1998 Houston Astros | ||
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National League Central champions | ||
League | National League | |
Division | Central | |
Ballpark | Astrodome | |
City | Houston, Texas | |
Record | 102–60 (.630) | |
Divisional place | 1st | |
Owners | Drayton McLane, Jr. | |
General managers | Gerry Hunsicker | |
Managers | Larry Dierker | |
Television | KNWS-TV 51 (Bill Brown, Milo Hamilton, Jim Deshaies) Fox Sports Southwest (Bill Brown, Milo Hamilton, Jim Deshaies, Bill Worrell) | |
Radio | KILT–AM 610 (Milo Hamilton, Alan Ashby) KXYZ–AM 1320 (Francisco Ernesto Ruiz, Alex Treviño) | |
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The 1998 Houston Astros season was the 37th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 34th as the Astros, 37th in the National League (NL), fifth in the NL Central division, and 34th at The Astrodome. The Astros entered the season having captured their first-ever NL Central division crown with an 84–78 record and fourth division title overall; however, their season ended in a National League Division Series (NLDS) sweep by the Atlanta Braves.
On March 31, pitcher Shane Reynolds made his third consecutive Opening Day start for the Astros, who hosted the San Francisco Giants but were defeated, 9–4. In the amateur draft, the Astros' first round selection was pitcher Brad Lidge at 17th overall, and in the ninth round, they chose third baseman Morgan Ensberg.
Left fielder Moisés Alou and second baseman Craig Biggio both represented the Astros at the MLB All-Star Game, playing for the National League. It was the third career selection for Alou, and seventh for Biggio. Minutes before the trade deadline on July 31, the Astros acquired Randy Johnson from the Seattle Mariners, winning 10 of his 11 starts, including 4 shutouts.
On September 14, the Astros clinched the NL Central division title via defeat of the Chicago Cubs, the eventual NL Central runners-up and NL Wild Card winners. The following day, Biggio became the first Astro to collect 200 hits in a season.
On the strength of a club-record 102 wins—their first-ever season with at least 100—the Astros rocketed to a second consecutive NL Central division title and trip to the playoffs. Their next 100-win season occurred in 2017, while this record for most wins remained until the following year. Their fifth division title overall and fifth playoff appearance, it was the first time since 1980–1981 when Houston occupied the NL West that they won consecutive division titles. In their second-to-last season at the Astrodome, the team drew a then-club record 2.45 million fans.
In the National League Division Series (NLDS), the Astros were defeated in four games by the San Diego Padres, the NL pennant winners. Through this point, the Astros still had never won a playoff round, which remained so until 2004.
Following the season, Alou (second) and Biggio (fifth) each received Silver Slugger Awards. Larry Dierker won two Manager of the Year Awards, one from Baseball America, and another from the BBWAA [a] , the second Astro to win the latter award. The Sporting News named general manager Gerry Hunsicker their Executive of the Year, also the second Astro to receive this award. Alou finished third in the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award voting, while Biggio ranked fifth.
