2005 Houston Astros season

The 2005 Houston Astros season was the 44th season for the Major League Baseball franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 41st as the Astros, 44th in the National League, 12th in the NL Central division, and sixth at Minute Maid Park. The Astros entered the season with a 92–70 record, having qualified for their first-ever Wild Card title, runners-up in the NL Central, and 13 games behind the division-champion and NL pennant-winning St. Louis Cardinals. However, the Astros' season halted after defeat in a classic, 7-game [2004 National League (baseball)|National League Championship Series|National League Championship Series] to the Cardinals.
On April 5, pitcher Roy Oswalt made his third consecutive Opening Day start for the Astros, who hosted St. Louis, but were defeated, 7–3. In the amateur draft, the Astros' first round selections included left-handed pitcher Brian Bogusevic and outfielder Eli Iorg. On June 25, the Astros retired the uniform number of former outfielder Jimmy Wynn. With expectations of a deeper postseason run in 2005, Houston initially underperformed, starting at 15–30.
Four Astros were selected to the MLB All-Star game, including pitchers Roger Clemens, Brad Lidge, and Oswalt, and third baseman Morgan Ensberg. It was the 11th career selection for Clemens, and first for each of Oswalt, Lidge, and Ensberg.
The Astros rebounded to win 74 of the final 117 games and posted an 89–73 overall record, runners-up in the NL Central for a fourth consecutive season and 11 games behind the repeat division-champion St. Louis Cardinals. In the Wild Card race, the Astros finished one game ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies to obtain both their second-consecutive NL Wild Card title and playoff berth. It was the Astros' sixth playoff appearance in a span of nine seasons. The ninth postseason appearance overall in franchise history, it was their second wild card qualification.
The Astros faced the Atlanta Braves for their fifth matchup in nine seasons in the National League Division Series format. Houston triumphed in a second consecutive NLDS, capped by the series-ending walk-off home run by Chris Burke in the 18th inning. The NLCS featured another rematch with St. Louis, this time yielding a 4-games-to-2 victory for Houston, their first-ever NL pennant and World Series appearance. Oswalt, who won both of his starts and allowed just 2 earned runs over 14 innings pitched for a 1.29 earned run average, was recognized as NLCS MVP. However, the Astros were swept by the Chicago White Sox, 4 games to 0, in the World Series.
Clemens won the NL earned run average title, while, following the season, Craig Biggio was recognized with the Hutch Award, Ensberg with the Silver Slugger Award, and center fielder Willy Taveras was selected as the Players Choice Award winner for NL Outstanding Rookie, The Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year, and to the Topps All-Rookie Team. Three Astros received consideration for the NL Cy Young Award, including Clemens, Oswalt, and Andy Pettitte, and, for NL [Major League Baseball Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award|Rookie of the Year Award|Rookie of the Year], Taveras finished second in the voting.
The 2005 season was the Astros' final playoff appearance as a National League team, and for the next ten seasons, until 2015, after having transitioned to the American League. First baseman Jeff Bagwell, who spent his entire career with the Astros, made his final major league appearance as a player in the 2005 World Series, retiring after 15 seasons.

Offseason

Summar

In February 2005, longtime Astros players Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio were jointly inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame.

Transactions

January 7, 2005: Adam Riggs was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros.
January 7, 2005: Turk Wendell was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros.
January 23, 2005: John Franco signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros.
February 11, 2005: Trenidad Hubbard was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros.

