955
Played for Team: 1983 to 1991
Mike Scott threw a fastball that dipped sharply as it neared home plate. When he had command of this pitch, he was practically unhittable. In 1986, Scott struck out 303 batters and threw a no-hitter. He was an easy pick for the NL Cy Young Award that season.

Glenn Davis — First Baseman
Born: 3/28/1961
Played for Team: 1984 to 1990
Glenn Davis was one of the league's best power hitters during the 1980s. In 1986, he was runner-up to MIke Schmidt in the NL MVP voting. Davis hit 20 or more homers for the Astros six years in a row.

PAST THEIR PRIME
Houston fans got to see some of the biggest stars of the 1950s in the team's early years, including Nellie Fox, Robin Roberts, Pete Runnels, Bobby Shantz, Billy Goodman, Don Larsen, and Frank Thomas. Unfortunately, it was the 1960s—and all were in the final years of their careers.

UP ON THE ROOF
In 1974, Mike Schmidt of the Philadelphia Phillies smashed a long drive that was heading over the fence when it hit a speaker on the Astrodome ceiling, 117 feet above the field. Instead of a home run, Schmidt had to settle for a single.

AREA 51
In 2000, catcher Tony Eusebio set a team record with a 24-game hitting streak. Because Eusebio did not play every day, the streak lasted 51 days.

OUCH!
In 2005, Craig Biggio was hit by a pitch ball for the 268th time in his career. He became the owner of baseball's most painful record that day—no one in the modern era had ever been "plunked" more often. Biggio retired in 2007 with 285 HBP's to his credit.

FAMILY PLAN
In the years before the baseball draft, teams had to compete to sign young players. Houston wanted Rusty Staub so badly that they gave him a $50,000 bonus—plus they signed his brother and gave his father a job!

THE FINAL FRAME
IIn 1963, doctors told Houston pitcher Jim Umbricht that he was dying of cancer. He underwent an operation and pitched the entire season. Umbricht won four games and had a 2.61 ERA. He passed away the following spring. Today, no Astro is allowed to wear his number (32), and the Jim Umbricht Award is given to the team's MVP.

Home Runs
No Astro has led the league in home runs.

Batting Average
No Astro has won a batting championship.

Runs Batted In
1994 — Jeff Bagwell — 116
2002 — Lance Berkman — 128

Stolen Bases
1994 — Craig Biggio — 39
2009 — Michael Bourn — 61
2010 — Michael Bourn — 52
2011 — Michael Bourn — 61*

* Bourn also played for the Atlanta Braves in 2011.

Wins
1979 — Joe Niekro — 21
1989 — Mike Scott — 20
1999 — Mike Hampton — 22
2004 — Roy Oswalt — 20

Strikeouts
1978 — J.R. Richard — 303
1979 — J.R. Richard — 313
1986 — Mike Scott — 306
1987 — Nolan Ryan — 270
1988 — Nolan Ryan — 228

Earned Run Average
1979 — J.R. Richard — 2.71
1981 — Nolan Ryan — 1.69
1986 — Mike Scott — 2.22
1987 — Nolan Ryan — 2.76
1990 — Danny Darwin — 2.21
2005 — Roger Clemens — 1.87
2006 — Roy Oswalt — 2.98