7 | Craig Biggio | 2B |
14 | Derek Bell | RF |
5 | Jeff Bagwell | 1B |
17 | Sean Berry | 3B |
18 | Moisés Alou | LF |
16 | Richard Hidalgo | CF |
12 | Ricky Gutiérrez | SS |
11 | Brad Ausmus | C |
37 | Shane Reynolds | P |
Venue: | Astrodome • SFG 9, | HOU 4 |
Rookie right-hander Kerry Wood, making just his fifth major league start for the Chicago Cubs on May 6, made history at the Astros' expense, striking out 20 in a one-hit, 2–0 complete game shuitout victory at Wrigley Field. Wood's performance tied Roger Clemens for the major league strikeout record in a 9-inning game, while setting the National League record. [5] [6] [7] Craig Biggio's spot as the leadoff hitter was the only place in the batting order which fell victim to fewer than two strikeouts, with one, and he also reached base on a hit by pitch. Only Jeff Bagwell and Jack Howell struck out as many as three times. The only hit that Wood yielded was a single to Ricky Gutiérrez to lead off the third inning. Shane Reynolds (2–3) fired an eight-inning complete game in the losing effort, scattered eight hits with just one of two runs earned and struck out 10. [8]
The left-hander Randy Johnson from the Seattle Mariners had become the biggest trade target of the 1998 mid-season playoff race, as the Mariners were apparently out of contention by Memorial Day, and he was destined to become a free agent following the season. However, the Astros were not estimated to be major candidates to acquire the extraordinary southpaw. Meanwhile, general manager Gerry Hunsicker envisioned Johnson as a weapon against the left-handed heavy New York Yankees lineup in a hypothetical World Series matchup, who were on their way to one of the all-time greatest regular seasons in major league history, and second-most wins in the modern era, accumulating a record of 114–48 (.704). Johnson completely dominated lefties, holding them to a .156 batting average against over four subsequent Cy Young Award-winning seasons from 1999 to 2002. Further, acquiring Johnson meant keeping him away from the Yankees, as well the Los Angeles Dodgers, both heavily-rumored as favorites. A trade agreement with Hunsicker's counterpart in Seattle, Woody Woodward, required a high prospect package, starting with right-hander Freddy García, shortstop Carlos Guillén and another who would be a player to be named later. For weeks initially, Hunsicker balked on making the deal. [9]
Hunsicker noted apprehension that he would be "paying too much" for Johnson. Both García and Guillén later became multiple-time All-Stars with lengthy major league careers. García took on a large role in Seattle's starting rotation the following year, including placing second in the American League (AL) Rookie of the Year balloting. [b] Guillen was solid for the Mariners, but took longer to blossom, peaking after he was traded by Seattle prior to the 2004 season to the Detroit Tigers. Further, the Astros would be unable to extend Johnson or resign him in free agency during the off-season. [9]
An error in the ninth inning on June 14 by Cincinnati Reds shortstop Barry Larkin allowed the Astros to tie the game. Houston proceeded to score five more runs, resulting in a 6–3 win in the tenth inning. [10]
Facing a 5–3 deficit going into the ninth inning on June 17, Jeff Bagwell connected for a two-run home run to tie the score. Brad Ausmus singled in the game-winning run, and C. J. Nitkowski got the victory, his second of the year. [11]