Regular season

Summary

April—May

;Opening Day starting lineup
The Astros hosted the Chicago Cubs on April 29, which featured a matchup between aces Roger Clemens and Greg Maddux, both already 300-game winners. Clemens worked 7 innings with three runs allowed and four strikeouts, while Maddux surrendered two runs over six innings, striking out three. First baseman Jeff Bagwell, who was playing through injury, hit his final major league home run against Maddux on April 29, tying him for the most against any pitcher with seven. With the contest tied 2–2, Conroe native Jeromy Burnitz led off the seventh with a home run, allowing Maddux to get the win as the Cubs won, 3–2. The 306th win of Maddux' career, Clemens entered the game with 329. The Clemens–Maddux duel was the first time in the major leagues that two pitchers who had already attained 300 or more career wins faced each other since Don Sutton of the California Angels and Steve Carlton of the Minnesota Twins on August 4, 1987. It was the first such matchup in the National League since July 21, 1892, when Tim Keefe of the Philadelphia Phillies pitched against Jim "Pud" Galvin of the St. Louis Browns.
Having announced season-ending shoulder surgery, on May 15, Bagwell's club routed the San Francisco Giants, 9–0. Filling in for the injured star, Morgan Ensberg launched a career day, blasting three home runs with 5 RBI to lead the way for the Astros.

Retirement of Jim Wynn's uniform number 24

During a pre-game ceremony on June 25, the club officially retired uniform number 24, donned by former outfielder Jimmy Wynn. Dubbed "The Toy Cannon," the Wynn embodied the Colt.45s/Astros' original slugger, slamming 291 home runs during his 15-year career, including 223 with Houston—a franchise record that remained until Bagwell surpassed him in 1999. A native of the Cincinnati metropolitan area, Wynn signed out of high school with the Reds in 1962. Later that year, Houston selected him in the first-year player draft.
An excellent blend of power, speed, and patience, some of Wynn's distinctions included becoming the first Astros player to connect for three home runs in one game, the first to hit 30 home runs in a season, their first 40-stolen base bandit, and, in 1969, a then-NL record tying 148 bases on balls fortified with an on-base streak of 52 games which tied for sixth in NL history. Following the 1973 campaign, Wynn departed Houston ranked among club leaders in hits, home runs and runs batted in.

MLB All-Star Game

For the second consecutive year, four Astros were selected to the MLB All-Star Game, hosted at Comerica Park in Detroit. The Astros' corps included pitchers Roger Clemens, Brad Lidge, and Roy Oswalt, and third baseman Morgan Ensberg. This was the sixth time that the Astros had sent at least four players to Midsummer Classic, succeeding the 1979, 1986, 1994, 1999, and 2004 editions.
The American League defeated the NL squad, 7–5. All Astros selectees appeared in the contest. Owalt was charged win two runs in his inning, Clemens pitched a clean inning while Lidge struck out the side. Ensberg was substituted in at first base for Derrek Lee in the seventh inning.

September—October

On September 7, Craig Biggio hit his 20th home run of the season off former Astros closer Billy Wagner in the top of the ninth inning, a three-run shot that decided an Astros 8–6 final, and sealed 6–0 sweep of the season series over the Philadelphia Phillies. In the ninth, the Astros' José Vizcaíno reached on a fielding error and Willy Taveras beat out an infield single to set up Biggio. Another former Astro Bobby Abreu hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning and a Shane Victorino RBI single temporarily gave the Phillies the lead against Dan Wheeler, but Chad Qualls got the final two outs of the eighth before Brad Lidge locked down the bottom of the ninth for his 35th save. It was the Astros' 12th consecutive win over Philadelphia, allowing them to hold a one-game lead over the Florida Marlins in the NL Wild Card race.
Bagwell was activated on September 9 after having missed most of the season following shoulder surgery on June 7. Rendered unable to throw, he was limited to pinch hitting opportunities for the rest of the year. Were the Astros able to make the playoffs, he'd be placed on the roster.
Closer Brad Lidge converted his 25th consecutive save on September 28, breaking a club record. The streak had started June 21, surpassing former bullpen-mate Wagner. Lidge's feat remained the franchise longest until Roberto Osuna converted 25 consecutive from August 22, 2018, to May 24, 2019. It was Lidge's 40th save of the season. also joining Wagner in 2003 as the second pitcher to achieve 40 saves in one season for the Astros.
Lidge saved the final two games of the season, both against the Cubs on October 1 and 2, to conclude with 42.
After having starting the season with a 15–30 won–loss record, the Astros reversed the momentum to post a 74–43 record over their final 117 games and capture the NL Wild Card title.

