Hey, this is Chip Bailey, stepping in today for Dan Peschong who is doing an incredible job of carrying the mantle of one of the longest-running blogs in blogdom. We started in 2005 when comments were manually posted (and approved) and our blog was next to those of Richard Justice and Jose de Jesus Ortiz. Lots has changed over the years, but it’s an honor to be back as a stand-in for Dan today.
I hope you enjoy. Get well Dan!
Generations are a strange thing. I’ve written plenty over the years about the greatest Astros of all time, and depending on when you started following this blog or this team, your list might look very different from mine. There was a time when names like Roger Metzger, Ken Caminiti, Terry Puhl, and Jose Cruz were automatic selections. And who could forget Dickie Thon, Bill Doran, or Bob Watson—players who left their mark on the franchise in their own way?
It’s also tough to judge guys who never had the chance to play on a truly competitive team. Larry Dierker and Don Wilson were dominant in their day. Hunter Pence had all the tools but was traded before the Astros’ resurgence. What could they have accomplished on a team like the ones we’ve seen in recent years?
But everything changed when Jim Crane took over. The Astros went from a franchise still searching for its first title to a team that has become a modern powerhouse. And credit where it’s due—Drayton McLane took the club to new heights before him, setting the stage for Houston’s golden era.
With that said, it’s time to settle in for another round of who belongs on the All-Time Astros list. Some of these names are obvious. Others? Well, you might have a few things to say about them. But that’s what makes this fun.
So, here’s my list. Disagree? Debate? Got a few digs to throw my way? Let’s hear it.
Catcher: Craig Biggio (1991-1992).
- Biggio played only two full seasons at catcher before moving to second base, but his overall legacy is undeniable. Seven-time All Star, five-time Silver Slugger, with four Gold Gloves. He will probably go at second base on some lists, but then there’s another potential Hall of Famer who could become one of the top 3 Astros ever. Maybe you’ve heard of a guy named Altuve (keep reading).
Honorable Mention: Alan Ashby (1979-1989), Brad Ausmus (1997-1998, 2001-2008), Jason Castro (2010-2021).
First Base: Jeff Bagwell (1991-2005).
- This is a no-brainer. Bagwell won NL MVP (1994), hit 449 HRs, had a career .948 OPS, and was the heart of the franchise for over a decade.
Honorable Mention: Bob Watson (1966-1979), Glenn Davis (1984-1990), Yuli Gurriel (2016-22).
Second Base: Jose Altuve (2011-present).
- Nine-time All-Star, two-time World Series champ, AL MVP (2017)—Altuve is not only the best Astros second baseman but could be the greatest player in team history before it’s all said and done.
Honorable Mention: Craig Biggio (1992-2007, if you count his 2B years separately), Bill Doran (1982-1990)
Shortstop: Carlos Correa (2015-2021).
- Correa’s defensive excellence, clutch playoff performances, and leadership during the golden era of Astros baseball give him the edge. 2015 AL ROY, two-time All-Star, and key figure in the 2017 title run.
Honorable Mention: Dickie Thon (1979-1987, career cut short by injury), Adam Everett (2001-2007, elite defense), Craig Reynolds (1979-89).
Third Base: Alex Bregman (2016-2024).
- Two-time All-Star, 2019 MVP runner-up, and a postseason performer. His combination of power, plate discipline, and defense makes him the best at the hot corner.
Honorable Mention: Ken Caminiti (1987-1994, 1999-2000), Doug Rader (1967-1975), Morgan Ensberg (1998-2007)
Left Field: Lance Berkman (1999-2010).
- Primarily played 1B, but spent significant time in LF early in his career. A five-time All-Star, he finished with 366 HRs, a .959 OPS, and remains one of the best switch-hitters ever.
Honorable Mention: José Cruz (1975-1987, fan favorite), Moisés Alou (1998, 2000-2001), Bob Watson (LF/1B).
Center Field: César Cedeño (1970-1981).
