2019 Houston Astros season

The 2019 Houston Astros season was the 58th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 55th as the Astros, seventh in both the American League (AL) and AL West division, and 20th at Minute Maid Park. They entered the season as having set a franchise record with 103 wins, defending two-time AL West champions, both with 100 or more wins, an unprecedented feat for Houston. Having reached a second consecutive American League Championship Series (ALCS), their 2018 season ended in a 4-games-to-1 loss to the eventual World Series champion Boston Red Sox.

Starting the 2019 season, the Houston Astros began airing their weekly night games on KTRH 740. On March 28, Justin Verlander made his second Opening Day start for the Astros at Tropicana Field, who defeated the Tampa Bay Rays, 5–1. Outfielder and designated hitter Yordan Alvarez made his major league debut in June, set a number of records and rare feats, and proceeded to win the AL Rookie of the Month Award each of his first three months.

For the third consecutive season, the Astros sent six players to the All-Star Game held at Progressive Field in Cleveland, the most in baseball, including four starters: Alex Bregman, Michael Brantley, Justin Verlander, and George Springer; pitchers Gerrit Cole and Ryan Pressly were also selected.

At the July trade deadline, the Astros acquired starting pitchers Zack Greinke—adding a seventh 2019 All-Star to their roster—and Aaron Sanchez. In his Astros debut on August 3, Sanchez tossed the first six innings of a combined no-hitter versus the Seattle Mariners, while Greinke was 8–1 with a 3.02 earned run average (ERA) over 10 starts for Houston. On September 1, Verlander pitched his third career no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays while striking out 14. The 12th and 13th no-hitters in club history, it marked the first time that Houston authored two in the same season. Verlander also recorded his 3,000th career strikeout on September 28, and, along with Cole, became just the second teammate duo to achieve the 300 strikeout club, joining the 2002 Arizona Diamondbacks.

On September 18, the Astros clinched a postseason berth against the Texas Rangers and became the first team since the 2002—2004 New York Yankees to produce three consecutive 100-win seasons. On September 22, the Astros clinched their third straight AL West title. For the first time in franchise history, the Astros led baseball with the best regular-season record of 107–55, surpassing the club record of 103 wins set the season before. The AL West title signaled the 13th playoff appearance—the fourth since moving to the American League—and 10th division title in franchise history.

In the American League Division Series (ALDS), Houston defeated the Tampa Bay Rays by a margin of three games to two. They proceeded to defeat the Yankees in the ALCS by a margin of four games to two, capped by ALCS MVP Jose Altuve's deep series-ending, walk-off home run. Hence, the Astros secured their second AL pennant, third league pennant overall, and a trip to the World Series for the second time in three years. However, Houston were defeated by the Washington Nationals in seven games.

Following the season, Verlander was recognized with his second career Cy Young Award, while becoming the fourth Astro to garner the award. The Astros led the league with a record six players selected to 2019's inaugural All-MLB Team, including Altuve, Alvarez, Bregman, Cole, Greinke and Verlander. Bregman, Springer and Greinke were each honored with Silver Slugger Awards, while Greinke also earned a Gold Glove. Meanwhile, Alvarez was opted as the AL Rookie of the Year.

This was the Astros' final season with A. J. Hinch as manager and Jeff Luhnow as general manager; both were fired in January 2020 after MLB investigators confirmed that the team had used electronics to steal opponents’ signs back in the 2017 regular season.