Performance overview

With a regular-season conclusion that largely resembled 2004, Houston produced an 89–73 showing, while capturing their second-successive National League Wild Card title. First, Houston wound up second to another NL Central division champion St. Louis Cardinals powerhouse who had claimed upward of 100 wins, 11 games ahead of Houston. Moreover, the Astros finished just one game ahead in the Wild Card race, this time outlasting the Philadelphia Phillies. Hence, the club actualized the third era in franchise history featuring sequential playoff entrances, succeeding the 1980, 1981, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2004 squads.
For the eighth time in franchise history, Houston reached the 89-win threshold, while qualifying for their ninth playoff appearance, the second via the Wild Card position. Since the inception of the NL Central division in 1994, Houston had concluded the regular season in either first or second place eleven times in 12 seasons, excluding the 2000 campaign. Furthermore, during a span of 17 seasons commencing in 1992, the 2005 campaign signified the thirteenth of 15 having completed with a.500 winning percentage or above.
As such, manager Phil Garner joined Bill Virdon, Hal Lanier, and Larry Dierker as those who distinguished themselves by guiding Astros clubs to the playoffs.
Clemens won the NL earned run average title —also leading the major leagues—to become the first Astro to lead the league since Danny Darwin in 1990, the fifth Astro and sixth time overall in franchise history. Clemens was preceded by J. R. Richard, Nolan Ryan, and Mike Scott.
Meanwhile, Pettitte ranked second in the NL in ERA, which also ranked third in club history among left-handed pitchers, trailing only Bob Knepper and Mike Cuellar.
Oswalt, having won 20 games, repeated this feat in consecutive seasons, the first Astro to do so since Joe Niekro in 1979 and 1980.
Third baseman Morgan Ensberg was honored with his first career Silver Slugger Award, also becoming the first player in club history to win the award at his position. Ensberg became the first Astro to win the award win since Bagwell and Mike Hampton in 1999.
Willy Taveras was selected as the Players Choice Award winner for NL Outstanding Rookie, the first Houston Asto selected for this award. He also won The Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year to became the eighth Astro to win TSN Rookie of the Year Award, and first since Oswalt in 2001,

Lone Star series

Known as the Lone Star Series, the annual interleague games between the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers were played in June and July.

Date	Winning team	Score	Winning Pitcher	Losing Pitcher	Attendance	Location
May 20	Texas		Kenny Rogers	Brandon Backe	38,109	Arlington
May 21	Texas		Chris Young	Ezequiel Astacio	35,781	Arlington
May 22	Texas		Chan Ho Park	Roy Oswalt	40,583	Arlington
June 24	Houston		Roy Oswalt	Ricardo Rodríguez	36,199	Houston
June 25	Texas		Chris Young	Brandon Backe	41,868	Houston
June 26	Houston		Chad Qualls	Juan Dominguez	35,331	Houston

Transactions

April 9, 2005: Brooks Kieschnick was signed as a free agent with the Houston Astros.
April 27, 2005: Trenidad Hubbard was released by the Houston Astros.

Player stats

Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases; BB = Walks; AVG = Batting average; SLG = Slugging average

