MLB stayed consistent through the 1960 season, with each league having 8 teams. Expansion first came in 1961, with the AL adding the Los Angeles Angels and Washington Senators (the original Washington Senators became the Minnesota Twins and the later Senators became the Texas Rangers in 1972). The NL expanded in 1962, as the New York Mets and Houston Astros joined the NL. Both the AL and NL expanded by two for the 1969 season, as the AL added the Kansas City Royals and Seattle Pilots (the Pilots became the Milwaukee Brewers for the 1970 season) and the NL added the San Diego Padres and Montreal Expos. The AL would add the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays for the 1977 season. It wasn't until 1993 that the NL added two more teams: the Florida Marlins and Colorado Rockies. Both leagues concluded the expansion with the AL's Tampa Bay Devil Rays and the NL's Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998.
Prior to the first game played by each of the new teams, a draft was held the year before for the new teams to attempt to put together a roster of players for the next season. The rules for the availability of players changed slightly from 1962 to 1998, but what was common was the opportunity for the new teams to decide which players they could use from the existing teams in MLB. Over a series of 14 posts, I will review the expansion drafts of each of these newer 14 teams. Included are trades made following the draft and which players were taken first overall. Without further due, here is a recap of the 1968 expansion draft for the Houston Colt 45s.
After the American League expanded two teams for the 1961 season, the National League was prepared to do the same. A team was added to Houston and an NL team was returned to the New York area. The draft consisted of three phases, a regular phase consisting of 32 picks, from unprotected players on all National League teams. While no more than four players can be taken off of one team, there was no limit to how often you can select a player from any one team. Because of that the first two picks, SS Eddie Bressoud and C Hobie Landrith, came from the San Francisco Giants. Of course, that meant both the Colt 45s and Mets could only select two Giants for the remaining 30 picks of the first phase of the draft. Each player selected in the first regular phase cost the drafting team $75,000 a player. The second phase consisted of the next 5 picks, which cost the selecting team $50,000 per player.
Following that phase, the teams had a premium phase of the draft. Each selection on this level cost the selecting team $100,000. A total of 8 players went in this phase. Overall, the Colt 45s ended up with 23 new players while the Mets winded up with 22.
Like I already mentioned, the Astros started off by taking SS Eddie Bressoud from the Giants. After the Mets selected Landrith, the Astros selected Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Bob Aspromonte (3rd). Their next selection was infielder Bob Lllis (7th) from the St Louis Cardinals. RHP Dick Drott was taken next from the Chicago Cubs (9th). Outfielders Al Heist (11th) and Ramon Mejias (13th), from the Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates, respectively, followed before the Colt 45s selected consecutive Philadelphia Phillies, infielder George Williams (15th) and pitcher Jesse Hickman (17th). They then selected catcher Merritt Ranew (19th) from the Milwaukee Braves, Cardinals OF Don Taussig (21st) and Pirates LHP Bobby Shantz (23rd).
Finishing off the first phase of the draft, the Colt 45s took 1B Norm Larker (25th) from the Dodgers, RHP "Sad Sam" Jones (27th)from the Giants, pitchers Phil Roof (29th-Braves) and Ken Johnson (31st-Reds) and 1B Dick Gernert (33rd-Reds).
The second phase of the draft netted the Colt 45s infielder Ed Olivares (35th-Cardinals), RHP Jim Umbricht (37th-Pirates) and LHP Jim Golden (39th-Dodgers). Umbricht, who would pitch very effectively for the Colt 45s in 1962 and 1963 as a reliever, sadly got very sick and passed away before the start of the 1964 season.
The premium phase saw Houston get infielder Joey Amalfitano (38th-Giants), RHP Turk Farrell (40th-Phillies), C Hal Smith (42nd-Pirates) and OF Al Spangler (44th-Braves). The following is the entire 1961 expansion draft for the Houston Colt 45s.