Moments before the trade deadline on July 31, Houston acquired Johnson from the Mariners. Though he concluded the Seattle chapter of his career with a 4.33 ERA, going 9-10 prior to the deal, Johnson recaptured his previous dominant form and left Mariner fans with some solid memories. On July 11 and 16, Johnson hurled consecutive shutouts over the Anaheim Angels and Minnesota Twins, yielding six hits while fanning 26 hitters. [12] Despite not pitching in the American League (AL) after the month of July, Johnson ranked third in the league in strikeouts (213) and fifth in complete games (6) at season's end, and ended up just two innings short of qualifying for rate statistics (160 IP). [13]
At the time of their trade for Johnson, the Astros occupied first place in the NL Central and led the second-place the Cubs by 3+1⁄2 games. Johnson made his Astros debut on August 2 at Three Rivers Stadium to face the Pittsburgh Pirates, who countered with Todd Van Poppel. The two pitchers kept it close, as Johnson lived up to his billing with 12 strikeouts, but Pittsburgh held the advantage through 7 innings, at 2–1. In the top of the eighth, the Astros scored twice before Tony Eusebio pinch hit for Johnson and doubled in Ricky Gutiérrez for the third run of the inning. Rookie Scott Elarton finished off the afternoon with two perfect innings and strikeouts number 13 and 14 for Houston pitching. Hence, Johnson won his debut with seven strong innings to lead a 6–2 Astros win. [14]
Johnson made his debut at the Astrodome as a member of the home team on August 7 and led a 9–0 shutout of the Philadelphia Phillies before a record attendance. This was first of 3 consecutive home shutouts for Johnson. [15] The-fifth-largest crowd to attend a regular-season contest in the Astrodome (52,071) witnessed Johnson's mastery over Philadelphia. [12] The Astros won 30 of their first 39 games after acquiring Johnson and their division lead over Chicago swelled from 3+1⁄2 games to 12+1⁄2. [14]
On August 17, Johnson lost his start to the Phillies, snapping a scoreless innings streak at 19, the longest for the year on Houston's pitching staff. [12]
Back at the Astrodome on August 28 to host the Pirates, Johnson fired another shutout, this time for 7 hits, no bases on balls, 16 strikeouts, and a game score of 89, his highest after he was acquired by Houston. [16] The Pirates countered with Astros killer Francisco Córdova, who was up to the challenge with another gem, remained unscathed save for a balk and two errors to push Brad Ausmus along to score the only tallies of the contest. [17] The 16 strikeouts set a Houston record for left-handers, and was the most by an Astros pitcher since Nolan Ryan amassed 16 punchouts on September 9, 1987, against the San Francisco Giants. [12]
The Astros posted the best month in franchise history, going 22–7 in August, while increasing their lead in the NL Central to 11 games. Meanwhile, Johnson was named NL Pitcher of the Month, after having gone 5–1, 1.16 ERA, and leading the NL in strikeouts (61) and shutouts (3). [12]
On September 2, Johnson worked the winning end of a pitchers' duel opposite Greg Maddux for a 4–2 Astros' win over the Atlanta Braves, where Johnson struck out 10. [12] Biggio, Bagwell, and Sean Berry all homered in a rare three-home run game off the Atlanta ace. [18]
Bagwell hit his first career grand slam on September 9 while tying a career-high six runs batted in (RBI) against Cincinnati in a 13–7 Astros' victory. His 218th career home run, this broke the then-longest streak among active players without having hit a grand slam. [19]
On September 12, the Astros won their 96th game of the season, hosting the Cardinals for a 3–2 final socre. [20] Johnson was the starter and won this game as well, going seven innings with two runs allowed and 11 strikeouts. [16] The win tied the 1986 team for most in franchise history.