Player	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	AVG	SLG
Willy Taveras	152	592	82	172	13	4	3	29	34	25	.291	.341
Craig Biggio	155	590	94	156	40	1	26	69	11	37	.264	.468
Adam Everett	152	549	58	136	27	2	11	54	21	26	.248	.364
Morgan Ensberg	150	526	86	149	30	3	36	101	6	85	.283	.557
Jason Lane	145	517	65	138	34	4	26	78	6	32	.267	.499
Lance Berkman	132	468	76	137	34	1	24	82	4	91	.293	.524
Brad Ausmus	134	387	35	100	19	0	3	47	5	51	.258	.331
Mike Lamb	125	322	41	76	13	5	12	53	1	22	.236	.419
Chris Burke	108	318	49	79	19	2	5	26	11	23	.248	.368
Orlando Palmeiro	114	204	22	58	17	2	3	20	3	15	.284	.431
José Vizcaíno	98	187	15	46	10	2	1	23	2	15	.246	.337
Eric Bruntlett	91	109	19	24	5	2	4	14	7	10	.220	.413
Jeff Bagwell	39	100	11	25	4	0	3	19	0	18	.250	.380
Raúl Chávez	37	99	6	17	3	0	2	6	1	4	.172	.263
Luke Scott	34	80	6	15	4	2	0	4	1	9	.188	.288
Humberto Quintero	18	54	6	10	1	0	1	8	0	1	.185	.259
Todd Self	21	45	7	9	2	0	1	4	0	3	.200	.311
Charles Gipson	19	11	2	2	1	0	0	1	1	1	.182	.273
Charlton Jimerson	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.---	.---
Pitcher Totals	163	304	13	51	5	2	0	16	1	13	.168	.197
Team Totals	163	5462	693	1400	281	32	161	654	115	481	.256	.408

Source:

Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Player	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
Roy Oswalt	20	12	2.94	35	35	0	241.2	243	85	79	48	184
Andy Pettitte	17	9	2.39	33	33	0	222.1	188	66	59	41	171
Roger Clemens	13	8	1.87	32	32	0	211.1	151	51	44	62	185
Brandon Backe	10	8	4.76	26	25	0	149.1	151	82	79	67	97
Wandy Rodríguez	10	10	5.53	25	22	0	128.2	135	82	79	53	80
Ezequiel Astacio	3	6	5.67	22	14	0	81.0	100	56	51	25	66
Chad Qualls	6	4	3.28	77	0	0	79.2	73	33	29	23	60
Dan Wheeler	2	3	2.21	71	0	3	73.1	53	18	18	19	69
Brad Lidge	4	4	2.29	70	0	42	70.2	58	21	18	23	103
Russ Springer	4	4	4.73	62	0	0	59.0	49	34	31	21	54
Chad Harville	0	2	4.46	37	0	0	38.1	36	21	19	24	33
Mike Burns	0	0	4.94	27	0	0	31.0	29	18	17	8	20
Mike Gallo	0	1	2.66	36	0	0	20.1	18	6	6	10	12
Brandon Duckworth	0	1	11.02	7	2	0	16.1	24	20	20	7	10
John Franco	0	1	7.20	31	0	0	15.0	23	13	12	9	16
Scott Strickland	0	0	6.75	5	0	0	4.0	4	3	3	0	2
Travis Driskill	0	0	0.00	1	0	0	1.0	1	0	0	0	2
Team Totals	89	73	3.51	163	163	45	1443.0	1336	609	563	440	1164

Source:

