2005 Houston Astros season

2005  Houston Astros
National League Champions National League Wild Card Winners
League	National League
Division	Central
Ballpark	Minute Maid Park
City	Houston, Texas
Record	89–73 (.549)
Divisional place	2nd
Owners	Drayton McLane Jr.
General managers	Tim Purpura
Managers	Phil Garner
Television	KNWS-TV FSN Southwest (Bill Brown, Larry Dierker, Jim Deshaies)
Radio	KTRH (Milo Hamilton, Alan Ashby) KLAT (Francisco Ernesto Ruiz, Alex Treviño)
Stats	ESPN.com BB-reference
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The 2005 Houston Astros season was the 44th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in Houston, Texas. They qualified for the postseason for the second consecutive season and it was the sixth time they had done so in a span of nine seasons. Expectations had been raised since the Astros had come one win away from a pennant the previous year. However, they got to a sluggish 15–30 start. They then went on to win 74 of the next 117 games to claim the wild card playoff spot, and would go on to win the National League pennant to advance to the World Series for the first time in franchise history, which gave them the privilege of hosting the first World Series game in the state of Texas. However, they were swept by the Chicago White Sox in the World Series.

However, it was also the last playoff appearance for ten seasons, as a slow decline swept in following the retirements of players such as Jeff Bagwell, the longtime first baseman who retired in the 2005 offseason after his shoulders deteriorated beyond the ability to play.

Offseason

Overview

In February 2005, longtime Astros players Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio were jointly inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. ^[1]

Transactions

• January 7, 2005: Adam Riggs was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros. ^[2]
• January 7, 2005: Turk Wendell was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros. ^[3]
• January 23, 2005: John Franco signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros. ^[4]
• February 11, 2005: Trenidad Hubbard was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros. ^[5]

Regular season

Overview

After starting the season with a 15–30 won–loss record, the Astros improved to 74–43 over their final 117 games to capture the NL wild card. ^[6]

Bagwell hit his last major league home run against Greg Maddux on April 29, tying him for the most against any pitcher with seven. ^[7]

Standings

National League Central

v t e NL Central	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
St. Louis Cardinals	100	62	0.617	—	50–31	50–31
Houston Astros	89	73	0.549	11	53–28	36–45
Milwaukee Brewers	81	81	0.500	19	46–35	35–46
Chicago Cubs	79	83	0.488	21	38–43	41–40
Cincinnati Reds	73	89	0.451	27	42–39	31–50
Pittsburgh Pirates	67	95	0.414	33	34–47	33–48

Record vs. opponents

2005 National League record v t e Source:
Team	AZ	ATL	CHC	CIN	COL	FLA	HOU	LAD	MIL	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL	WSH	AL
Arizona	—	3–3	5–2	2–4	11–7	2–4	3–3	13–5	2–4	1–6	3–4	3–4	10–9	7–11	2–5	2–4	8–10
Atlanta	3–3	—	6–1	7–3	2–4	10–8	5–1	3–3	3–3	13–6	9–10	4–3	1–5	4–2	3–3	10–9	7–8
Chicago	2–5	1–6	—	6–9	4–3	5–4	9–7	4–2	7–9	2–4	2–4	11–5	4–3	5–2	10–6	1–5	6–9
Cincinnati	4–2	3–7	9–6	—	3–3	2–4	4–12	3–4	6–10	3–3	3–4	9–7	4–2	3–5	5–11	5–1	7-8
Colorado	7–11	4–2	3–4	3–3	—	3–3	1–5	11–8	1–5	3–4	2–4	3–7	7–11	7–11	4–4	2–4	6–9
Florida	4–2	8–10	4–5	4–2	3–3	—	4–3	5–2	3–4	8–10	9–10	3–4	2–4	4–2	3–4	9–9	10–5
Houston	3–3	1–5	7–9	12–4	5–1	3-4	—	4–2	10–5	5–5	6–0	9–7	4–3	3–4	5–11	5–2	7–8
Los Angeles	5–13	3–3	2–4	4–3	8–11	2–5	2–4	—	5–1	3–3	3–3	5–2	11–7	9–10	2–5	2–4	5–13
Milwaukee	4–2	3–3	9–7	10–6	5–1	4–3	5–10	1–5	—	3–3	4–5	9–7	3–4	4–3	5–11	4–4	8–7
New York	6–1	6–13	4–2	3–3	4–3	10–8	5–5	3–3	3–3	—	11–7	3–3	4–2	3–3	2–5	11–8	5–10
Philadelphia	4-3	10–9	4–2	4–3	4–2	10–9	0–6	3–3	5–4	7–11	—	4–3	6–0	5–1	4–2	11–8	7–8
Pittsburgh	4–3	3–4	5–11	7–9	7–3	4–3	7–9	2–5	7–9	3–3	3–4	—	3–4	2–4	4–12	1–5	5–7
San Diego	9–10	5–1	3–4	2–4	11–7	4–2	3–4	7–11	4–3	2–4	0–6	4–3	—	12–6	4–3	5–1	7–11
San Francisco	11–7	2–4	2–5	5–3	11–7	2–4	4–3	10–9	3–4	3–3	1–5	4–2	6–12	—	2–4	3–3	6–12
St. Louis	5–2	3–3	6–10	11–5	4–4	4-3	11–5	5–2	11–5	5–2	2–4	12–4	3–4	4–2	—	4–2	10–5
Washington	4–2	9–10	5–1	1–5	4–2	9-9	2–5	4–2	4–4	8–11	8–11	5–1	1–5	3–3	2–4	—	12–6

Transactions

• April 9, 2005: Brooks Kieschnick was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros. ^[8]
• April 27, 2005: Trenidad Hubbard was released by the Houston Astros. ^[5]

Roster

2005 Houston Astros
Roster
Pitchers 38 Ezequiel Astacio 41 Brandon Backe 53 Mike Burns 22 Roger Clemens 58 Travis Driskill 56 Brandon Duckworth 31 John Franco 45 Mike Gallo 43 Chad Harville 54 Brad Lidge 44 Roy Oswalt 21 Andy Pettitte 50 Chad Qualls 51 Wandy Rodríguez 36 Russ Springer 43 Scott Strickland 35 Dan Wheeler		Catchers 11 Brad Ausmus 46 Raúl Chávez  9 Humberto Quintero Infielders  5 Jeff Bagwell 17 Lance Berkman  7 Craig Biggio  4 Eric Bruntlett 14 Morgan Ensberg 28 Adam Everett 26 Mike Lamb 10 José Vizcaíno		Outfielders  2 Chris Burke 31 Charles Gipson 52 Charlton Jimerson 24,16 Jason Lane 19 Orlando Palmeiro 30 Luke Scott 37 Todd Self  1 Willy Taveras		Manager  3 Phil Garner Coaches  6 Mark Bailey (bullpen) 15 Cecil Cooper (bench) 25 José Cruz (first base)  8 Gary Gaetti (hitting) 48 Jim Hickey (pitching) 29 Doug Mansolino (third base)

Player stats

Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases; BB = Walks; AVG = Batting average; SLG = Slugging average