- I know I’ll get some pushback here (Dan, you think Wynn should be here?). Cedeno was a five-tool talent ahead of his time, Cedeño had four Gold Gloves, multiple 20-HR/50-SB seasons, and a .289 career AVG with Houston. Wouldn’t you love to have him on the 2025 team?
Honorable Mention: Jimmy Wynn (1963-1973, “The Toy Cannon”), Michael Bourn (2008-2011, elite defense)
Right Field: George Springer (2014-2020).
- 2017 World Series MVP, a dynamic leadoff hitter with power (174 HRs in Houston), defense, and leadership. He helped redefine the franchise. Remember the Sports Illustrated cover?
Honorable Mention: Terry Puhl (1977-1990, consistency), Hunter Pence (2007-2011, fan favorite).
Designated Hitter: Yordan Álvarez (2019-present).
- One of the most feared hitters in Astros history. 2019 AL ROY, 2021 ALCS MVP, and a career .974 OPS—if he keeps this up, he’ll go down as one of the best DHs in MLB history.
Honorable Mention: Jose Cruz (if counting later DH years), Glenn Davis.
Starting Pitchers (Top 6 Rotation, in no particular order). I’ll set a six-man rotation since there are so many to choose from.
- Justin Verlander (2017-2023, 2024-present) – Two Cy Youngs with Houston, 2017 ALCS MVP, and still going strong.
- Roy Oswalt (2001-2010) – 143 wins, NLCS MVP (2005), and one of the most consistent Astros pitchers ever.
- Nolan Ryan (1980-1988) – Franchise leader in Ks, two no-hitters, and a Houston icon.
- J.R. Richard (1971-1980) – Pure dominance before a stroke ended his career; had a 313 K season in 1979.
- Mike Scott (1983-1991) – 1986 Cy Young, led Astros to the postseason with his devastating split-finger fastball.
- Joe Niekro. (1975-1985). 144-116 in Houston, two-time 20-game winner, key member of the 80’s teams.
Honorable Mentions: Larry Dierker, Gerrit Cole (short but elite tenure), Shane Reynolds, Don Wilson.
Lefty Relief Pitcher: Billy Wagner (1995-2003).
- 422 career saves, 225 with Houston, a 2.53 ERA, and one of the hardest throwers of his era.
Righty Relief Pitcher: Brad Lidge (2002-2007).
- 225 career saves, 123 with Houston, a 3.30 ERA and was a lights-out setup buy (remember Octavio Dotel/Lidge/Wagner?).
Honorable Mention: Dave Smith, Joe Sambito, Ryan Pressly (postseason hero).
Well, that’s my list. Play nice, but let’s hear your thoughts and what you would change. Who should go? Who should stay? Who did I leave out, either intentionally or unintentionally?
ALL THINGS ASTROS 
22 responses to “Greatest Hits: The All-Time Astros’ Team”
Can’t really argue with those choices except I would replace Niekro with Dierker. I think Niekro had more wins because he played on better teams.
LikeLiked by 1 person
AstroNut, Dierker got stuck with some pretty bad teams. I would have loved to see him pitching for one of the great teams…or even with Clemens, Pettitte and the group in the early 2000s.
He shined in various ways with the organization (manager, TV/radio, player).
LikeLike
Chip – fantastic to hear from you. I first joined you in those chron days because Justice and Ortiz and the other guy I forget just seemed too much like journalist writers and you wrote like you were a true fan of the team. I found you in 2008 while deployed to Iraq and used your blog as my daily fix of Astros discussion.
I think your list is great. I feel bad giving a list as I grew up going to the dome in the 80s, and did not watch the Astros of the 70s and was probably too young in 80s as a teen to give real opinions. But I’ll take a shot at it –
C – Ausmus. It’s just hard for me to put Biggio there – he is the best player the Astros ever had play catcher, but he wasn’t the best catcher the Astros ever had because it was just two seasons. Ausmus provided a lot more than just the lackluster offense, it was those “intangibles” that people can’t always clearly communicate.