Postseason

National League Divisional Playoffs

The Astros faced a rematch in the Atlanta Braves in the Division Series. This was the fifth time the two teams had met in the postseason, and the Astros were looking to add on reaching the second round of the postseason in back-to-back years; the two teams had met for six games in the regular season, for which Houston won only once.
In Game 1 in Atlanta, the Astros struck first on a Morgan Ensberg RBI single, but Chipper Jones tied the game as the first inning ended. Ensberg gave the Astros the lead again on a bases-loaded single made it 3–1. Craig Biggio hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Brad Ausmus to make it 4–1 in the fourth, but Andruw Jones cut into the lead with a two-run shot to make it 4–3. Enberg struck again in the seventh with a RBI hit to drive in Andy Pettitte after he had hit a double. The Astros finally broke the game all the way through in the eighth, scoring five runs on the bases of four hits, three walks, and a wild pitch. The Astros prevailed in Game 1 by a score of 10–5.
Despite having Roger Clemens on the mound for Game 2, he was outmatched by John Smoltz, who allowed just one run while the Braves used the efforts of rookie Brian McCann to win 7–1.
Back in Houston for Game 3, the Astros struck first again by the efforts of Morgan Ensberg and Jason Lane, who made it 2-0 after one inning. McCann and pitcher Jorge Sosa tied the game on hits with two out in the next inning, but Mike Lamb would hit a home run in the third inning to make it 3–2. In the seventh, the Astros took advantage of Chris Reitsma on the mound, scoring four runs in the inning after hits by Lance Berkman, Ensberg and Lane went with a sacrifice fly by Adam Everett; the Astros prevailed 7–3.
Game 4 proved to be a classic for the ages despite its initial misgivings for Houston, featuring a grand slam that began a rally, a ninth-inning game-tying blast, and finally, an extra-innings, series-ending, walk-off drive. Adam LaRoche hit a grand slam off Brandon Backe to make it 4–0 in the third inning. The Braves added another run in the fifth that was matched by Houston, but the Braves scored in the top of the eighth inning with a McCann home run off Wandy Rodríguez to make it 6–1. However, the Astros struck back, punctuated by first-time home run achievements in the playoffs for the club. First, in the bottom of the eighth, Lance Berkman answered LaRoche's grand slam with his own blast off Kyle Farnsworth to shrink Atlanta's lead to 6–5. Berkman's grand slam represented the first-ever in the postseason by a Houston Astro. One inning later, with two out in the bottom of the ninth inning, Brad Ausmus stepped up to the plate against Farnsworth and proceeded to hit a home run, tying the game at six to send it to extra innings. The two teams traded zeroes for the next eight innings while setting a record for the longest postseason game in MLB history; Roger Clemens pitched three innings of relief. In the bottom of the 18th, with Joey Devine on the mound for Atlanta, Chris Burke lined a shot to left field that cleared the scoreboard for the series-ending, walk-off home run. Burke's drive was Houston's first-ever playoff series-ending home run, and just their second-ever walk-off home run in the playoffs. In Game 1 of the 1981 NLDS, Alan Ashby ended the contest from a Dave Stewart offering for a 3–1 decision over Los Angeles.
This was also the second postseason series victory for the Astros, sequentially—with both having occurred against Atlanta—sending them back to the National League Championship Series.