Player	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	AVG	SLG
Willy Taveras	152	592	82	172	13	4	3	29	34	25	.291	.341
Craig Biggio	155	590	94	156	40	1	26	69	11	37	.264	.468
Adam Everett	152	549	58	136	27	2	11	54	21	26	.248	.364
Morgan Ensberg	150	526	86	149	30	3	36	101	6	85	.283	.557
Jason Lane	145	517	65	138	34	4	26	78	6	32	.267	.499
Lance Berkman	132	468	76	137	34	1	24	82	4	91	.293	.524
Brad Ausmus	134	387	35	100	19	0	3	47	5	51	.258	.331
Mike Lamb	125	322	41	76	13	5	12	53	1	22	.236	.419
Chris Burke	108	318	49	79	19	2	5	26	11	23	.248	.368
Orlando Palmeiro	114	204	22	58	17	2	3	20	3	15	.284	.431
José Vizcaíno	98	187	15	46	10	2	1	23	2	15	.246	.337
Eric Bruntlett	91	109	19	24	5	2	4	14	7	10	.220	.413
Jeff Bagwell	39	100	11	25	4	0	3	19	0	18	.250	.380
Raúl Chávez	37	99	6	17	3	0	2	6	1	4	.172	.263
Luke Scott	34	80	6	15	4	2	0	4	1	9	.188	.288
Humberto Quintero	18	54	6	10	1	0	1	8	0	1	.185	.259
Todd Self	21	45	7	9	2	0	1	4	0	3	.200	.311
Charles Gipson	19	11	2	2	1	0	0	1	1	1	.182	.273
Charlton Jimerson	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.---	.---
Pitcher Totals	163	304	13	51	5	2	0	16	1	13	.168	.197
Team Totals	163	5462	693	1400	281	32	161	654	115	481	.256	.408

Source:

Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Player	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
Roy Oswalt	20	12	2.94	35	35	0	241.2	243	85	79	48	184
Andy Pettitte	17	9	2.39	33	33	0	222.1	188	66	59	41	171
Roger Clemens	13	8	1.87	32	32	0	211.1	151	51	44	62	185
Brandon Backe	10	8	4.76	26	25	0	149.1	151	82	79	67	97
Wandy Rodríguez	10	10	5.53	25	22	0	128.2	135	82	79	53	80
Ezequiel Astacio	3	6	5.67	22	14	0	81.0	100	56	51	25	66
Chad Qualls	6	4	3.28	77	0	0	79.2	73	33	29	23	60
Dan Wheeler	2	3	2.21	71	0	3	73.1	53	18	18	19	69
Brad Lidge	4	4	2.29	70	0	42	70.2	58	21	18	23	103
Russ Springer	4	4	4.73	62	0	0	59.0	49	34	31	21	54
Chad Harville	0	2	4.46	37	0	0	38.1	36	21	19	24	33
Mike Burns	0	0	4.94	27	0	0	31.0	29	18	17	8	20
Mike Gallo	0	1	2.66	36	0	0	20.1	18	6	6	10	12
Brandon Duckworth	0	1	11.02	7	2	0	16.1	24	20	20	7	10
John Franco	0	1	7.20	31	0	0	15.0	23	13	12	9	16
Scott Strickland	0	0	6.75	5	0	0	4.0	4	3	3	0	2
Travis Driskill	0	0	0.00	1	0	0	1.0	1	0	0	0	2
Team Totals	89	73	3.51	163	163	45	1443.0	1336	609	563	440	1164

Source:

Lone Star series

The annual interleague games between the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers were played in June and July. They are known as the Lone Star Series.

Date	Winning Team	Score	Winning Pitcher	Losing Pitcher	Attendance	Location
May 20	Texas	7–3	Kenny Rogers	Brandon Backe	38,109	Arlington
May 21	Texas	18–3	Chris Young	Ezequiel Astacio	35,781	Arlington
May 22	Texas	2–0	Chan Ho Park	Roy Oswalt	40,583	Arlington
June 24	Houston	5–2	Roy Oswalt	Ricardo Rodríguez	36,199	Houston
June 25	Texas	6–5	Chris Young	Brandon Backe	41,868	Houston
June 26	Houston	3–2	Chad Qualls	Juan Dominguez	35,331	Houston