Just one game from clinching the NL Central division title, on September 14, the Astros took a 4–2 lead headed into ninth against the New York Mets, but lost, 7–4, in 13 innings. Mike Piazza, who collected 4 hits for New York, also launched a bomb that hurtled 480 feet (150 m). However, the San Diego Padres later defeated the second-place Cubs, 4–3. Former Astro Ken Caminiti led off the eighth inning with a home run for San Diego. Hence, the Cubs' defeat gave Houston their second-consecutive division title. San Diego (95–56) pulled within a game of Atlanta and Houston (96–55) for the best record in the NL. [21]
Meanwhile, another race transpiring in the NL Central, and the most-watched race of the summer—the home run record chase—remained deadlocked at 62 as of September 14. The Cubs' Sammy Sosa whiffed four times against the Padres, while Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals singled twice in a 7–3 victory over the Pirates. [21]
On September 15, Craig Biggio singled in the ninth inning of the second game of a doubleheader off Turk Wendell of the Mets for his 200th hit of the season. With the hit, Biggio become the first player in Astros history to reach this milestone. The Astros lost the second game, 8–4, after winning the first to earn the split. [22] Biggio had passed Enos Cabell's club single-season record for hits (195), established in 1978. [23]
At Busch Memorial Stadium on September 23, the Astros defeated St. Louis, 7–1, for their 100th win of the season, reaching the milestone for the first time in franchise history. Johnson worked 7 strong innings, allowing the only run with six walks and eight strikeouts on 136 pitches to earn his 10th win since joining Houston and 19th overall for the season. Biggio, Hidalgo, and Alou all collected three hits apiece. [24] Biggio pilfered his 50th base of the season, by which along with 50 doubles, joined Hall of Famer Tris Speaker as the major league only players since the 20th century to have reached both milestones in the same season. [25] Biggio became the ninth player in major league history to join the 20 home runs—50 stolen bases club, and the second Astro since César Cedeño compiled three consecutive from 1972 to 1974. [26]
Biggio ultimately reached 210 hits for the season, which remained as the Astros' single-season record until Jose Altuve surpassed it on September 16, 2014. [27] Biggio also surpassed Cedeño's club record for runs scored (891). [23] [28]
Johnson won each of his final 7 regular season starts, surrendering 7 earned runs in 54+1⁄3 innings for a 1.16 ERA. [12] Having accumulated 116 strikeouts and 4 shutouts following his acquisition by Houston, Johnson led all of baseball in both categories, 329 and 6, respectively—though not having enough to be the league leader in either the AL or NL. It was the fifth time in his career that Johnson led the major leagues in strikeouts, and wound up doing so a total of ten times during his career. [13]
The sixth consecutive winning season for the Astros, it signaled the fifth consecutive with a finish in either first or second place—both unprecedented streaks at the time; it also was the first time since 1980–1981 when Houston occupied the NL West that they won consecutive division titles.
The Astros won a club-record 102 games en route to a second successive NL Central division title. Five starting pitchers earned double-figures in wins for Houston, including Randy Johnson's effort with the Astros after his acquisition at the July 31 trade deadline. The team drew a franchise-record 2.45 million fans in their penultimate season as tenants at the Astrodome, including 10 contests with 50,000 or more. Fans would exceed the stadium's attendance record again the following year by over 250,000. [23]
Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
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Houston Astros | 102 | 60 | .630 | — | 55–26 | 47–34 |