National League Championship Series

The opponent for the Astros in the Championship Series was a familiar foe: the St. Louis Cardinals, their rival in the National League Central. They had previously matched up against each other in the previous NLCS, which saw the Astros lose in seven games, needing only one more win to reach the Series. The Cardinals had won 100 games and had beaten Houston in eleven of sixteen games this season Game 1 was controlled by St. Louis from the jump. Reggie Sanders hit a two-out homerun with David Eckstein on base to make it 2–0. A sacrifice bunt by the pitcher drove in a third run in the second inning. Eckstein drove a run in with a single while Albert Pujols capped the scoring for the Cardinals with a single. The only scoring for Houston came late, as Chris Burke hit a two-run shot off the bullpen to make it 5–2 in the seventh before Brad Ausmus hit a sacrifice fly to make it 5–3, but reliever Jason Isringhausen finished the Astros off with no further damage. This was the fifth straight loss for the Astros in a postseason game played in St. Louis. Game 2 proved a different story. Burke lined a tripe with one out and then scored later when Cardinals pitcher Mark Mulder threw a ball past the catcher. Brad Ausmus lined a double in the fifth inning and then was driven home on a bunt and ground out to make it 2–0. Albert Pujols lined a home run to start the sixth inning, but the Cardinals were out-hit 11-6 and scored no more; Burke and Adam Everett would lend a hand with RBI hits to even the series at one.
In Game 3 back in Houston, Mike Lamb hit a two-run shot off Matt Morris to give them a 2–0 lead in the fourth inning. Roger Clemens would allow back-to-back hits in the fifth and sixth inning that saw the Cardinals score a run each to tie the game. However, in the sixth inning, Lamb hit a double that set him up to score when Jason Lane hit a single. A further single lead to Adam Everett at the plate, who hit into a fielder's choice that made it 4–2. While the Cardinals scored a run in the ninth inning on an RBI double, they could not crack Brad Lidge as Houston now led the Series. Game 4 was a tight affair that saw the bullpens flicker more than the offense, which saw eleven combined hits lead to three runs. Pujols gave the Cardinals the lead on a sacrifice fly in the 4th, but Jason Lane hit a home run off Jeff Suppan to tie it. In the seventh inning, the Astros had the bases loaded with less than two outs. With Morgan Ensberg at the plate, he hit a flyout that gave enough room to score a run from the third base. The Cardinals had a prime chance in the ninth inning when Lidge allowed back-to-back singles, but this would be followed by a groundball that led to a play at the plate that saw Pujols out at home for one out. John Mabry then grounded into a double play to give Houston a 3–1 lead. In Game 5, the Astros were one away from history. Craig Biggio started the scoring with an RBI single in the second, but St. Louis responded by hitting a single with the bases loaded to drive in two runs. In the seventh inning, with two on base and starter Chris Carpenter trying to go through the inning clean, Lance Berkman hit a home run to give the Astros a 4–2 lead. It set the stage for a pivotal ninth inning with Lidge set to close the inning. He got two easy outs before Eckstein lined a single with two strikes; this was followed by Jim Edmonds drawing a walk. Lidge now faced Albert Pujols at the plate; he hit a shot to left field that would give St. Louis a 5–4 lead that proved the difference in making the series now 3–2 in favor of Houston. Game 6, played at Busch Stadium, was a rematch between Game 2 starters Roy Oswalt and Mark Mulder. Houston set up the scoring with getting runners on second and third base in the third inning before Mulder threw a wild pitch that scored a run; Biggio then hit a single to drive in the other runner to make it 2–0. Jason Lane hit his second home run of the series in the fourth inning to make it 3–0. Roy Oswalt would dominate the Cardinals for seven innings, allowing only a run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning as the bullpen took control from there while adding two insurance runs in the sixth and seventh. With Dan Wheeler on the mound, Yadier Molina hit a flyball to right field that was caught by Jason Lane for the final out, clinching the first ever pennant for the Astros in history. Oswalt, who went 2–0 with a 1.29 ERA in 14 innings, was named NLCS MVP, the second time an Astro had won the award and first since Mike Scott in 1986.

World Series

After having played 4,714 games and their entire major league careers together in Houston, Bagwell and Biggio appeared in their first World Series in 2005.

Game 1

October 22, 2005 at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago
Playing in their first World Series home game since 1959, the White Sox took an early lead with a home run from Jermaine Dye in the first inning. The Sox scored two more in the second when Juan Uribe doubled in A. J. Pierzynski after Carl Everett had already scored on a groundout earlier in the inning. The Astros responded again in the next inning when Lance Berkman hit a double, driving in Adam Everett and Craig Biggio. In the White Sox half of the fourth, Joe Crede hit what turned out to be the game-winning home run. In the bottom of the eighth, Scott Podsednik hit a triple with Pierzynski on second. Roger Clemens recorded his shortest World Series start, leaving after the second inning with 53 pitches including 35 for strikes, due to a sore hamstring that he had previously injured as the loss went to Wandy Rodríguez. José Contreras pitched seven innings, allowing three runs on six hits for the win, and Bobby Jenks earned the save to give the White Sox a 1–0 lead in the series. When Neal Cotts entered the game in the top of the 8th it marked the first time in 5 games that the White Sox had gone to their bullpen.

Game 2

October 23, 2005 at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago
On a miserably cold and rainy evening, Morgan Ensberg's first-pitch home run off starter Mark Buehrle put the Astros on top in the second inning. The White Sox answered in the bottom of the second with two runs of their own off Andy Pettitte. Lance Berkman drove in three runs in the game, two of them on a go-ahead double in the top of the fifth. In the seventh inning, Dan Wheeler loaded the bases with a double to Juan Uribe, a walk to Tadahito Iguchi, and home plate umpire Jeff Nelson's ruling that Jermaine Dye was hit by a pitched ball. The ruling was considered questionable, as television replays showed that the ball hit Dye's bat. The Astros brought in Chad Qualls, who promptly served up a grand slam to Paul Konerko on the very first pitch he threw, the eighteenth grand slam in the annals of the Fall Classic. In the top of the ninth, White Sox closer Bobby Jenks blew the save when he gave up a two-run game-tying pinch hit single to José Vizcaíno. In the bottom half of the ninth, Astros closer Brad Lidge gave up a one-out, walk-off home run — the fourteenth in Series history — to Scott Podsednik, giving Lidge his second loss in as many post-season appearances. Podsednik had not hit a single homer in the regular season, and this was his second of the postseason. The Series moved to Houston with the White Sox leading 2–0.