Game Log

Regular season

Legend
Astros Win	Astros Loss	Game Postponed

2005 Regular Season Game Log: 89–73 (Home: 53–28; Away: 36–45)
April: 9–13 (Home: 8–3; Away: 1–10) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 1 April 5 Cardinals 3–7 Carpenter (1–0) Oswalt (0–1) Isringhausen (1) Minute Maid Park 43,567 0–1 L1 2 April 6 Cardinals 4–1 Qualls (1–0) Tavárez (0–1) Lidge (1) Minute Maid Park 28,496 1–1 W1 3 April 8 Reds 3–2 Clemens (1–0) Belisle (0–1) Lidge (2) Minute Maid Park 36,328 2–1 W2 4 April 9 Reds 4–3 Lidge (1–0) Wagner (0–1) — Minute Maid Park 34,502 3–1 W3 5 April 10 Reds 5–2 Oswalt (1–1) Milton (1–1) Lidge (3) Minute Maid Park 31,832 4–1 W4 6 April 11 @ Mets 4–8 Hernández (1–0) Springer (0–1) — Shea Stadium 53,663 4–2 L1 7 April 13 @ Mets 0–1 (11) DeJean (1–0) Wheeler (0–1) — Shea Stadium 22,431 4–3 L2 8 April 14 @ Mets 3–4 Matthews (1–0) Franco (0–1) Looper (1) Shea Stadium 17,214 4–4 L3 9 April 15 @ Reds 11–2 Oswalt (2–1) Wilson (0–1) — Great American Ball Park 31,740 5–4 W1 10 April 16 @ Reds 2–3 Milton (2–1) Pettitte (0–1) Graves (3) Great American Ball Park 26,926 5–5 L1 11 April 17 @ Reds 5–6 Wagner (1–1) Qualls (1–1) Graves (4) Great American Ball Park 25,762 5–6 L2 12 April 18 Braves 0–1 (12) Sosa (1–0) Wheeler (0–2) Kolb (4) Minute Maid Park 31,672 5–7 L3 13 April 19 Braves 5–3 Backe (1–0) Thomson (1–2) Lidge (4) Minute Maid Park 32,146 6–7 W1 14 April 20 Brewers 6–1 Oswalt (3–1) Sheets (1–3) — Minute Maid Park 26,119 7–7 W2 15 April 21 Brewers 8–7 Pettitte (1–1) Davis (2–2) Lidge (5) Minute Maid Park 32,173 8–7 W3 16 April 22 @ Cardinals 7–8 Marquis (3–0) Duckworth (0–1) Isringhausen (6) Busch Memorial Stadium 44,805 8–8 L1 17 April 23 @ Cardinals 0–1 (10) Mulder (2–1) Qualls (1–2) — Busch Memorial Stadium 40,058 8–9 L2 18 April 24 @ Cardinals 5–8 Morris (2–0 Backe (1–1) Isringhausen (7) Busch Memorial Stadium 39,020 8–10 L3 19 April 25 @ Pirates 0–2 Pérez (1–2) Oswalt (3–2) Mesa (7) PNC Park 8,413 8–11 L4 — April 26 @ Pirates Postponed (rain); Rescheduled to July 19 20 April 27 @ Pirates 0–2 Wells (2–3) Pettitte (1–2) Mesa (8) PNC Park 13,426 8–12 L5 21 April 29 Cubs 2–3 Maddux (1–1) Clemens (1–1) Hawkins (4) Minute Maid Park 41,232 8–13 L6 22 April 30 Cubs 7–5 Backe (2–1) Bartosh (0–1) — Minute Maid Park 41,615 9–13 W1
May 10–19 (Home: 6–7; Away: 4–12) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 23 May 1 Cubs 9–3 Oswalt (4–2) Prior (3–1) — Minute Maid Park 38,014 10–13 W2 24 May 2 Pirates 11–4 Pettitte (2–2) Fogg (1–2) — Minute Maid Park 23,882 11–13 W3 25 May 3 Pirates 4–7 White (1–2) Qualls (1–3) Mesa (9) Minute Maid Park 27,809 11–14 L1 26 May 4 Pirates 4–6 Torres (2–1) Lidge (1–1) Mesa (10) Minute Maid Park 29,299 11–15 L2 27 May 5 @ Braves 3–9 Thomson (3–2) Backe (2–2) — Turner Field 20,553 11–16 L3 28 May 6 @ Braves 4–9 Smoltz (3–3) Oswalt (4–3) — Turner Field 26,987 11–17 L4 29 May 7 @ Braves 1–4 Ramírez (2–2) Pettitte (2–3) Kolb (9) Turner Field 36,452 11–18 L5 30 May 8 @ Braves 0–16 Hampton (4–1) Astacio (0–1) — Turner Field 32,498 11–19 L6 31 May 9 @ Marlins 2–1 Clemens (2–1) Burnett (3–3) Lidge (6) Dolphin Stadium 20,539 12–19 W1 32 May 10 @ Marlins 2–6 Mecir (1–0) Springer (0–2) — Dolphin Stadium 11,687 12–20 L1 33 May 11 @ Marlins 1–2 Willis (7–0) Oswalt (4–4) Jones (3) Dolphin Stadium 21,789 12–21 L2 34 May 12 Giants 3–6 Hennessey (2–0) Pettitte (2–4) Walker (2) Minute Maid Park 29,126 12–22 L3 35 May 13 Giants 2–4 Rueter (2–2) Astacio (0–2) Walker (3) Minute Maid Park 31,365 12–23 L4 36 May 14 Giants 4–1 Clemens (3–1) Tomko (3–5) Lidge (7) Minute Maid Park 41,323 13–23 W1 37 May 15 Giants 9–0 Backe (3–2) Fassero (0–1) — Minute Maid Park 33,633 14–23 W2 38 May 17 Diamondbacks 3–0 Oswalt (5–4) Vázquez (4–3) Lidge (8) Minute Maid Park 27,156 15–23 W3 39 May 18 Diamondbacks 6–7 Ortiz (4–2) Pettitte (2–5) Bruney (3) Minute Maid Park 27,790 15–24 L1 40 May 19 Diamondbacks 1–6 Halsey (3–2) Clemens (3–2) Valverde (1) Minute Maid Park 32,132 15–25 L2 41 May 20 @ Rangers 3–7 Rogers (5–2) Backe (3–3) — Ameriquest Field in Arlington 38,109 15–26 L3 42 May 21 @ Rangers 3–18 Young (4–2) Astacio (0–3) — Ameriquest Field in Arlington 35,781 15–27 L4 43 May 22 @ Rangers 0–2 Park (4–1) Oswalt (5–5) Cordero (14) Ameriquest Field in Arlington 40,583 15–28 L5 44 May 23 @ Cubs 1–4 Rusch (3–1) Rodríguez (0–1) Dempster (3) Wrigley Field 38,232 15–29 L6 45 May 24 @ Cubs 2–4 Wuertz (3–2) Lidge (1–2) Dempster (4) Wrigley Field 38,805 15–30 L7 46 May 25 @ Cubs 5–1 Backe (4–3) Maddux (2–3) — Wrigley Field 38,118 16–30 W1 47 May 27 @ Brewers 0–3 Davis (6–5) Oswalt (5–6) Turnbow (7) Miller Park 22,173 16–31 L1 48 May 28 @ Brewers 9–6 Rodríguez (1–1) Sheets (1–4) Lidge (9) Miller Park 37,845 17–31 W1 49 May 29 @ Brewers 2–1 Pettitte (3–5) Capuano (4–4) Lidge (10) Miller Park 34,402 18–31 W2 50 May 30 Reds 0–9 Harang (4–2) Clemens (3–3) — Minute Maid Park 42,097 18–32 L1 51 May 31 Reds 4–3 Backe (5–3) Belisle (2–5) Lidge (11) Minute Maid Park 28,535 19–32 W1
