# 1983 Houston Astros season

The 1983 Houston Astros season was the 22nd season for the Houston Astros, a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 19th as the Astros, 15th in the National League West, and 19th at The Astrodome. It involved the Houston Astros attempting to win the National League West.

## Offseason

* December 10, 1982: Danny Heep was traded by the Astros to the New York Mets for Mike Scott.
* January 11, 1983: Troy Afenir was drafted by the Astros in the 1st round (11th pick) of the 1983 Major League Baseball draft (secondary phase).
* March 31, 1983: Alan Knicely was traded by the Astros to the Cincinnati Reds for Bill Dawley and Tony Walker.

## Regular season

* April 17, 1983: Nolan Ryan struck out Andre Dawson for the 3500th strikeout in his career.
* April 27, 1983: Nolan Ryan struck out Brad Mills of the Expos to break Walter Johnson's all time mark for strikeouts in a career. Mills was the 3,509th strikeout of Ryan's career.

### Season standings

vteNL West :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 91 | 71 | .562 | — | 48‍–‍32 | 43‍–‍39 |
| Atlanta Braves | 88 | 74 | .543 | 3 | 46‍–‍34 | 42‍–‍40 |
| Houston Astros | 85 | 77 | .525 | 6 | 46‍–‍36 | 39‍–‍41 |
| San Diego Padres | 81 | 81 | .500 | 10 | 47‍–‍34 | 34‍–‍47 |
| San Francisco Giants | 79 | 83 | .488 | 12 | 43‍–‍38 | 36‍–‍45 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 74 | 88 | .457 | 17 | 36‍–‍45 | 38‍–‍43 |

### Record vs. opponents

1983 National League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | ATL | CHC | CIN | HOU | LAD | MON | NYM | PHI | PIT | SD | SF | STL |
| Atlanta | — | 5–7 | 12–6 | 11–7 | 7–11 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 9–9 | 9–9 | 7–5 |
| Chicago | 7–5 | — | 4–8 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 7–11 | 9–9 | 5–13 | 9–9 | 5–7 | 4–8 | 10–8 |
| Cincinnati | 6–12 | 8–4 | — | 5–13 | 7–11 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 9–9 | 10–8 | 6–6 |
| Houston | 7–11 | 7–5 | 13–5 | — | 6–12 | 8–4 | 9–3 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 11–7 | 12–6 | 2–10 |
| Los Angeles | 11–7 | 6–6 | 11–7 | 12–6 | — | 7–5 | 7–5 | 11–1 | 6–6 | 6–12–1 | 5–13 | 9–3 |
| Montreal | 5–7 | 11–7 | 8–4 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 8–10 | 8–10–1 | 8–10 | 8–4 | 8–4 | 9–9 |
| New York | 4–8 | 9–9 | 5–7 | 3–9 | 5–7 | 10–8 | — | 6–12 | 9–9 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 6–12 |
| Philadelphia | 5-7 | 13–5 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 1–11 | 10–8–1 | 12–6 | — | 11–7 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 14–4 |
| Pittsburgh | 6–6 | 9–9 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 10–8 | 9–9 | 7–11 | — | 9–3 | 6–6 | 10–8 |
| San Diego | 9–9 | 7–5 | 9–9 | 7–11 | 12–6–1 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 3–9 | — | 11–7 | 6–6 |
| San Francisco | 9–9 | 8–4 | 8–10 | 6–12 | 13–5 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 7–11 | — | 4–8 |
| St. Louis | 5–7 | 8–10 | 6–6 | 10–2 | 3–9 | 9–9 | 12–6 | 4–14 | 8–10 | 6–6 | 8–4 | — |

### Notable transactions

* June 6, 1983: Robbie Wine was drafted by the Astros in the 1st round (8th pick) of the 1983 Major League Baseball draft.
* June 17, 1983: Danny Boone was released by the Astros.