Regular Phase, $75,000 per player
PickPlayerPositionSelected byPrevious team
1Eddie BressoudInfielderHouston Colt .45sSan Francisco Giants
3Bob AspromonteInfielderHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
5Bob LillisInfielderHouston Colt .45sSt. Louis Cardinals
7Dick DrottPitcherHouston Colt .45sChicago Cubs
9Al HeistOutfielderHouston Colt .45sChicago Cubs
11Román MejíasOutfielderHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
13George WilliamsInfielderHouston Colt .45sPhiladelphia Phillies
15Jesse HickmanPitcherHouston Colt .45sPhiladelphia Phillies
17Merritt RanewCatcherHouston Colt .45sMilwaukee Braves
19Don TaussigOutfielderHouston Colt .45sSt. Louis Cardinals
21Bobby ShantzPitcherHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
23Norm LarkerFirst basemanHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
25Sam JonesPitcherHouston Colt .45sSan Francisco Giants
27Paul RoofPitcherHouston Colt .45sMilwaukee Braves
29Ken JohnsonPitcherHouston Colt .45sCincinnati Reds
31Dick GernertFirst basemanHouston Colt .45sCincinnati Reds
Regular Phase, $50,000 per player
PickPlayerPositionSelected byPrevious team
33Ed OlivaresInfielderHouston Colt .45sSt. Louis Cardinals
35Jim UmbrichtPitcherHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
37Jim GoldenPitcherHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
Premium Phase, $125,000 per player
PickPlayerPositionSelected byPrevious team
38Joe AmalfitanoInfielderHouston Colt .45sSan Francisco Giants
40Turk FarrellPitcherHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
42Hal SmithCatcherHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
44Al SpanglerOutfielderHouston Colt .45sMilwaukee Braves
The Astros first ever game saw them beat the Chicago Cubs in Houston 11-2 behind starting pitcher Bobby Shantz. This was the starting lineup in the historical first for the franchise, managed by Harry Craft.
Bob Aspromonte 3B
Art Spangler CF
Roman Mejias RF
Norm Larker 1B
Jim Pendleton LF
Hal Smith C
Joey Amalfitano 2B
Don Buddin SS
Bobby Shantz P
Eddie Bressoud, the number one overall selection in the draft, was dealt to the Boston Red Sox for SS Buddin, who was in the Colt 45s opening day lineup. He would be traded by mid season. Bressoud, who had been a role player for the past several seasons with the Giants, became the Red Sox starting SS and had a breakout season, hitting .277, 14, 58 with 40 2B. His best season would be in 1964 with Boston where he hit.293, 15, 55 with 41 2B, 86 RS and OPS of .828. The team purchased LF Jim Pendleton from the Cincinnati Reds in the offseason. The Colt 45s would finish the season 64-96. That was good enough for 8th in the NL out of the 10 teams. Houston finished ahead of Chicago (59-103) and New York (40-120). Both the Colt 45s and Mets struggled so immensely through their first couple seasons, they actually had a second draft to allow the teams to improve themselves. The Colt 45s took RHP Claude Raymond from the Braves while the Mets took RHP Jack Fisher from the Giants.
After three seasons, it was decided the Houston Colt 45s should go with a new name, as there was an issue with the fact that the nickname was a hand gun. They became the Astros, and soon after, opened their new stadium, the Astrodome. The Astros moved into the NL West division beginning in 1969. They moved to the NL Central starting in 1998. 2013 was the Astros
Prior to the first game played by each of the new teams, a draft was held the year before for the new teams to attempt to put together a roster of players for the next season. The rules for the availability of players changed slightly from 1962 to 1998, but what was common was the opportunity for the new teams to decide which players they could use from the existing teams in MLB. Over a series of 14 posts, I will review the expansion drafts of each of these newer 14 teams. Included are trades made following the draft and which players were taken first overall. Without further due, here is a recap of the 1968 expansion draft for the Houston Colt 45s.
After the American League expanded two teams for the 1961 season, the National League was prepared to do the same. A team was added to Houston and an NL team was returned to the New York area. The draft consisted of three phases, a regular phase consisting of 32 picks, from unprotected players on all National League teams. While no more than four players can be taken off of one team, there was no limit to how often you can select a player from any one team. Because of that the first two picks, SS Eddie Bressoud and C Hobie Landrith, came from the San Francisco Giants. Of course, that meant both the Colt 45s and Mets could only select two Giants for the remaining 30 picks of the first phase of the draft. Each player selected in the first regular phase cost the drafting team $75,000 a player. The second phase consisted of the next 5 picks, which cost the selecting team $50,000 per player.
Following that phase, the teams had a premium phase of the draft. Each selection on this level cost the selecting team $100,000. A total of 8 players went in this phase. Overall, the Colt 45s ended up with 23 new players while the Mets winded up with 22.
Like I already mentioned, the Astros started off by taking SS Eddie Bressoud from the Giants. After the Mets selected Landrith, the Astros selected Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Bob Aspromonte (3rd). Their next selection was infielder Bob Lllis (7th) from the St Louis Cardinals. RHP Dick Drott was taken next from the Chicago Cubs (9th). Outfielders Al Heist (11th) and Ramon Mejias (13th), from the Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates, respectively, followed before the Colt 45s selected consecutive Philadelphia Phillies, infielder George Williams (15th) and pitcher Jesse Hickman (17th). They then selected catcher Merritt Ranew (19th) from the Milwaukee Braves, Cardinals OF Don Taussig (21st) and Pirates LHP Bobby Shantz (23rd).