June: 16–9 (Home: 10–3; Away: 6–6) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 52 June 1 Reds 4–1 Oswalt (6–6) Ortiz (1–4) Lidge (12) Minute Maid Park 31,571 20–32 W2 53 June 3 Cardinals 0–2 Carpenter (8–3) Pettitte (3–6) Tavárez (3) Minute Maid Park 34,092 20–33 L1 54 June 4 Cardinals 9–11 Marquis (7–3) Rodríguez (1–2) Isringhausen (17) Minute Maid Park 39,288 20–34 L2 55 June 5 Cardinals 6–4 Clemens (4–3) Mulder (7–3) Lidge (13) Minute Maid Park 34,009 21–34 W1 56 June 7 @ Mets 1–3 Martínez (7–1) Oswalt (6–7) — Shea Stadium 39,953 21–35 L1 57 June 8 @ Mets 4–1 Backe (6–3) Zambrano (3–6) Lidge (14) Shea Stadium 23,635 22–35 W1 58 June 9 @ Mets 6–3 (11) Springer (1–2) Bell (0–3) Lidge (15) Shea Stadium 30,737 23–35 W2 59 June 10 Blue Jays 4–2 Rodríguez (2–2) Lilly (3–7) Lidge (16) Minute Maid Park 28,607 24–35 W3 60 June 11 Blue Jays 6–3 Lidge (2–2) Schoeneweis (2–2) — Minute Maid Park 34,925 25–35 W4 61 June 12 Blue Jays 3–0 Oswalt (7–7) Towers (5–5) — Minute Maid Park 30,584 26–35 W5 62 June 13 @ Orioles 5–8 Penn (1–0) Backe (6–4) Ryan (17) Camden Yards 23,297 26–36 L1 63 June 14 @ Orioles 1–6 Chen (6–4) Pettitte (3–7) — Camden Yards 24,659 26–37 L2 64 June 15 @ Orioles 1–5 López (6–4) Rodríguez (2–3) — Camden Yards 31,547 26–38 L3 65 June 17 @ Royals 7–0 Clemens (5–3) Howell (1–1) — Kauffman Stadium 27,385 27–38 W1 66 June 18 @ Royals 6–2 Oswalt (8–7) Carrasco (2–2) — Kauffman Stadium 26,523 28–38 W2 67 June 19 @ Royals 1–7 Hernández (5–7) Backe (6–5) — Kauffman Stadium 20,214 28–39 L1 68 June 20 Rockies 7–0 Pettitte (4–7) Kennedy (3–7) — Minute Maid Park 28,237 29–39 W1 69 June 21 Rockies 6–5 Qualls (2–3) Wright (4–7 Lidge (17) Minute Maid Park 28,788 30–39 W2 70 June 22 Rockies 6–2 Clemens (6–3) Jennings (4–8) — Minute Maid Park 39,415 31–39 W3 71 June 24 Rangers 5–2 Oswalt (9–7) Rodríguez (2–1) Lidge (18) Minute Maid Park 36,199 32–39 W4 72 June 25 Rangers 5–6 Young (7–4) Backe (6–6) Cordero (18) Minute Maid Park 41,868 32–40 L1 73 June 26 Rangers 3–2 (10) Qualls (3–3) Dominguez (0–2) — Minute Maid Park 35,331 33–40 W1 74 June 27 @ Rockies 11–5 Rodríguez (3–3) Wright (4–8) — Coors Field 21,877 34–40 W2 75 June 28 @ Rockies 5–6 Cortés (1–0 Springer (1–3) Fuentes (9) Coors Field 28,726 34–41 L1 76 June 29 @ Rockies 7–1 Oswalt (10–7) Kim (2–7) — Coors Field 23,494 35–41 W1 77 June 30 @ Reds 2–2 — — — Great American Ball Park 19,903 35–41 —
July: 22–7 (Home: 12–2; Away: 10–5) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 78 July 1 @ Reds 10–7 Pettitte (5–7) Hudson (1–3) Wheeler (1) Great American Ball Park 24,923 36–41 W2 79 July 2 (1) @ Reds 4–3 Rodríguez (4–3) Harang (4–7) Wheeler (2) Great American Ball Park see 2nd game 37–41 W3 80 July 2 (2) @ Reds 6–11 Ortiz (4–6) Astacio (0–4) — Great American Ball Park 28,236 37–42 L1 81 July 3 @ Reds 9–0 Clemens (7–3) Claussen (4–6) — Great American Ball Park 27,506 38–42 W1 82 July 4 Padres 4–1 Oswalt (11–7) Lawrence (5–7) — Minute Maid Park 40,550 39–42 W2 83 July 5 Padres 6–2 Backe (7–6) Reyes (3–2) — Minute Maid Park 27,307 40–42 W3 84 July 6 Padres 5–4 Pettitte (6–7) Peavy (7–3) Wheeler (3) Minute Maid Park 29,774 41–42 W4 85 July 7 Padres 5–7 Williams (5–5) Rodríguez (4–4) Hoffman (24) Minute Maid Park 28,810 41–43 L1 86 July 8 Dodgers 3–2 Lidge (3–2) Brazobán (2–3) — Minute Maid Park 36,176 42–43 W1 87 July 9 Dodgers 4–2 Oswalt (12–7) Weaver (7–8) Lidge (19) Minute Maid Park 37,196 43–43 W2 88 July 10 Dodgers 6–5 Springer (2–3) Sánchez (2–4) Lidge (20) Minute Maid Park 39,177 44–43 W3 76th All-Star Game in Detroit, Michigan 89 July 15 @ Cardinals 3–4 (13) Thompson (1–0) Harville (0–1) — Busch Memorial Stadium 48,420 44–44 L1 90 July 16 @ Cardinals 2–4 Marquis (9–6) Oswalt (12–8) Isringhausen (26) Busch Memorial Stadium 48,034 44–45 L2 91 July 17 @ Cardinals 0–3 Carpenter (14–4) Clemens (7–4) — Busch Memorial Stadium 46,584 44–46 L3 92 July 18 @ Pirates 11–1 Backe (8–6) Williams (7–7) — PNC Park 17,590 45–46 W1 93 July 19 (1) @ Pirates 9–3 Astacio (1–4) Snell (0–1) — PNC Park see 2nd game 46–46 W2 94 July 19 (2) @ Pirates 6–4 Rodríguez (5–4) Redman (4–10) Lidge (21) PNC Park 20,552 47–46 W3 95 July 20 @ Pirates 8–0 Pettitte (7–7) Fogg (4–6) — PNC Park 19,769 48–46 W4 96 July 21 @ Nationals 3–2 Oswalt (13–8) Loaiza (6–6) Lidge (22) Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 36,840 49–46 W5 97 July 22 @ Nationals 14–1 Clemens (8–4) Drese (7–9) — Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 38,019 50–46 W6 98 July 23 @ Nationals 2–4 Armas Jr. (5–4) Backe (8–7) Cordero (34) Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 42,680 50–47 L1 99 July 24 @ Nationals 4–1 (14) Springer (3–3) Carrasco (3–3) Lidge (23) Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium 39,203 51–47 W1 100 July 25 Phillies 7–1 Pettitte (8–7) Lidle (8–9) — Minute Maid Park 36,029 52–47 W2 101 July 26 Phillies 2–1 Oswalt (14–8) Madson (4–4) — Minute Maid Park 33,867 53–47 W3 102 July 27 Phillies 3–2 Clemens (9–4) Padilla (5–9) Lidge (24) Minute Maid Park 38,071 54–47 W4 103 July 28 Mets 3–2 Wheeler (1–2) Hernández (1–0) — Minute Maid Park 43,552 55–47 W5 104 July 29 Mets 5–2 Rodríguez (6–4) Benson (7–4) Lidge (25) Minute Maid Park 42,659 56–47 W6 105 July 30 Mets 2–0 Pettitte (9–7) Glavine (7–9) Lidge (26) Minute Maid Park 43,596 57–47 W7 106 July 31 Mets 4–9 Heilman (4–3) Wheeler (1–3) — Minute Maid Park 43,028 57–48 L1