Game 3

October 25, 2005 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
Game 3 was the first ever World Series game played in the state of Texas. Before the game, it was ruled by Commissioner Bud Selig that the retractable roof would be open at Minute Maid Park, weather permitting. The Astros objected, citing that their record in games with the roof closed was better than with the retractable roof open. Selig's office claimed that the ruling was based on the rules established by Houston and were consistent with how the Astros organization treated the situation all year long, as well as the weather forecasts for that period of time.
In the game - the longest World Series game in length of time and tied for the longest in number of innings - Lance Berkman singled with one out after a Craig Biggio lead-off double in the bottom of the first as the Astros struck early. The White Sox had a rally snuffed in the top of the second inning; after Paul Konerko hit a lead-off double and A. J. Pierzynski walked, Aaron Rowand hit into a line-drive double play. Adam Everett caught the ball and then doubled Konerko off second by flipping the ball to Biggio, who stepped on the bag. Houston scored in the bottom of the third when Everett led off with a walk. Everett got caught in a rundown and got hit by the ball on a Juan Uribe throwing error that hit Everett. A Roy Oswalt sacrifice bunt and a Biggio single sent Everett home. Berkman singled again with two out, sending Biggio to third. Then Morgan Ensberg singled Biggio home for the third run of the game. Jason Lane led off the Astros' fourth with a home run to left-center field. It was later shown in replays that the ball should not have been ruled a home run, hitting the left side of the yellow line on the unusual wall in left-center field.
The White Sox rallied in the top of the fifth, true to their "Win Or Die Trying" mantra of 2005, starting with a Joe Crede lead-off homer. Uribe, on first after hitting a single, scored on a Tadahito Iguchi base hit with one out, followed by Scott Podsednik coming home on a duck-snort single by Jermaine Dye. Pierzynski hit a two-out double to Tal's Hill, driving in two runs, scoring Iguchi and Dye giving the White Sox the lead. The Astros rallied in the last of the eighth with two outs when Lane's double scored Ensberg with the tying run after back-to-back walks by Ensberg and Mike Lamb, giving Dustin Hermanson a blown save. Houston tried to rally to win in the ninth, but stranded Chris Burke at third, after he had walked, reached second on an error and stolen third.
The Astros tried again in the tenth as well as in the eleventh, but failed each time. In the top of the fourteenth, after the Sox hit into a spectacular double play started by Ensberg, Geoff Blum homered to right with two outs off Ezequiel Astacio. After two infield singles by Rowand and Crede that went a total of 150 feet according to McCarver, Uribe walked, and then Chris Widger walked thanks to Astacio's sudden wildness. The Astros tried to rally with the tying runs on first and third and two outs after a Uribe error, but Game 2 starter Mark Buehrle earned the save for winning pitcher Dámaso Marte when Everett popped out, bringing the White Sox one game closer to their first World Championship in eighty-eight years. Buehrle became the first pitcher ever to start a game in the Series, and save the next one.
Many records were set or tied in the game besides time and innings: The teams combined to use seventeen pitchers, throwing a total of 482 pitches, and walking twenty-one batters combined ; forty-three players were used, and thirty men were left on base, all new high-water marks in their categories in Fall Classic history. Scott Podsednik set a new all-time record with eight official-at-bats in this game. One record that was tied was most double plays turned, with six.