Finishing off the first phase of the draft, the Colt 45s took 1B Norm Larker (25th) from the Dodgers, RHP "Sad Sam" Jones (27th)from the Giants, pitchers Phil Roof (29th-Braves) and Ken Johnson (31st-Reds) and 1B Dick Gernert (33rd-Reds).
The second phase of the draft netted the Colt 45s infielder Ed Olivares (35th-Cardinals), RHP Jim Umbricht (37th-Pirates) and LHP Jim Golden (39th-Dodgers). Umbricht, who would pitch very effectively for the Colt 45s in 1962 and 1963 as a reliever, sadly got very sick and passed away before the start of the 1964 season.
The premium phase saw Houston get infielder Joey Amalfitano (38th-Giants), RHP Turk Farrell (40th-Phillies), C Hal Smith (42nd-Pirates) and OF Al Spangler (44th-Braves). The following is the entire 1961 expansion draft for the Houston Colt 45s.
Regular Phase, $75,000 per player
PickPlayerPositionSelected byPrevious team
1Eddie BressoudInfielderHouston Colt .45sSan Francisco Giants
3Bob AspromonteInfielderHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
5Bob LillisInfielderHouston Colt .45sSt. Louis Cardinals
7Dick DrottPitcherHouston Colt .45sChicago Cubs
9Al HeistOutfielderHouston Colt .45sChicago Cubs
11Román MejíasOutfielderHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
13George WilliamsInfielderHouston Colt .45sPhiladelphia Phillies
15Jesse HickmanPitcherHouston Colt .45sPhiladelphia Phillies
17Merritt RanewCatcherHouston Colt .45sMilwaukee Braves
19Don TaussigOutfielderHouston Colt .45sSt. Louis Cardinals
21Bobby ShantzPitcherHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
23Norm LarkerFirst basemanHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
25Sam JonesPitcherHouston Colt .45sSan Francisco Giants
27Paul RoofPitcherHouston Colt .45sMilwaukee Braves
29Ken JohnsonPitcherHouston Colt .45sCincinnati Reds
31Dick GernertFirst basemanHouston Colt .45sCincinnati Reds
Regular Phase, $50,000 per player
PickPlayerPositionSelected byPrevious team
33Ed OlivaresInfielderHouston Colt .45sSt. Louis Cardinals
35Jim UmbrichtPitcherHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
37Jim GoldenPitcherHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
Premium Phase, $125,000 per player
PickPlayerPositionSelected byPrevious team
38Joe AmalfitanoInfielderHouston Colt .45sSan Francisco Giants
40Turk FarrellPitcherHouston Colt .45sLos Angeles Dodgers
42Hal SmithCatcherHouston Colt .45sPittsburgh Pirates
44Al SpanglerOutfielderHouston Colt .45sMilwaukee Braves
The Astros first ever game saw them beat the Chicago Cubs in Houston 11-2 behind starting pitcher Bobby Shantz. This was the starting lineup in the historical first for the franchise, managed by Harry Craft.
Bob Aspromonte 3B
Art Spangler CF
Roman Mejias RF
Norm Larker 1B
Jim Pendleton LF
Hal Smith C
Joey Amalfitano 2B
Don Buddin SS
Bobby Shantz P
Eddie Bressoud, the number one overall selection in the draft, was dealt to the Boston Red Sox for SS Buddin, who was in the Colt 45s opening day lineup. He would be traded by mid season. Bressoud, who had been a role player for the past several seasons with the Giants, became the Red Sox starting SS and had a breakout season, hitting .277, 14, 58 with 40 2B. His best season would be in 1964 with Boston where he hit.293, 15, 55 with 41 2B, 86 RS and OPS of .828. The team purchased LF Jim Pendleton from the Cincinnati Reds in the offseason. The Colt 45s would finish the season 64-96. That was good enough for 8th in the NL out of the 10 teams. Houston finished ahead of Chicago (59-103) and New York (40-120). Both the Colt 45s and Mets struggled so immensely through their first couple seasons, they actually had a second draft to allow the teams to improve themselves. The Colt 45s took RHP Claude Raymond from the Braves while the Mets took RHP Jack Fisher from the Giants.
After three seasons, it was decided the Houston Colt 45s should go with a new name, as there was an issue with the fact that the nickname was a hand gun. They became the Astros, and soon after, opened their new stadium, the Astrodome. The Astros moved into the NL West division beginning in 1969. They moved to the NL Central starting in 1998. 2013 was the Astros
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