August: 13–14 (Home: 8–7; Away: 5–7) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 107 August 2 @ Diamondbacks 3–1 Clemens (10–4) Vargas (4–6) Lidge (27) Bank One Ballpark 31,696 58–48 W1 108 August 3 @ Diamondbacks 7–0 Astacio (2–4) Vázquez (9–10) — Bank One Ballpark 22,283 59–48 W2 109 August 4 @ Diamondbacks 3–7 Halsey (8–7) Rodríguez (6–5) Valverde (3) Bank One Ballpark 23,217 59–49 L1 110 August 5 @ Giants 0–4 Schmidt (8–6) Pettitte (9–8) — SBC Park 39,686 59–50 L2 111 August 6 @ Giants 2–5 Lowry (7–11) Oswalt (14–10) — SBC Park 41,959 59–51 L3 112 August 7 @ Giants 8–1 Clemens (11–4) Eyre (2–2) — SBC Park 42,947 60–51 W1 113 August 9 Nationals 5–6 Patterson (6–3) Astacio (2–5) Cordero (37) Minute Maid Park 34,255 60–52 L1 114 August 10 Nationals 7–6 Rodríguez (7–5) Hernández (13–5) Lidge (28) Minute Maid Park 34,309 61–52 W1 115 August 11 Nationals 6–3 Pettitte (10–8) Drese (7–12) — Minute Maid Park 35,036 62–52 W2 116 August 12 Pirates 6–5 Wheeler (2–3) White (3–5) Lidge (29) Minute Maid Park 37,524 63–52 W3 117 August 13 Pirates 0–1 Torres (3–4) Lidge (3–3) Mesa (27) Minute Maid Park 43,286 63–53 L1 118 August 14 Pirates 0–8 Williams (10–8) Astacio (2–6) — Minute Maid Park 36,872 63–54 L2 119 August 15 Cubs 12–4 Rodríguez (8–5) Rusch (5–5) — Minute Maid Park 26,992 64–54 W1 120 August 16 Cubs 1–4 Maddux (10–9) Pettitte (10–9) Dempster (17) Minute Maid Park 31,963 64–55 L1 121 August 17 Cubs 2–4 Zambrano (10–5) Oswalt (14–10) Dempster (18) Minute Maid Park 29,978 64–56 L2 122 August 18 Brewers 2–5 Ohka (8–7) Clemens (11–5) Turnbow (27) Minute Maid Park 29,844 64–57 L3 123 August 19 Brewers 5–3 Springer (4–3) Davis (9–9) Lidge (30) Minute Maid Park 31,651 65–57 W1 124 August 20 Brewers 2–3 Sheets (9–9) Harville (0–2) — Minute Maid Park 41,101 65–58 L1 125 August 21 Brewers 8–3 Pettitte (11–9) Santos (4–12) — Minute Maid Park 35,712 66–58 W1 126 August 22 @ Padres 6–2 Oswalt (15–10 Williams (6–10) — Petco Park 33,991 67–58 W2 127 August 23 @ Padres 0–2 Peavy (11–6) Clemens (11–6) — Petco Park 37,985 67–59 L1 128 August 24 @ Padres 4–7 Park (11–6) Rodríguez (8–6) Hoffman (32) Petco Park 30,928 67–60 L2 129 August 26 @ Dodgers 2–1 Pettitte (12–9) Lowe (8–13) Lidge (31) Dodger Stadium 41,638 68–60 W1 130 August 27 @ Dodgers 3–8 Jackson (1–1) Oswalt (15–11) — Dodger Stadium 51,738 68–61 L1 131 August 28 @ Dodgers 0–1 Weaver (13–8) Qualls (3–4) Sánchez (4) Dodger Stadium 47,541 68–62 L2 132 August 30 Reds 5–2 Rodríguez (9–6) Ortiz (8–10) — Minute Maid Park 29,971 69–62 W1 133 August 31 Reds 10–0 Pettitte (13–9) Claussen (9–9) — Minute Maid Park 28,639 70–62 W2
September: 17–11 (Home: 7–6; Away: 10–5) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 134 September 1 Reds 3–1 Oswalt (16–11) Harang (9–12) Lidge (32) Minute Maid Park 27,490 71–62 W3 135 September 2 Cardinals 6–5 (13) Qualls (4–4) Tavárez (2–3) — Minute Maid Park 38,511 72–62 W4 136 September 3 Cardinals 2–4 Carpenter (20–4) Springer (4–4) — Minute Maid Park 42,817 72–63 L1 137 September 4 Cardinals 1–4 Marquis (11–13) Rodríguez (9–7) — Minute Maid Park 38,277 72–64 L2 138 September 5 @ Phillies 4–3 Pettitte (14–9) Myers (12–7) Lidge (33) Citizens Bank Park 36,144 73–64 W1 139 September 6 @ Phillies 2–1 Oswalt (17–11) Wagner (4–2) Lidge (34) Citizens Bank Park 30,600 74–64 W2 140 September 7 @ Phillies 8–6 Qualls (5–4) Wagner (4–3) Lidge (35) Citizens Bank Park 29,026 75–64 W3 141 September 9 @ Brewers 4–7 Davis (10–10) Clemens (11–7) Turnbow (30) Miller Park 18,130 75–65 L1 142 September 10 @ Brewers 7–5 Pettitte (15–9) Ohka (10–8) Lidge (36) Miller Park 24,437 76–65 W1 143 September 11 @ Brewers 2–4 Helling (2–0) Oswalt (17–12) Turnbow (31) Miller Park 17,392 76–66 L1 144 September 12 Marlins 2–8 Willis (21–8) Backe (8–8) — Minute Maid Park 27,538 76–67 L2 145 September 13 Marlins 2–4 Beckett (14–8) Rodríguez (9–8) Jones (37) Minute Maid Park 31,512 76–68 L3 146 September 14 Marlins 10–2 Clemens (12–7) Burnett (12–11) — Minute Maid Park 30,911 77–68 W1 147 September 15 Marlins 4–1 Pettitte (16–9) Vargas (5–4) Lidge (37) Minute Maid Park 35,960 78–68 W2 148 September 16 Brewers 2–1 Lidge (4–3) Eveland (1–1) — Minute Maid Park 33,767 79–68 W3 149 September 17 Brewers 7–0 Backe (9–8) Obermueller (1–4) — Minute Maid Park 37,756 80–68 W4 150 September 18 Brewers 6–1 Rodríguez (10–8) Capuano (17–10) — Minute Maid Park 35,052 81–68 W5 151 September 19 @ Pirates 0–7 Snell (1–2) Clemens (12–8) — PNC Park 13,865 81–69 L1 152 September 20 @ Pirates 7–4 Pettitte (17–9) Gorzelanny (0–1) — PNC Park 12,927 82–69 W1 153 September 21 @ Pirates 12–8 Oswalt (18–12) Wells (7–17) — PNC Park 16,266 83–69 W2 154 September 22 @ Pirates 2–1 Backe (10–8) Duke (6–2) Lidge (38) PNC Park 12,587 84–69 W3 155 September 23 @ Cubs 4–5 Rusch (8–8) Rodríguez (10–9) Dempster (30) Wrigley Field 38,622 84–70 L1 156 September 24 @ Cubs 8–3 Astacio (3–6) Zambrano (14–6) — Wrigley Field 39,263 85–70 W1 157 September 25 @ Cubs 2–3 Williams (6–9) Gallo (0–1) Dempster (31) Wrigley Field 38,121 85–71 L1 158 September 27 @ Cardinals 3–1 Oswalt (19–12) Morris (14–10) Lidge (39) Busch Memorial Stadium 40,260 86–71 W1 159 September 28 @ Cardinals 7–6 Qualls (6–4) Isringhausen (1–2) Lidge (40) Busch Memorial Stadium 40,616 87–71 W2 160 September 29 Cubs 2–3 Rusch (9–8) Rodríguez (10–10) Dempster (32) Minute Maid Park 37,820 87–72 L1 161 September 30 Cubs 3–4 Novoa (4–5) Lidge (4–4) Dempster (33) Minute Maid Park 41,304 87–73 L2
October: 2–0 (Home: 2–0; Away: 0–0) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Report 162 October 1 Cubs 3–1 Clemens (13–8) Williams (6–10) Lidge (41) Minute Maid Park 42,021 88–73 W1 163 October 2 Cubs 6–4 Oswalt (20–12) Maddux (13–15) Lidge (42) Minute Maid Park 42,288 89–73 W2

