Houston Astros are a professional baseball team that plays in the American League West division of Major League Baseball (MLB). From 1965 to 1999, the Astros played in the Astrodome, the first all-weather multipurpose domed stadium in the world. The Astrodome was the first stadium to use an artificial nylon and vinyl playing surface called AstroTurf instead of natural grass. In 2000, the Astros moved to the retractable-roof Enron Field (now Minute Maid Park) in Houston, Texas.
Houston joined the National League as an expansion team in 1962, along with the New York Mets. The two clubs were the first expansion teams in National League history. The Houston team was known as the Colt .45’s until the name was changed to the Astros in 1965. In 2013, the Astros moved to the American League.
The Astros did not have a winning season until 1972, when they finished second in their division. The team won its first division title in 1980 behind pitchers Joe Niekro and Nolan Ryan, second baseman Joe Morgan, and outfielders Jose Cruz and Terry Puhl.
Houston won the first pennant in team history in 2005, but lost to the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. That team was led by pitcher Roger Clemens and future Hall of Famers Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio.
In 2017, the Astros defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series for the team’s first MLB title. The Astros returned to the World Series in 2019 and 2021, but lost both times. The Astros, led by manager Dusty Baker, won their second World Series title in 2022. Stars of these teams included second baseman José Altuve, infielder Alex Bregman, shortstop Carlos Correa, outfielder George Springer, and pitcher Justin Verlander 
In January 2020, an MLB investigation revealed that the Astros had used technology to steal signs from opposing catchers in 2017 and 2018. The league fined the Astros and stripped them of first round draft picks in 2020 and 2021. MLB also suspended the team’s manager and general manager, who were later fired.