1B is a no brainer in Jeff Bagwell (Steven’s favorite all time player, but not his favorite all time baseball executive). But I want to give a shout out to the guy I grew up with – the Big Bopper – he had a run as Houstons first baseman and cleanup hitter that was critical to that particularly era of Stros ball.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Steven, it’s tough when you have two of the best second basemen to ever play the game. As Dan suggests, I was trying to give both a respective spot on the team and that squeezed out Ausmus, who arguably — and perhaps rightly — should be #1.
As for Lee May (that’s the Big Bopper you’re referring to, right?), he was here for three years. I didn’t list this criteria, but I used five years as an Astro for a general rule for making the list.
I’m working on another list for later in the week, but when this All-Time Astros Team comes up again in a year or two, perhaps I/we should discuss an All-Time roster (26 players).
And, yes, I remember you responding and following from Iraq. That was awesome and, thank you for being there for us! You are a special breed!
LikeLike
Chip – my big bopper was Glenn Davis. He played for the Astros in my formulative years – from the time I was 12 to the time I was 18. I was in the Dome chanting Cruuuuuuuuuzz but really I was there to see Doran the Bopper.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah, yes, Glenn Davis. He had a good run, but perhaps his best “contribution” to the Astros was fetching Steve Finley, Pete Harnisch and Curt Schilling in the trade. With Bagwell coming on the scene and no DH at the time, sending him out in trade was probably the best thing.
He was a two-time All Star and runnerup MVP (to Mike Schmidt in 1986) in Houston and had some great years (166 HRs).
LikeLike
Thank you Chip for giving me a bit of a rest here.
Shout out to Houston Astros Crawfish Boil: March 5, 2025 – The Crawfish Boxes for linking to us today.
Astro Nut – interesting argument about Dierker vs. Niekro – I loved them both.
Steven – thank you for your service. I think Chip was trying his best to get two of our top Astros in the lineup – Biggio and Altuve.
LikeLiked by 1 person
2B deserves its own discussion, because we have 2 of arguably 5 best ever to play the position. So it’s tough. They are both leadoff hitters with power, though Altuve spent a lot of time in other spots in the order while Springer was here. Altuve has 4 200 hit seasons, while Bidge had just 1, but a lot of that is Bidge drawing walks. Altuve has one of the best bat to ball skill sets this game has ever seen – he can get that ball to even bad pitches he has no business swinging at and still put it in play with great exit velocity. He can frustrate pitchers because he can hit the pitch even if they throw it exactly where they want him swinging at. They have identical .363 seasons. Altuve has an MVP, but we can argue that if baseball was viewed through the same prisms in 1998 that it is today, with the stress on OBPs and other factors, and Biggio hadn’t been surrounded by roided up sluggers around the league, Biggio would have won that MVP.
My vote, right now, is reserved for Biggio with 3000 hits. But Altuve is, by the smallest margins, better, and when he probably calls it will replace Biggio in my somewhat irrelevant but fun to discuss opinion.
LikeLiked by 1 person
And I meant identical .363 career OBPs, but my brain gets out in front of my typing a lot.
Biggio may have posted a .375+ OBP if he hadn’t wrecked it with those last 4 years chasing 3000. In their best years, Biggio was just better at actually getting to 1B.
LikeLike
Steven, you’re right. I started to divide this out into a position per day, but that would have been a long run.
The Astros have had some good ones at the position. I didn’t even include Joe Morgan, who actually played more seasons in Houston than Cincinnati. His stats as an Astro and Red are comparable in many areas (e.g. games played, at bats, etc.), but he clearly made his mark in Cincinnati.
Questions for you:
* Do you believe Altuve reaches 3,000 hits? He’d need to average about 150 hits/season over the next five years to get there.
* Does he — or has he already — replace Biggio as the face of the organization?
Softball question: Does Altuve reach the Hall of Fame? What does he have to do to become a cinch, first-time ballot.
