Houston Astros Dream Team

 

Every sport evolves with each passing generation -- from the

size and athleticism of players to game strategy. 

Baseball’s evolution, however, is both historic and unique given

the pre-integration and dead ball eras. For the former, full

segregation took place from 1887-1947. Full integration, which

was a gradual process, came in 1959. The Deadball Era was a

period in the early 20th century when baseball was

characterized by low scoring and emphasis on pitching. 

There was the Steroid Era, which has no definite start time though

it is generally assumed that the era ran from the late 1980s until

the late 2000s. This era was defined by shattered home run

records leading to exorbitant salaries. 

The Houston Astros came into Major League Baseball in 1962

as an expansion team along with the New York Mets. The

franchise was known as the Colt 45s their first three years before

being renamed to the Astros to reflect the city’s role as the host

of the Johnson Space Center. 

They have history in both the National (1962-2012) and National

Leagues (2013-present). The Astros won the World Series in

2017 in controversial fashion because of using technological

advantages to stealing opposing teams’ signs. The franchise

reached the World Series again in 2019 but lost in seven games

to the Washington Nationals. 

The Astros have won ten division titles and reached the playoffs

four more times as a wild card team. 

Today, I formed an Astros Dream Team in a 26-man roster format.

For openers, to make this roster, four years as an Astro are

required. No exceptions. With the free agency era, I’m not going

to cheapen this roster with 1-3 year rentals. 

I’m forming a 12 man pitching staff, five starters and seven

relievers. For the latter, I want at least one lefthander in the

bullpen. For position players, I am taking what I believe is the best

of the best regardless of era. For the bench players, it’s the best

of the rest with versatility being heavily considered. Merit

achievements such as Hall of Fame, All Star appearances and

Gold Gloves are considered but not guaranteed. General

impactfulness on the franchise is also considered.

Generational reminders

If you played on a playoff team, there is no guarantee of landing

on this roster. If you played during a bad season, that does not

deter you from being on this roster. Off the field baggage is not a

deterrent to landing on this team, nor is any Steroid Era affiliation.

This is baseball, not the Boys Scouts. There are no morality

clauses, even for the 2017 Astros. 

Starting pitchers

Roy Oswalt, Larry Dierker, Nolan Ryan, Dallas Keuchel, Mike

Hampton

The Astros have a deep history of right-handed starting pitchers

and Justin Verlander can crack this list if he recovers from Tommy

John surgery. None, however, compiled a better resume in an

Astros uniform than Oswalt. He was the Astros ace throughout the

2000s. In his 10 seasons with Houston, Oswalt was a three-time

All-Star, National League wins leader in 2004 and ERA leader in

2006. He was the NLCS MVP in 2005. Some generations of fans

only know Dierker as a popular broadcaster and later successful

manager but he was also a stalwart for 13 seasons. Dierker was

a two-time All-Star who leads the franchise in shutouts and

complete games along with innings pitched. Ryan is one of the

best athletes in the history of Texas regardless of sport. On the

way to a Hall of Fame career, Ryan pitched 27 seasons in the

Major Leagues, eight of which came with the Astros. Ryan's

resume could cover enough square mileage to fill the state of

Texas but for the Reader's Digest version, he is the all-time

Major League leader in strikeouts for a career along with seven

career no-hitters. 

Keuchel is the only left-handed pitcher in franchise history to win

a Cy Young Award. Keuchel saw the best and worst of times

during his seven seasons with the Astros between 2012 and

2018. He saw both the rebuilding stage when the franchise

was known as the “Lastros” and the World Series championship

in 2017. As an Astro, Keuchel compiled a record of 76-63 with a

3.66 ERA and he was also a solid postseason pitcher. Keuchel

was a two-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove Award winner.

He was the American League Cy Young Award winner in 2015

and led the American League in victories that season. The

well-traveled Hampton pitched six of his 17 Major League

seasons with the Astros compiling a 76-50 record with a 3.59

ERA. He led the Major Leagues in victories in 1999 won 22,

which is also a franchise-record. 

Bullpen

Closer -- Billy Wagner

Dave Smith, Brad Lidge, Joe Sambito, Will Harris, Ken Forsch,

Octavio Dotel

Wagner is the franchise's all time leader in saves with 225. Three

of his seven career All-Star appearances came in an Astros

uniform. Among Major League pitchers who have pitched at

least 800 career innings, Wagner's 11.9 strikeouts per nine

innings and 33.2% strikeout rate are both the highest in Major

League history. Smith and his deceptive changeup lasted 11

years with the Astros. Smith is second in franchise history with

189 saves behind Wagner. Smith was an All-Star on two

occasions. Lidge had a solid 11-year career, six of which were

with the Astros. Lidge is third in franchise history in saves and

was an All-Star in the 2005 season. Sambito pitched nine

seasons with the Astros and was one of the most efficient left-

handed pitchers out of the bullpen in the 1970s. He was an All-

Star in 1979 and at one point had a string of 40 consecutive

scoreless innings. 

Harris pitched for the Astros for four seasons but is eighth in

franchise history and appearances and was an All-Star in

2016. Forsch's versatility alone gives him a spot on this team

because he started 153 games and appeared in 268 as a

relief pitcher in his 11-year career with Houston. He also

compiled a 2.78 ERA. Dotel was well-traveled having pitched

for 13 teams but his five-year span in Houston was quite

impactful. Dotel pitched in 282 games in relief with 42 saves

and a 2.40 ERA. 

