Astrotalk with Mike Acosta & Gerald Sanchez

Larry Dierker

Larry Dierker made his Major League debut with the Houston Colt .45s on his 18th birthday in 1964, starting his path as a lifelong member of the Houston franchise with 40 years of service. He was a four-time Opening Day starting pitcher and a two-time National League All-Star. In 1969, Dierker became Houston’s first-ever 20-game winner, pitched a franchise record 305.1 innings and was named the Astros team MVP. On July 9, 1976 Larry Dierker tossed the fifth no-hitter in Astros history, a 6-0 win over the Montreal Expos in the Astrodome. He joined the Astros Front Office following his playing career as Director of Community Relations and Ticket Sales. He moved in the broadcast booth in 1979 where he remained for 18 years before being named Field Manager for the 1997 season. Dierker was the sixth manager in MLB history to win a division championship in his first season. Under his managerial leadership from 1997-2001, the Astros won four NL Central Division titles. In 1998, the Astros won 102 games, a club record that stood for 20 seasons. with Dierker earning NL Manager of the Year honors. The Astros retired his number 49 in 2002 and he was inducted into the Astros Hall of Fame in 2019.

Bob Aspromonte

Signed from the sandlots of Brooklyn, New York by the Dodgers in 1956, Bob Aspromonte arrived in as an original member of the Houston Colt .45s after being selected in the 1961 National League expansion draft. Prior to Houston, Aspromonte spent two years with the Dodgers after their move to Los Angeles in 1960 and 1961. He recorded the first hit and scored the first run in Houston franchise history during the club’s inaugural game, on April 10, 1962, an 11-2 win over the Chicago Cubs at Colt Stadium. An Opening Day starter during his entire career with Houston, “Aspro” set an NL record in 1962 by playing 57 consecutive errorless games at third base. In 1962 he also became friends with Bill Bradley, a young boy from Arkansas who was undergoing surgery in Houston to recover his eye sight following a lightning strike. Bradley asked his friend, “Bobby”, to hit a home run once in 1962 and twice in 1963, which Aspromonte amazingly did each time. Two of the homers were game-winning grand slams. Bob Aspromonte led the Astros with six career grand slams until his record was tied in 2004. He was the 1964 team MVP after setting NL records for fewest errors (11) and posting the highest fielding percentage (.973) at third base. A clutch hitter throughout his career, Aspromonte recorded 14 game-winning hits in 1965 and was the first Houston players to hit a regular season home run in the “Eighth Wonder of the World”, the Astrodome. Overall, Bob Aspromonte played in a Houston uniform from 1962-1968 before moving on to the Atlanta Braves (1969-70) and the New York Mets (1971). In 2019 Bob Aspromonte was inducted into the Houston Astros Hall of Fame as a member of the inaugural class.