Editing Houston Astros (section)

===Major League Baseball comes to Texas===
{{See also|Houston Buffaloes}}
[[File:Houston Buffaloes in 1905.jpg|thumb|1905 [[Houston Buffaloes]] team photo]]
From 1888 until 1961, Houston's professional baseball club was the minor league [[Houston Buffaloes]].  Although expansion from the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] eventually brought an MLB team to Texas in [[1962 Major League Baseball season|1962]], Houston officials had been making efforts to do so for years prior, with a group effort led in 1952 to buy the [[St. Louis Cardinals]] for $4.25 million, but local owners were instead chosen.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/topic/st-louis-cardinals-team-ownership-history/#_ednref447 | title=St. Louis Cardinals team ownership history – Society for American Baseball Research }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/uhsc/00035/hsc-00035.html|title=George Kirksey Papers|access-date=September 26, 2008|work=[[Houston Chronicle]]|last=Elston|first=Gene|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080927205147/http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/uhsc/00035/hsc-00035.html|archive-date=September 27, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> There were four men chiefly responsible for bringing Major League Baseball to Houston: journalist/promoter George Kirksey, [[Craig F. Cullinan Jr.|Craig Cullinan Jr.]], [[R. E. Smith|R.E. "Bob" Smith]], a prominent oilman and real estate magnate in Houston who like Cullinan was brought in for his financial resources, and Judge [[Roy Hofheinz]], a former Mayor of Houston and Harris County Judge who was recruited for his salesmanship and political style. They founded the Houston Sports Association (HSA) as their vehicle for attaining a big league franchise for the city of Houston.<ref name="AstrosDaily">{{cite web|url=http://www.astrosdaily.com/history/sound/a.html|title=The Colt .45s|access-date=September 26, 2008|publisher=AstrosDaily|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080913124048/http://www.astrosdaily.com/history/sound/a.html|archive-date=September 13, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

Given MLB's refusal to consider expansion, Kirksey, Cullinan, Smith, and Hofheinz joined forces with would-be owners from other cities and announced the formation of a new league to compete with the established National and American Leagues. They called the new league the [[Continental League]]. Wanting to protect potential new markets, both existing leagues chose to expand from eight teams to ten. However, plans eventually fell through for the Houston franchise after the Houston Buffaloes owner, [[Marty Marion]], could not come to an agreement with the HSA to sell the team.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sAleAAAAIBAJ&pg=6835,871827 |title=Russell Drops Plans to Buy Buff Franchise |publisher=Bonham Daily Favorite |date=January 24, 1960 |access-date=December 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151126002639/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sAleAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wF8NAAAAIBAJ&pg=6835,871827 |archive-date=November 26, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>  To make matters worse, the Continental League as a whole folded in August 1960.

However, on October 17, 1960, the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] [[1962 Major League Baseball expansion|granted an expansion franchise]] to the Houston Sports Association for them to begin play in the 1962 season.  According to the [[Major League Baseball Constitution]], the Houston Sports Association was required to obtain territorial rights from the Houston Buffaloes in order to play in the Houston area, resulting in the HSA revisiting negotiations.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Tm8zAAAAIBAJ&pg=6954%2C1301938 |title=New York-Houston Get National Franchises |newspaper=[[Lodi News-Sentinel]] |date=October 11, 1960 |access-date=November 25, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151125235423/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Tm8zAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fe4HAAAAIBAJ&pg=6954%2C1301938 |archive-date=November 25, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wuhHAAAAIBAJ&pg=1022,1164625 |title=Houston Baseball Muddled for '61 |work=[[The Victoria Advocate]] |date=October 21, 1960 |access-date=March 25, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151125225151/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wuhHAAAAIBAJ&sjid=LoAMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1022,1164625 |archive-date=November 25, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>  Eventually, the Houston Sports Association succeeded in purchasing the Houston Buffaloes, which were at this point majority-owned by William Hopkins, on January 17, 1961.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=RlhfAAAAIBAJ&pg=1218,1577109 |title=Houston Will Get Emphasis, Paul Declares |work=[[Observer–Reporter]] |date=January 19, 1961 |access-date=March 25, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151125162147/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=RlhfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7VkNAAAAIBAJ&pg=1218,1577109 |archive-date=November 25, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>  The Buffs played one last minor league season as the top farm team of the [[Chicago Cubs]] in 1961 before being succeeded by the city's NL club.

The new Houston team was named the Colt .45s after a "Name the Team" contest was won by William Irving Neder. The [[Colt Single Action Army|Colt .45]] was well known as "the gun that won the west".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20051024&content_id=1258510&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou|title=Astros out to make history their history|access-date=October 1, 2008|publisher=Houston Astros|last=Herskowitz|first=Mickey|date=October 24, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080417150533/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20051024&content_id=1258510&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou|archive-date=April 17, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>
The colors selected were navy and orange. The first team was formed mostly through an [[1961 Major League Baseball expansion draft|expansion draft]] after the 1961 season. The Colt .45s and their expansion cousins, the [[New York Mets]], took turns choosing players left unprotected by the other National League franchises.

Many players and staff associated with the Houston Buffaloes organization continued in the major leagues.  Manager [[Harry Craft]], who had joined Houston in 1961, remained in the same position for the team until the end of the [[1964 Houston Colt .45s season|1964 season]].  General manager [[Spec Richardson]] also continued with the organization as business manager but was later promoted back to GM for the Astros from 1967 until 1975.  Although most players for the major league franchise were obtained through the [[1961 Major League Baseball expansion draft]], Buffs players [[J.C. Hartman]], [[Pidge Browne]], [[Jim Campbell (catcher)|Jim Campbell]], [[Ron Davis (outfielder)|Ron Davis]], [[Dave Giusti]], and [[Dave Roberts (first baseman)|Dave Roberts]] were chosen to continue as major league ball players.

Similarly, the radio broadcasting team remained with the new Houston major league franchise.  [[Loel Passe]] worked alongside [[Gene Elston]] as a color commentator until he retired from broadcasting in 1976.  Elston continued with the Astros until 1986.

The Colt .45s began their existence playing at [[Colt Stadium]], a temporary venue built just north of the construction site of their permanent home, a domed stadium. Hofheinz and his partners believed a domed stadium was a must for MLB to be viable in Houston, given the area's oppressive humidity.