Infield

Catcher -- Brad Ausmus, First base -- Jeff Bagwell, Second

base -- Craig Biggio, Third base -- Alex Bregman, Shortstop

-- Carlos Correa

Ausmus played 10 of his 18 seasons with the Astros and was

a starting catcher on five playoff teams. Ausmus was a decent

hitter but was especially known for his defense as evidenced

by his three Gold Glove Awards. Bagwell and Biggio formed

one of the best right sides of the infield in Major League history.

Both became Hall of Famers and lifelong Astros. Bagwell was

a four-time All-Star, National League Rookie of the Year in

1991. In 1994, he was National League MVP,  National League

RBI leader and Gold Glove Award winner. Bagwell was also a

three-time Silver Slugger Award winner. Biggio spent the first

five seasons of his 20-year career as a catcher before

becoming firmly entrenched as a Hall of Fame second

baseman. Biggio accumulated over 3,000 career hits. He

was a seven-time All-Star, five-time Silver Slugger Award

winner, four-time Gold Glove Award winner and National

League stolen base leader in 1994.

Bregman is entering his sixth season and has already had a

very accomplished career. Bregman has been an All-Star in

two of his first five seasons with the Astros and helped deliver

the 2017 World Series title. Bregman was also a Silver Slugger

Award winner in 2019. Injuries have gotten in the way for

Correa on a few occasions. Entering his seventh season

with the franchise, however, he is the best shortstop in Astros

history. He already has more home runs than any shortstop

in the history of the franchise. Correa was the American

League Rookie of the Year in 2015 and an All-Star in 2017

on the way to helping the Astros win their only World Series

title in franchise history.

Outfield

Leftfield -- Lance Berkman, Centerfield -- Cesar Cedeno,

Rightfield -- George Springer

Other than Bagwell and Biggio, there might not be a better

offensive player in franchise history than Berkman. He was

versatile and played all three outfield positions along with

first base. Berkman spent 12 Seasons with the Astros; he

was a five-time All-Star and National League RBI leader in

2002. Cedeno had an excellent combination of power, speed

and defense and would have had an even better career if

injuries didn't slow him. Cedeno was only the second player

in Major League history to hit 20 home runs and steal 50

bases in a season and did it three years in a row. Lou Brock

was the other. Cedeno was a four-time All-Star and five-time

Gold Glove Award winner. Springer, who is now a Toronto

Blue Jay, spent seven seasons with the Astros and was an

All-Star three straight years. He won two Silver Slugger

Awards and was a vital reason why the Astros won their

2017 World Series title. Springer was the World Series MVP.

Bench

Alan Ashby, Bob Watson, Jose Altuve, Ken Caminiti, Jose

Cruz, Jimmy Wynn

Ashby played 11 seasons with the Astros and the switch

hitter was a vital cog on two playoff teams in the 1980s.

Ashby has more home runs and RBIs than any catcher in

Astros history. Watson played 14 seasons with the Astros

and his 486 RBIs are third most in franchise history among

first baseman. Watson was an All-Star on two occasions.

Altuve is one of three players in Major League history to

accumulate 1,500 hits, 275 doubles and 250 stolen bases

in his first nine seasons. Honus Wagner and Ben Chapman

are the others. Altuve is entering his 11th season and has

been an All-Star six times, American League MVP in 2017,

five-time Silver Slugger Award winner, three-time batting

champion, two-time stolen base leader and helped the

2017 Astros win the World Series.

Caminiti is more widely known for his time as a San Diego

Padre but he had a solid eight-year career with the Astros.

Caminiti’s rise to stardom ended up compelling the Astros

to move Bagwell from third to first base. Cruz was traded to

the Astros in 1975, where he spent 13 seasons. He was a

vital cog in the 1981 and 1986 division winning teams.

Cruz was a two-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger Award

winner and the franchise’s all-time leader in triples.  Wynn

was nicknamed “The Toy Cannon” because he was a

powerful header despite being small in stature at 5-9 160

pounds. Wynn's tenure overlapped the Colt 45 and Astros

eras. In his 11 seasons, Wynn was a three-time All-Star. 

Manager

AJ Hinch

Hinch replaced Bo Porter before the 2015 campaign and

led the Astros to their first postseason appearance since

2005. Hinch, who is now the Detroit Tigers manager, led

the Astros to two World Series appearances in his four

seasons with the Astros winning the title in seven games

in 2017 and losing to the Nationals in seven games in

2019. Hinch’s .593 career winning percentage is the

highest in franchise history and has also led the Astros

to 14 postseason victories, one more than Phil Garner.

In Hinch’s four years, the Astros surpassed the 100

victory mark three times. 

Team

2017

Seeing the 2017 team on this list may draw the ire of many

because of the electronic sign stealing scandal but

considering that it resulted in the only World Series in

franchise history the choice is easy. The 2017 Astros

featured the highest scoring offense in the Major Leagues,

led by American League MVP Altuve. The Astros also

bolstered their cause of winning the title and acquired

Verlander in a trade from the Detroit Tigers. Verlander won

all five of his regular season starts and was ALCS MVP.

The Astros won 101 games in the regular season, easily

outdistancing second-place Angels, who went 80-82.

The Astros defeated Boston in four games in the ALDS,

outlasted the New York Yankees and seven games in the

ALCS and defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers and seven

games in the World Series.