Postseason log

2005 Postseason Game Log (7–7)
NL Division Series (3–1) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Series 1 October 5 @ Braves 10–5 Pettitte (1–0) Hudson (0–1) — Turner Field 40,590 1–0 2 October 6 @ Braves 1–7 Smoltz (1–0) Clemens (0–1) — Turner Field 46,181 1–1 3 October 8 Braves 7–3 Oswalt (1–0) Sosa (0–1) — Minute Maid Park 43,759 2–1 4 October 9 Braves 7–6 (18) Clemens (1–1) Devine (0–1) — Minute Maid Park 43,413 3–1
NL Championship Series (4–2) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Series 1 October 12 @ Cardinals 3–5 Carpenter (2–0) Pettitte (1–1) Isringhausen (2) Busch Memorial Stadium 52,332 0–1 2 October 13 @ Cardinals 4–1 Oswalt (2–0) Mulder (1–1) Lidge (1) Busch Memorial Stadium 52,358 1–1 3 October 15 Cardinals 4–3 Clemens (2–1) Morris (1–1) Lidge (2) Minute Maid Park 42,823 2–1 4 October 16 Cardinals 2–1 Qualls (1–0) Marquis (0–1) Lidge (3) Minute Maid Park 43,010 3–1 5 October 17 Cardinals 4–5 Isringhausen (1–0) Lidge (0–1) — Minute Maid Park 43,470 3–2 6 October 19 @ Cardinals 7–1 Oswalt (3–0) Mulder (1–2) — Busch Memorial Stadium 52,438 4–2
World Series (0–4) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Series 1 October 22 @ White Sox 3–5 Contreras (3–1) Rodríguez (0–1) Jenks (3) U. S. Cellular Field 41,206 0–1 2 October 23 @ White Sox 6–7 Cotts (1–0) Lidge (0–2) — U. S. Cellular Field 41,432 0–2 3 October 25 White Sox 5–7 (14) Marte (1–0) Astacio (0–1) Buehrle (1) Minute Maid Park 42,848 0–3 4 October 26 White Sox 0–1 Garcia (1–0) Lidge (0–3) Jenks (4) Minute Maid Park 42,936 0–4

Postseason

National League Divisional Playoffs

The Astros faced a rematch in the Atlanta Braves in the Division Series. This was the fifth time the two teams had met in the postseason (1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005), and the Astros were looking to add on reaching the second round of the postseason in back-to-back years; the two teams had met for six games in the regular season, for which Houston won only once. In Game 1 in Atlanta, the Astros struck first on a Morgan Ensberg RBI single, but Chipper Jones tied the game as the first inning ended. Ensberg gave the Astros the lead again on a bases-loaded single made it 3–1. Craig Biggio hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Brad Ausmus to make it 4–1 in the fourth, but Andruw Jones cut into the lead with a two-run shot to make it 4–3. Enberg struck again in the seventh with a RBI hit to drive in Andy Pettitte after he had hit a double. The Astros finally broke the game all the way through in the eighth, scoring five runs on the bases of four hits, three walks, and a wild pitch. The Astros prevailed in Game 1 by a score of 10–5. Despite having Roger Clemens on the mound for Game 2, he was outmatched by John Smoltz, who allowed just one run while the Braves used the efforts of rookie Brian McCann (who hit a three-run shot in the second) to win 7–1.

Back in Houston for Game 3, the Astros struck first again by the efforts of Morgan Ensberg and Jason Lane, who made it 2-0 after one inning. McCann and pitcher Jorge Sosa tied the game on hits with two out in the next inning, but Mike Lamb would hit a home run in the third inning to make it 3–2. In the seventh, the Astros took advantage of Chris Reitsma (and others) on the mound, scoring four runs in the inning after hits by Lance Berkman, Ensberg and Lane went with a sacrifice fly by Adam Everett; the Astros prevailed 7–3. Game 4 proved to be a classic for the ages despite its initial misgivings for Houston. Adam LaRoche hit a grand slam off Brandon Backe to make it 4–0 in the third inning. The Braves added another run in the fifth that was matched by Houston, but the Braves scored in the top of the eighth inning with a McCann home run off Wandy Rodríguez to make it 6–1. However, the Astros would strike back, doing so when Lance Berkman hit a grand slam off Kyle Farnsworth to make it 6–5. Then, in the ninth inning with two out, Brad Ausmus stepped up to the plate against Farnsworth and proceeded to hit a home run, tying the game at six that sent it to extra innings. The two teams traded zeroes for the next eight innings while setting a record for the longest postseason game in MLB history; Roger Clemens pitched three innings of relief due to a lack of relievers. In the bottom of the 18th, with Joey Devine on the mound for Atlanta, Chris Burke would line a shot to left field that cleared the scoreboard for a walk-off home run. This was the second postseason series victory for the Astros, and it sent them back to the National League Championship Series.

National League Championship Series

Main article: 2005 National League Championship Series

The opponent for the Astros in the Championship Series was a familiar foe: the St. Louis Cardinals, their rival in the National League Central. They had previously matched up against each other in the previous NLCS, which saw the Astros lose in seven games, needing only one more win to reach the Series. The Cardinals had won 100 games and had beaten Houston in eleven of sixteen games this season (worst among their division foes) Game 1 was controlled by St. Louis from the jump. Reggie Sanders hit a two-out homerun with David Eckstein on base to make it 2–0. A sacrifice bunt by the pitcher drove in a third run in the second inning. Eckstein drove a run in with a single while Albert Pujols capped the scoring for the Cardinals with a single. The only scoring for Houston came late, as Chris Burke hit a two-run shot off the bullpen to make it 5–2 in the seventh before Brad Ausmus hit a sacrifice fly to make it 5–3, but reliever Jason Isringhausen finished the Astros off with no further damage. This was the fifth straight loss for the Astros in a postseason game played in St. Louis. Game 2 proved a different story. Burke lined a tripe with one out and then scored later when Cardinals pitcher Mark Mulder threw a ball past the catcher. Brad Ausmus lined a double in the fifth inning and then was driven home on a bunt and ground out to make it 2–0. Albert Pujols lined a home run to start the sixth inning, but the Cardinals were out-hit 11-6 and scored no more; Burke and Adam Everett would lend a hand with RBI hits to even the series at one.