Game 4

October 26, 2005 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
Before the game, Major League Baseball unveiled its Latino Legends Team.
The fourth game was the pitchers' duel that had been promised throughout the series. Both Houston starter Brandon Backe and Chicago starter Freddy García put zeros on the scoreboard through seven innings, the longest since Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. Scott Podsednik had a two-out triple in the top of the third, but Tadahito Iguchi grounded out to second, thus snuffing that threat. The Astros had the best chance of scoring in the sixth, but Jason Lane struck out with the bases loaded to end that rally. The White Sox had a chance in the top of the seventh with runners at second and third and two out, but shortstop Juan Uribe struck out to snuff the rally. The White Sox were able to break through in the next inning against embattled Houston closer Brad Lidge. Willie Harris hit a pinch-hit single. Podsednik moved Harris to second with a sacrifice bunt. Carl Everett pinch-hit for Iguchi and grounded out to the right side to allow Harris to move over to third. Jermaine Dye, the Most Valuable Player of the series, had the game-winning single, driving in Harris.
Things got a little sticky for the Sox in the Astros half of the eighth when reliever Cliff Politte hit Willy Taveras, threw a wild pitch, sending Taveras to second, and walked Lance Berkman. After Morgan Ensberg flew out to center, ChiSox manager Ozzie Guillén brought in Neal Cotts to finish the inning. Cotts induced pinch-hitter José Vizcaíno into a ground out to Uribe. Bobby Jenks, the 24-year-old fireballer, started the ninth inning. He allowed a single to Jason Lane and a sacrifice bunt to Brad Ausmus. Chris Burke came in to pinch-hit; he fouled one off to the left side, but Uribe made an amazing catch in the stands to retire Burke.
The game ended when Orlando Palmeiro grounded to Uribe. It was a bang-bang play as Paul Konerko caught the ball from Uribe at 11:01 p.m. CDT to begin the biggest celebration in Chicago since the sixth NBA championship by the Bulls in 1998, and end the second-longest period without a World Series title. The 1–0 shutout was the first 1-run game to end a World Series since the 1995 World Series, in which Game 6 was won by the Atlanta Braves over the Cleveland Indians, and the first 1–0 game in any Series game since Game 5 of the 1996 World Series when the New York Yankees shut out the Braves in the last game ever played at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium.

Composite box

2005 World Series : Chicago White Sox over Houston Astros

Awards and achievements

Career honors

Houston Astros uniform numbers retired:
* Jimmy Wynn, outfielder: No. 24 • In Houston 1963–1973 • 1,426 games • 1× MLB All-Star Texas Sports Hall of Fame inductees:
* Jeff Bagwell
* Craig Biggio

Annual awards

Baseball Digest Rookie All-Star—Outfielder: Willy Taveras

Darryl Kile Good Guy Award: Morgan Ensberg
Delivery Man of the Month—July: Brad Lidge
Fred Hartman Award for Long and Meritorious Service to Baseball: Gene Coleman
Houston-Area Major League Player of the Year: Adam Dunn
Houston Astros Most Valuable Player Award: Morgan Ensberg
Houston Astros Pitcher of the Year: Roger Clemens
Houston Astros Rookie of the Year: Willy Taveras
Hutch Award: Craig Biggio
MLB All-Star Game
* Roger Clemens—Reserve pitcher
* Morgan Ensberg—Reserve infielder
* Brad Lidge—Reserve pitcher
* Roy Oswalt—Reserve pitcher
National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player : Roy Oswalt
National League Pitcher of the Month
* July: Andy Pettitte
* September: Andy Pettitte
NL Player of the Week:—July 3: Morgan Ensberg
Players Choice Award winner for NL Outstanding Rookie: Willy Taveras
Silver Slugger Award at third base: Morgan EnsbergThe Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year: Willy Taveras
Topps All-Star Rookie Team—Outfielder: Willy Taveras

League leaders

;NL batting leaders

Singles: Willy Taveras

;NL pitching leaders:

Minor league system

;Awards

Texas League Pitcher of the Year: Jason Hirsh, RHP
Texas League All-Star: Jason Hirsh, RHP