LikeLike
Great questions.
He could get to 3000 – If you handed me money to bet, I would bet no, particularly because I think he is starting to show signs of second half wear downs that will stretch into earlier parts of the season as he gets into his late 30s. And the money he has made, and the way his contract is structured, he may not find playing until he is 40 in his future.
Baseball is changing. Offense is down. Guys are getting used differently. Every pitcher seems to be throwing 96+. Teams have smartened up about how match ups work and pitcher usage. They have AI now ciphering matchup information faster than any analyst ever could. In 5 years, unless the league does something about it, AI will be calling pitches instead of a catcher putting fingers down (figuratively, I know they have pitchcom now). In this changing world it could become very difficult for the old gunslinger to just simply rely on experience and an expectation of what the pitcher is going to do to make up for a slower reaction time. Simply put, guile isn’t going to work as much in this age as it did in 2005, or Jose Abreu might still be with us. I don’t know the next time we celebrate ANYONE in baseball getting to 3000 but it might not be in our lifetimes. Altuve and Freeman have the same shot. But at 34 and both of them being 700+ away, they need to stay on the field, and figure out how to produce when the eye slows even more.
But I think he is a first ballot guy, despite the fact that 2017 has turned the rest of the world against us. I think as we get closer baseball writers will soften on him as more information becomes available demonstrating his level of participation. You will hear more from the actual cheaters, guys like Correa and Bregman and Springer, come to his defense even more strongly as before. In the end common sense should prevail on him and make him a shoo-in.
Maybe the best chance is Manny (I hate saying his name out loud) Machado. At 31, and 1900 hits, and an ego that will want accolades, maybe. But he is a big guy, and as he ages, the more surface area the body has, the more likely it is to break down.
LikeLike
This is a blast to read guys – especially your back and forth a bit.
I think that Altuve will be a Hall of Famer but the self-righteous patrol will prevent him from being a first ballot H of F. “I can’t in good conscious reward him for knowing the cheating was going on” – which won’t be applied to any Yankee or Red Sox player that knew about or actually was involved in the Apple Watch cheating.
As far as the 3000 hit level goes – let’s take a biased look at Altuve’s next 5 seasons under contract to the Astros. Let’s assume he averages 150 hits over 4 of those seasons and has an injured season with like 70 hits.
He would be entering his age 40 season (birthday in May) with about 2900 hits. I think he sticks around for a couple seasons and goes for that goal.
Of course if he falls off the earth three seasons from now – maybe not.
LikeLike
It’s likely Beltran gets in next year. The candidates debuting shouldn’t be mentioned in the same breath as HOF. Assuming that happens it breaks down the door a bit for Altuve. I think he has to get to 3k hits without doing it the Biggio way. As to whether he’ll get there, I’ll say it again in case his agent is listening: if Altuve is willing to hit line drives all around the field he can get there. If he wants to be a HR hitter he’s going to fall short…no pun intended.
LikeLike
SS – Can’t disagree. It’s Correa.
3B – Same thing, can’t disagree, its Bregman.
LF – Fun here, we’ve had some pretty good ones. Lance Berkman is my guy too, I can’t believe he didn’t get as much HOF traction, just a phenomenal hitter. I would put Moises Alou second on that list, but I would give a shout out to Carlos Lee. He probably underperformed the contract in most peoples opinion, and his defense was passable at best, but he gave Houston 5 very consistent years offensively, even if they weren’t spectacular.
CF – Baseball reference tells me to go with Wynn. Given that I was 5 years old when Cedeno took over CF after Wynns run, I can’t speak much about it. How crazy was Wynn’s 69 season with 148 walks, 14 intentional, and I’m guessing a lot of those 134 other walks being intentional unintentional walks. But you know me, I’m always going to lean towards the guy with the walks.
RF – Can’t argue. Springer and Pence are my two. Hunter Pence is my wife’s second favorite ever after Altuve.