In Game 3 back in Houston, Mike Lamb hit a two-run shot off Matt Morris to give them a 2–0 lead in the fourth inning. Roger Clemens would allow back-to-back hits in the fifth and sixth inning that saw the Cardinals score a run each to tie the game. However, in the sixth inning, Lamb hit a double that set him up to score when Jason Lane hit a single. A further single lead to Adam Everett at the plate, who hit into a fielder's choice that made it 4–2. While the Cardinals scored a run in the ninth inning on an RBI double, they could not crack Brad Lidge (who until this game had allowed no runs against St. Louis since May 2003) as Houston now led the Series. Game 4 was a tight affair that saw the bullpens flicker more than the offense, which saw eleven combined hits lead to three runs. Pujols gave the Cardinals the lead on a sacrifice fly in the 4th, but Jason Lane hit a home run off Jeff Suppan to tie it. In the seventh inning, the Astros had the bases loaded with less than two outs. With Morgan Ensberg at the plate, he hit a flyout that gave enough room to score a run from the third base. The Cardinals had a prime chance in the ninth inning when Lidge allowed back-to-back singles, but this would be followed by a groundball that led to a play at the plate that saw Pujols out at home for one out. John Mabry then grounded into a double play to give Houston a 3–1 lead. In Game 5, the Astros were one away from history. Craig Biggio started the scoring with an RBI single in the second, but St. Louis responded by hitting a single with the bases loaded to drive in two runs. In the seventh inning, with two on base and starter Chris Carpenter trying to go through the inning clean, Lance Berkman hit a home run to give the Astros a 4–2 lead. It set the stage for a pivotal ninth inning with Lidge set to close the inning. He got two easy outs before Eckstein lined a single with two strikes; this was followed by Jim Edmonds drawing a walk. Lidge now faced Albert Pujols at the plate; he hit a shot to left field that would give St. Louis a 5–4 lead that proved the difference in making the series now 3–2 in favor of Houston. Game 6, played at Busch Stadium, was a rematch between Game 2 starters Roy Oswalt and Mark Mulder. Houston set up the scoring with getting runners on second and third base in the third inning before Mulder threw a wild pitch that scored a run; Biggio then hit a single to drive in the other runner to make it 2–0. Jason Lane hit his second home run of the series in the fourth inning to make it 3–0. Roy Oswalt would dominate the Cardinals for seven innings, allowing only a run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning as the bullpen took control from there while adding two insurance runs in the sixth and seventh. With Dan Wheeler on the mound, Yadier Molina hit a flyball to right field that was caught by Jason Lane for the final out, clinching the first ever pennant for the Astros in history. Oswalt, who went 2–0 with a 1.29 ERA in 14 innings, was named NLCS MVP, the second time an Astro had won the award and first since Mike Scott in 1986. ^[9]

World Series

Main article: 2005 World Series

After having played 4,714 games and their entire major league careers together in Houston, Bagwell and Biggio appeared in their first World Series in 2005. ^[10]

Game 1

October 22, 2005 at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago

Playing in their first World Series home game since 1959, the White Sox took an early lead with a home run from Jermaine Dye in the first inning. The Sox scored two more in the second when Juan Uribe doubled in A. J. Pierzynski after Carl Everett had already scored on a groundout earlier in the inning. The Astros responded again in the next inning when Lance Berkman hit a double, driving in Adam Everett and Craig Biggio. In the White Sox half of the fourth, Joe Crede hit what turned out to be the game-winning home run. In the bottom of the eighth, Scott Podsednik hit a triple with Pierzynski on second. Roger Clemens recorded his shortest World Series start, leaving after the second inning with 53 pitches including 35 for strikes, due to a sore hamstring that he had previously injured (and caused him to miss his last regular season start) as the loss went to Wandy Rodríguez. José Contreras pitched seven innings, allowing three runs on six hits for the win, and Bobby Jenks earned the save to give the White Sox a 1–0 lead in the series. When Neal Cotts entered the game in the top of the 8th it marked the first time in 5 games that the White Sox had gone to their bullpen.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Houston	0	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	7	1
Chicago	1	2	0	1	0	0	0	1	X	5	10	0
WP: José Contreras (1-0)   LP: Wandy Rodríguez (0-1)   Sv: Bobby Jenks (1) Home runs: HOU: Mike Lamb (1) CHW: Jermaine Dye (1), Joe Crede (1)

Game 2

October 23, 2005 at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago

On a miserably cold (51 degrees) and rainy evening, Morgan Ensberg's first-pitch home run off starter Mark Buehrle put the Astros on top in the second inning. The White Sox answered in the bottom of the second with two runs of their own off Andy Pettitte. Lance Berkman drove in three runs in the game, two of them on a go-ahead double in the top of the fifth. In the seventh inning, Dan Wheeler loaded the bases with a double to Juan Uribe, a walk to Tadahito Iguchi, and home plate umpire Jeff Nelson's ruling that Jermaine Dye was hit by a pitched ball. The ruling was considered questionable, as television replays showed that the ball hit Dye's bat (which would have made the pitch a foul ball rather than a HBP). The Astros brought in Chad Qualls, who promptly served up a grand slam to Paul Konerko on the very first pitch he threw, the eighteenth grand slam in the annals of the Fall Classic. In the top of the ninth, White Sox closer Bobby Jenks blew the save when he gave up a two-run game-tying pinch hit single to José Vizcaíno. In the bottom half of the ninth, Astros closer Brad Lidge gave up a one-out, walk-off home run — the fourteenth in Series history — to Scott Podsednik, giving Lidge his second loss in as many post-season appearances (his previous appearance was in Game 5 of 2005 National League Championship Series). Podsednik had not hit a single homer in the regular season, and this was his second of the postseason. The Series moved to Houston with the White Sox leading 2–0.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Houston	0	1	1	0	2	0	0	0	2	6	9	0
Chicago	0	2	0	0	0	0	4	0	1	7	12	0
WP: Neal Cotts (1-0)   LP: Brad Lidge (0-1) Home runs: HOU: Morgan Ensberg (1) CHW: Paul Konerko (1), Scott Podsednik (1)

Game 3

October 25, 2005 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas

Game 3 was the first ever World Series game played in the state of Texas. Before the game, it was ruled by Commissioner Bud Selig that the retractable roof would be open at Minute Maid Park, weather permitting. The Astros objected, citing that their record in games with the roof closed was better than with the retractable roof open. Selig's office claimed that the ruling was based on the rules established by Houston and were consistent with how the Astros organization treated the situation all year long, as well as the weather forecasts for that period of time.

In the game – the longest World Series game in length of time (five hours and forty-one minutes) and tied for the longest in number of innings (fourteen, tied with Game 2 of the 1916 World Series) – Lance Berkman singled with one out after a Craig Biggio lead-off double in the bottom of the first as the Astros struck early. The White Sox had a rally snuffed in the top of the second inning; after Paul Konerko hit a lead-off double and A. J. Pierzynski walked, Aaron Rowand hit into a line-drive double play. Adam Everett caught the ball and then doubled Konerko off second by flipping the ball to Biggio, who stepped on the bag. Houston scored in the bottom of the third when Everett led off with a walk. Everett got caught in a rundown and got hit by the ball on a Juan Uribe throwing error that hit Everett. A Roy Oswalt sacrifice bunt and a Biggio single sent Everett home. Berkman singled again with two out, sending Biggio to third. Then Morgan Ensberg singled Biggio home for the third run of the game. Jason Lane led off the Astros' fourth with a home run to left-center field. It was later shown in replays that the ball should not have been ruled a home run, hitting the left side of the yellow line on the unusual wall in left-center field.

