2008 Houston Astros season
| 2008 Houston Astros | |
|---|---|
| League | National League |
| Division | Central |
| Ballpark | Minute Maid Park |
| City | Houston, Texas |
| Record | 86–75 (.534) |
| Divisional place | 3rd |
| Owners | Drayton McLane Jr. |
| General managers | Ed Wade |
| Managers | Cecil Cooper |
| Television | FSN Houston KTXH (My 20) Bill Brown, Jim Deshaies |
| Radio | KTRH Milo Hamilton, Brett Dolan, Dave Raymond KLAT (Spanish) |
| Stats | ESPN.com Baseball Reference |
The 2008 Houston Astros season was the 47th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 44th as the Astros, 47th in the National League (NL), 15th in the NL Central division, and ninth at Minute Maid Park. The Astros entered the season with a 73–89 record, in fourth place in the NL Central division and 12 games behind the division-champion Chicago Cubs.
On March 31, pitcher Roy Oswalt made his sixth consecutive Opening Day start for the Astros, hosted by the San Diego Padres at Petco Park, but were defeated, 4–0. In the amateur draft, the Astros' first round selections included catcher Jason Castro (10th overall) and pitcher Jordan Lyles (38th).
First baseman Lance Berkman and shortstop Miguel Tejada were selected to the MLB All-Star Game, representing the Astros and playing for the National League, It was the fourth career selection for Berkman, and fifth for Tejada. Closer José Valverde led the NL in saves with 44, the third pitcher to do so for Houston. On August 17, the jersey number of former second baseman Craig Biggio (7) was retired during a pre-game ceremony. On September 23, former Astros outfielder Jesús Alou was honored with the Hispanic Heritage Hall of Fame's Pioneer Award.
Houston finished the 2008 season with a 86–75 record for third place in the NL West, and 11 games behind Chicago for first place. In the NL Wild Card race, Houston ranked second, trailing the Milwaukee Brewers by 3+1⁄2 games, thus missing the playoffs. This was the 15th season in a span of 17 that Houston had finished with a record . of .500 or better, since 1992, and their final while still competing in the National League.