LikeLiked by 1 person
DH is a no brainer, its such a small sample. Little shout out to Evan Gattis as a runner up to Yordan.
SP – I’m a little different. I want to see starting pitchers that get deeper into games than the guys around them and give their teams a chance to win. I’m going – Verlander, Clemens, Scott, Oswalt and Ryan. To me the first 4 are locks, you can argue the 5th. Those first 3 account for 4 of our 5 Cy Youngs. Oswalt and Ryan had multiple top 5 finishes in Astros uniforms.
In short sample I’ll give shout outs to Randy Johnson who has gave us the best half season we ever saw, Gerrit Cole for his 2 year run here, our other Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel who put together a pretty good stretch, and Framber Valdez, one of the few Astros pitchers to put together a long term run of the team winning 60% of his starts, something not even everyone in my top 5 can say.
Relievers – a bullpen of Wagner, Lidge, Dave Smith – thats hard to compete with. I’ll give Wags the edge since he is our only 400 save guy and hall of famer.
I’d also like to show some appreciation to some other guys – unheralded as they maybe. Wandy Rodriguez was the top of a rotation for 7 years that was just awful, routinely changing the 4 names behind him, and just came to work through some darker days just doing his job. Brad Peacock was the kind of swing man that you feel like the successes of that 2016-2019 teams don’t happen without and will always be one of my favorites.
I’ll stay away from any talk of Dierker, Niekro, etc. Didn’t get to watch them, but baseball reference says they were pretty darned good, and you all do to, and I trust the both of you.
Thanks for letting me take over the comments section for a day!
LikeLike
Hi guys, Dan continue to get better. We just need you back for the Opener. Glad to hear from you Chip, nice of you to stop in. That’s a whole lot of quality Astros names above. And I can’t quibble with any of the discussion. When I think of all the guys I’ve watched live over 50 plus years of being an Astro fan, I never really try to compare them. I’m just happy to have watched them. I liked guys like Terry Puhl quite a bit. He was a contributor, but not the most remarkable of Astros. Course I appreciated the best of the best, but Art Howe, Bully D., and so many others are remembered fondly.
LikeLike
When I was growing up people said the great thing about baseball was that you could compare players from different eras fairly because the numbers stood on their own. Well, that’s not possible now and certainly there are many people who feel as though the old stats are less valid for numerous reasons anyhow. As such I think it’s really only fair to compare players to their own contemporaries.
Having said that, can you imagine what numbers some of those historical figures could have posted during the steroid era or if they’d played at Enron/MMP/WhateverField? I’ll bet Billy Doran could have been a 40/40 guy. With the current arm training I’ll bet JR Richard could have hit 105 MPH.
LikeLike
I have to add a special shoutout to Joe Sambito too. Gosh, he was tough. Thon, J.R., all three guys were tough losses over just a few years.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Dave, those guys who played in the 70s and 80s were the real deal. They didn’t have all the malarkey going on, they just loved the game and they loved to play. Glenn Davis, Knepper, Cruz, Vern Ruhle, and even Forsch, Hatcher…and who could forget goof balls like Charlie Kerfeld and Larry Andersen.
Good times for sure!
LikeLike
Our new 1B with a (hopefully) minor injury:
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/03/injury-notes-jordan-walker-christian-walker-topa.html
Hopefully this does not lead to more Arenado trade talk nonsense.
LikeLike
I was reading a Cubs fan blog unloading on Kyle Tucker already – I would link to it but realized it was from a web site I would not knowingly give business to – he is off to a 0 for 14 start. Maybe he thinks it is the playoffs.
LikeLiked by 1 person
How about my All-Favorite Astros team!
Starting rotation: Ryan, Richard, Wilson, Scott, Oswalt
Bullpen: Sambito, Wagner, Smith, Gladding, Lidge, Hudek, Pressley, Woodeshick
Bench: Doran, Walling, McCann, Springer That is 26.
Manager-Dierker
Bench coach and All time Astro: Bob Aspromonte.
LikeLike