The White Sox rallied in the top of the fifth, true to their "Win Or Die Trying" mantra of 2005, starting with a Joe Crede lead-off homer. Uribe, on first after hitting a single, scored on a Tadahito Iguchi base hit with one out, followed by Scott Podsednik coming home on a duck-snort single by Jermaine Dye. Pierzynski hit a two-out double to Tal's Hill, driving in two runs, scoring Iguchi and Dye giving the White Sox the lead. The Astros rallied in the last of the eighth with two outs when Lane's double scored Ensberg with the tying run after back-to-back walks by Ensberg and Mike Lamb, giving Dustin Hermanson a blown save. Houston tried to rally to win in the ninth, but stranded Chris Burke at third, after he had walked, reached second on an error and stolen third.

The Astros tried again in the tenth as well as in the eleventh, but failed each time. In the top of the fourteenth, after the Sox hit into a spectacular double play started by Ensberg, Geoff Blum (a former Astro) homered to right with two outs off Ezequiel Astacio. After two infield singles by Rowand and Crede that went a total of 150 feet according to McCarver, Uribe walked, and then Chris Widger walked thanks to Astacio's sudden wildness. The Astros tried to rally with the tying runs on first and third and two outs after a Uribe error, but Game 2 starter Mark Buehrle earned the save for winning pitcher Dámaso Marte when Everett popped out, bringing the White Sox one game closer to their first World Championship in eighty-eight years. Buehrle became the first pitcher ever to start a game in the Series, and save the next one.

Many records were set or tied in the game besides time and innings: The teams combined to use seventeen pitchers (nine for the White Sox, eight for the Astros), throwing a total of 482 pitches, and walking twenty-one batters combined (a dozen by Chicago, nine by Houston); forty-three players were used (the White Sox used twenty-two and the Astros used twenty-one), and thirty men were left on base (fifteen for each team), all new high-water marks in their categories in Fall Classic history. Scott Podsednik set a new all-time record with eight official-at-bats in this game. One record that was tied was most double plays turned, with six (four by the Astros, two by the White Sox).

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	R	H	E
Chicago	0	0	0	0	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	7	14	3
Houston	1	0	2	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	8	1
WP: Dámaso Marte (1-0)   LP: Ezequiel Astacio (0-1)   Sv: Mark Buehrle (1) Home runs: CHW: Joe Crede (2), Geoff Blum (1) HOU: Jason Lane (1)

Game 4

October 26, 2005 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas

Before the game, Major League Baseball unveiled its Latino Legends Team.

The fourth game was the pitchers' duel that had been promised throughout the series. Both Houston starter Brandon Backe and Chicago starter Freddy García put zeros on the scoreboard through seven innings, the longest since Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. Scott Podsednik had a two-out triple in the top of the third, but Tadahito Iguchi grounded out to second, thus snuffing that threat. The Astros had the best chance of scoring in the sixth, but Jason Lane struck out with the bases loaded to end that rally. The White Sox had a chance in the top of the seventh with runners at second and third and two out, but shortstop Juan Uribe struck out to snuff the rally. The White Sox were able to break through in the next inning against embattled Houston closer Brad Lidge. Willie Harris hit a pinch-hit single. Podsednik moved Harris to second with a sacrifice bunt. Carl Everett pinch-hit for Iguchi and grounded out to the right side to allow Harris to move over to third. Jermaine Dye, the Most Valuable Player of the series, had the game-winning single, driving in Harris.

Things got a little sticky for the Sox in the Astros half of the eighth when reliever Cliff Politte hit Willy Taveras, threw a wild pitch, sending Taveras to second, and walked Lance Berkman. After Morgan Ensberg flew out to center, ChiSox manager Ozzie Guillén brought in Neal Cotts to finish the inning. Cotts induced pinch-hitter José Vizcaíno into a ground out to Uribe. Bobby Jenks, the 24-year-old fireballer, started the ninth inning. He allowed a single to Jason Lane and a sacrifice bunt to Brad Ausmus. Chris Burke came in to pinch-hit; he fouled one off to the left side, but Uribe made an amazing catch in the stands to retire Burke.

The game ended when Orlando Palmeiro grounded to Uribe. It was a bang-bang play as Paul Konerko caught the ball from Uribe at 11:01 p.m. CDT to begin the biggest celebration in Chicago since the sixth NBA championship by the Bulls in 1998, and end the second-longest period without a World Series title (the cross-town Chicago Cubs owned the longest such streak at the time, as they had not won since 1908, until winning in 2016). The 1–0 shutout was the first 1-run game to end a World Series since the 1995 World Series, in which Game 6 was won by the Atlanta Braves over the Cleveland Indians, and the first 1–0 game in any Series game since Game 5 of the 1996 World Series when the New York Yankees shut out the Braves in the last game ever played at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	8	0
Houston	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
WP: Freddy García (1-0)   LP: Brad Lidge (0-2)   Sv: Bobby Jenks (2)

Composite Box

2005 World Series (4-0): Chicago White Sox (A.L.) over Houston Astros (N.L.)

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	R	H	E
Chicago White Sox	1	4	0	1	5	0	4	2	1	0	0	0	0	2	20	44	3
Houston Astros	1	2	5	1	2	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	14	29	2
Total attendance: 166,422  Average attendance: 42,106

Awards and honors

• Craig Biggio, Hutch Award ^[11]
• Roy Oswalt, 2005 National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player
• All-Star Game
  • Roger Clemens, pitcher, reserve
  • Brad Lidge, pitcher, reserve
  • Roy Oswalt, pitcher, reserve
  • Morgan Ensberg, third base, reserve
• Inducted into Texas Sports Hall of Fame: ^[1]
  • Jeff Bagwell
  • Craig Biggio

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Round Rock Express	Pacific Coast League	Jackie Moore
AA	Corpus Christi Hooks	Texas League	Dave Clark
A	Salem Avalanche	Carolina League	Iván DeJesús
A	Lexington Legends	South Atlantic League	Tim Bogar
A-Short Season	Tri-City ValleyCats	New York–Penn League	Gregg Langbehn
Rookie	Greeneville Astros	Appalachian League	Russ Nixon

References

1. Footer, Alyson (February 10, 2005). "Veterans inducted into Texas Sports Hall of Fame". houston.astros.mlb.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
2. "Adam Riggs Statistics and History | Baseball-Reference". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
3. "Turk Wendell Statistics and History | Baseball-Reference.com". baseball-reference. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
4. "John Franco Statistics and History". baseball-reference. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
5. "Trent Hubbard Statistics and History". baseball-reference. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
6. de Jesús Ortíz, José (August 15, 2015). "Astros' 2005 World Series team relives the good old days". Houston Chronicle . Retrieved February 12, 2016.
7. "Jeff Bagwell player page bio". MLB.com. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
8. "Brooks Kieschnick Statistics and History". baseball-reference. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
9. "Retrosheet Boxscore: Houston Astros 5, St. Louis Cardinals 1".
10. Vecsey, George (October 22, 2005). "Joy and pain for 3 veterans in first Series". The New York Times . Retrieved February 17, 2016.
11. "Hutch Award". baseball-almanac. Retrieved July 17, 2014.

External links

• 2005 Houston Astros season at Baseball Reference
• Game Logs:

1st Half: Houston Astros Game Log on ESPN.com

2nd Half: Houston Astros Game Log on ESPN.com

• Batting Statistics: Houston Astros Batting Stats on ESPN.com
• Pitching Statistics: Houston Astros Pitching Stats on ESPN.com