Chicago Cubs | 90 | 73 | .552 | 12½ | 51–31 | 39–42 |
St. Louis Cardinals | 83 | 79 | .512 | 19 | 48–34 | 35–45 |
Cincinnati Reds | 77 | 85 | .475 | 25 | 39–42 | 38–43 |
Milwaukee Brewers | 74 | 88 | .457 | 28 | 38–43 | 36–45 |
Pittsburgh Pirates | 69 | 93 | .426 | 33 | 40–40 | 29–53 |
Team | AZ | ATL | CHC | CIN | COL | FLA | HOU | LAD | MIL | MTL | NYM | PHI | PIT | SD | SF | STL | AL |
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Arizona | — | 1–8 | 5–7 | 4–5 | 6–6 | 6–2 | 4–5 | 4–8 | 6–3 | 2–7 | 4–5 | 2–7 | 6–3 | 3–9 | 5–7 | 2–7 | 5–8 |
Atlanta | 8–1 | — | 3–6 | 7–2 | 5–3 | 7–5 | 4–5 | 8–1 | 7–2 | 6–6 | 9–3 | 8–4 | 7–2 | 5–4 | 7–2 | 6–3 | 9–7 |
Chicago | 7–5 | 6–3 | — | 6–5 | 7–2 | 7–2 | 4–7 | 4–5 | 6–6 | 7–2 | 4–5 | 3–6 | 8–3 | 5–4 | 7–3 | 4–7 | 5–8 |
Cincinnati | 5–4 | 2–7 | 5–6 | — | 4–5 | 9–0 | 3–8 | 5–4 | 6–5 | 8–1 | 3–6 | 4–5 | 5–7 | 1–11 | 2–7 | 8–3 | 7-6 |
Colorado | 6–6 | 3–5 | 2–7 | 5–4 | — | 6–3 | 6–5 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 7–2 | 3–6 | 5–4 | 5–4 | 5–7 | 7–5 | 3–6 | 4–8 |
Florida | 2–6 | 5–7 | 2–7 | 0–9 | 3–6 | — | 3–6 | 4–5 | 0–9 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 3–6 | 4–5 | 0–9 | 4–5 | 8–8 |
Houston | 5–4 | 5–4 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 5–6 | 6–3 | — | 3–6 | 9–2 | 7–2 | 5–4 | 7–2 | 9–2 | 5–4 | 6–3 | 5–7 | 10–4 |
Los Angeles | 8–4 | 1–8 | 5–4 | 4–5 | 6–6 | 5–4 | 6–3 | — | 5–4 | 5–4 | 3–5 | 5–4 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 4–5 | 8–5 |
Milwaukee | 3–6 | 2–7 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 7–4 | 9–0 | 2–9 | 4–5 | — | 6–3 | 1–8 | 4–5 | 6–5 | 3–6 | 5–4 | 3–8 | 8–6 |
Montreal | 7–2 | 6–6 | 2–7 | 1–8 | 2–7 | 7–5 | 2–7 | 4–5 | 3–6 | — | 8–4 | 5–7 | 2–7 | 4–4 | 3–6 | 3–6 | 6–10 |
New York | 5–4 | 3–9 | 5–4 | 6–3 | 6–3 | 7–5 | 4–5 | 5–3 | 8–1 | 4–8 | — | 8–4 | 4–5 | 4–5 | 4–5 | 6–3 | 9–7 |
Philadelphia | 7-2 | 4–8 | 6–3 | 5–4 | 4–5 | 6–6 | 2–7 | 4–5 | 5–4 | 7–5 | 4–8 | — | 8–1 | 1–8 | 2–6 | 3–6 | 7–9 |
Pittsburgh | 3–6 | 2–7 | 3–8 | 7–5 | 4–5 | 6–3 | 2–9 | 5–7 | 5–6 | 7–2 | 5–4 | 1–8 | — | 5–4 | 2–7 | 6–5 | 6–7 |
San Diego | 9–3 | 4–5 | 4–5 | 11–1 | 7–5 | 5–4 | 4–5 | 7–5 | 6–3 | 4–4 | 5–4 | 8–1 | 4–5 | — | 8–4 | 6–3 | 6–7 |
San Francisco | 7–5 | 2–7 | 3–7 | 7–2 | 5–7 | 9–0 | 3–6 | 6–6 | 4–5 | 6–3 | 5–4 | 6–2 | 7–2 | 4–8 | — | 7–5 | 8–5 |
St. Louis | 7–2 | 3–6 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 6–3 | 5-4 | 7–5 | 5–4 | 8–3 | 6–3 | 3–6 | 6–3 | 5–6 | 3–6 | 5–7 | — | 4–9 |
1998 Houston Astros | |||||||||
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Infielders
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Astros win | |
Astros loss | |
Postponement | |
Clinched division | |
Bold | Astros team member |
1998 regular season game log: 102–60 (Home: 55–26; Away: 47–34) [30] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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April: 17–9 (Home: 8–3; Away: 9–6)
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May: 16–12 (Home: 8–6; Away: 8–6)
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June: 17–10 (Home: 8–4; Away: 9–6)
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July: 15–12 (Home: 10–4; Away: 5–8)
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August: 22–7 (Home: 14–3; Away: 8–4)
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September: 15–9 (Home: 9–5; Away: 6–4)
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Legend | |
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Astros win | |
Astros loss | |
Postponement | |
Bold | Astros team member |
1998 Postseason game log: 1–3 (Home: 1–1; Away: 0–2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
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C | Brad Ausmus | 128 | 412 | 111 | .269 | 6 | 45 |
1B | Jeff Bagwell | 147 | 540 | 164 | .304 | 34 | 111 |
2B | Craig Biggio | 160 | 646 | 210 | .325 | 20 | 88 |
SS | Ricky Gutiérrez | 141 | 491 | 128 | .261 | 2 | 46 |
3B | Bill Spiers | 123 | 384 | 105 | .273 | 4 | 43 |
LF | Moisés Alou | 159 | 584 | 182 | .312 | 38 | 124 |
CF | Carl Everett | 133 | 467 | 138 | .296 | 15 | 76 |
RF | Derek Bell | 156 | 630 | 198 | .314 | 22 | 108 |
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
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Sean Berry | 102 | 299 | 94 | .314 | 13 | 52 |
Richard Hidalgo | 74 | 211 | 64 | .303 | 7 | 35 |
Tony Eusebio | 66 | 182 | 46 | .253 | 1 | 36 |
Tim Bogar | 79 | 156 | 24 | .154 | 1 | 8 |
Dave Clark | 93 | 131 | 27 | .206 | 0 | 4 |
J.R. Phillips | 36 | 58 | 11 | .190 | 2 | 9 |
Jack Powell | 24 | 38 | 11 | .289 | 1 | 7 |
Pete Incaviglia | 13 | 16 | 2 | .125 | 0 | 2 |
Russ Johnson | 8 | 13 | 3 | .231 | 0 | 0 |
Mitch Meluskey | 8 | 8 | 2 | .250 | 0 | 0 |
Ray Montgomery | 6 | 5 | 2 | .400 | 0 | 0 |
Daryle Ward | 4 | 3 | 1 | .333 | 0 | 0 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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Shane Reynolds | 35 | 233.1 | 19 | 8 | 3.51 | 209 |
José Lima | 33 | 233.1 | 16 | 8 | 3.70 | 169 |
Mike Hampton | 32 | 211.2 | 11 | 7 | 3.36 | 137 |
Sean Bergman | 31 | 172.0 | 12 | 9 | 3.72 | 100 |
Randy Johnson | 11 | 84.1 | 10 | 1 | 1.28 | 116 |
Pete Schourek | 15 | 80.0 | 7 | 6 | 4.50 | 59 |
John Halama | 6 | 32.1 | 1 | 1 | 5.85 | 21 |
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
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Billy Wagner | 58 | 4 | 3 | 30 | 2.70 | 97 |
Doug Henry | 59 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 3.04 | 59 |
Mike Magnante | 48 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 4.88 | 39 |
C.J. Nitkowski | 43 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3.77 | 44 |
Trever Miller | 37 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3.04 | 30 |
Jay Powell | 29 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2.38 | 38 |
Scott Elarton | 28 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3.32 | 56 |
Bob Scanlan | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.08 | 9 |
Reggie Harris | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.00 | 2 |
José Cabrera | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.31 | 1 |
Mike Grzanich | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18.00 | 1 |
The Astros season ended by defeat in four games to the San Diego Padres in the National League Division Series, [33] including losing two starts against Kevin Brown – one of the league's highest-accomplished pitchers that year [34] – both by a 2–1 score. As the Game 1 starter opposing Randy Johnson, Brown allowed no runs in eight innings and struck out 16 Astros, a career-high, and second to that point in MLB playoff history only to Bob Gibson's 17-strikeout performance in the 1968 World Series. [35] Bagwell, Derek Bell, and Craig Biggio combined for six hits in 51 at bats in this series. [36]
Game | Home | Score | Visitor | Score | Date | Series |
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1 | Houston | 1 | San Diego | 2 | September 29 | 1-0 (SD) |
2 | Houston | 5 | San Diego | 4 | October 1 | 1-1 |
3 | San Diego | 2 | Houston | 1 | October 3 | 2-1 (SD) |
4 | San Diego | 6 | Houston | 1 | October 4 | 3-1 (SD) |
Individual | Pos. | Colt .45s / Astros career | Induction | |||||
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No. | Yr. | Gm. | St. | Fin. | ||||
Don Sutton | SP | 20 | 2 | 50 | 1981 | 1982 | 1998 | Plaque |
See also: Members of the Baseball Hall of Fame • Ref: [37] | ||||||||
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LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: New Orleans; LEAGUE CO-CHAMPIONS: Auburn