### Roster
## Game log
### Regular season

1983 regular season game log: 85–77 (home: 46–36; away: 39–41) :
April: 8–14 (home: 5–10; away: 3–4)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
1April 5Dodgers
2April 6Dodgers
3April 7Pirates
4April 8Pirates
5April 9Pirates
6April 10Pirates
7April 11@ Dodgers
8April 12@ Dodgers
9April 13@ Dodgers
10April 15Expos
11April 16Expos
12April 17Expos
13April 19Reds
14April 20Reds
15April 21Reds
16April 22Phillies
17April 23Phillies
18April 24Phillies
19April 26@ Expos
20April 27@ Expos
21April 29@ Phillies
22April 30@ Phillies :
May: 14–14 (home: 7–7; away: 7–7)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
23May 1@ Phillies
24May 2@ Mets
25May 3@ Mets
26May 4@ Mets
27May 5@ Braves
28May 6@ Braves
29May 7@ Braves
30May 8@ Braves
31May 9Mets
32May 10Mets
33May 11Mets
34May 12Braves
35May 13Braves
36May 14Braves
37May 15Braves
38May 17@ Cardinals
39May 18@ Cardinals
40May 20@ Pirates
41May 21@ Pirates
—May 22@ PiratesPostponed (Rain) (Makeup date: August 23)
42May 23Cubs
43May 24Cubs
44May 25Cubs
45May 26Cardinals
46May 27Cardinals
47May 28Cardinals
48May 29Cardinals
49May 30@ Cubs
50May 31@ Cubs :
June: 15–11 (home: 10–3; away: 5–8)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
51June 1@ Cubs
52June 3@ Reds
53June 4@ Reds
54June 5@ Reds
55June 7Giants
56June 8Giants
57June 9Giants
58June 10Padres
59June 11Padres
60June 12Padres
61June 13Padres
62June 14@ Giants
63June 15@ Giants
64June 16@ Giants
65June 17@ Padres
66June 18@ Padres
67June 19@ Padres
68June 20Braves
69June 21Braves
70June 22Braves
71June 24@ Dodgers
72June 25@ Dodgers
73June 26@ Dodgers
74June 28@ Braves
75June 29@ Braves
76June 30@ Braves :
July: 15–11 (home: 10–6; away: 5–5)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
77July 1Dodgers
78July 2Dodgers
79July 3Dodgers
80July 4Dodgers
54th All-Star Game in Chicago, Illinois
81July 8@ Mets
82July 9@ Mets
83July 10@ Mets
84July 12Expos
85July 13Expos
86July 14Expos
87July 15Mets
88July 16Mets
89July 17Mets
90July 18@ Phillies
91July 19@ Phillies
92July 20@ Phillies
93July 21@ Expos
94July 22@ Expos
95July 23@ Expos
96July 24@ Expos
97July 26Phillies
98July 27Phillies
99July 28Phillies
100July 29Reds
101July 30Reds
102July 31Reds :
August: 18–12 (home: 8–4; away: 10–8)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
103August 1@ Padres
104August 2@ Padres
105August 3@ Padres
106August 4@ Padres
107August 5@ Giants
108August 6@ Giants
109August 7@ Giants
110August 9Padres
111August 10Padres
112August 11Padres
113August 12Giants
114August 13Giants
115August 14Giants
116August 15@ Reds
117August 16@ Reds
118August 17@ Reds
119August 18@ Cardinals
120August 19@ Cardinals
121August 20@ Cardinals
122August 21@ Cardinals
123 (1)August 23@ Pirates
124 (2)August 23@ Pirates
125August 24@ Pirates
126August 25@ Pirates
127August 26Cubs
128August 27Cubs
129August 28Cubs
130August 29Cardinals
131August 30Cardinals
132August 31Pirates :
September: 14–14 (home: 7–6; away: 7–8)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
133September 1Pirates
134September 2@ Cubs
135September 3@ Cubs
136September 4@ Cubs
137September 5@ Braves
—September 6@ BravesPostponed (Rain; Site change) (Makeup date: September 28)
138September 7@ Padres
139September 8@ Padres
140September 9@ Giants
141September 10@ Giants
142September 11@ Giants
143September 13Dodgers
144September 14Dodgers
145September 15Dodgers
146September 16@ Reds
147September 17@ Reds
148September 18@ Reds
149September 19@ Dodgers
150September 20@ Dodgers
151September 21@ Dodgers
152September 23Giants
153September 24Giants
154September 25Giants
155September 26Padres
156September 27Padres
157 (1)September 28Braves
158 (2)September 28Braves
159September 29Braves
160September 30Reds :
October: 1–1 (home: 1–1; away: 0–0)
#DateTime (CT)OpponentScoreWinLossSaveTime of GameAttendanceRecordBox/ Streak
161October 1Reds
162October 2Reds :
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Postponement Bold = Astros team member :

## Player stats
### Batting
#### Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| C | Alan Ashby | 87 | 275 | 63 | .229 | 8 | 34 |
| 1B | Ray Knight | 145 | 507 | 154 | .304 | 9 | 70 |
| 2B | Bill Doran | 154 | 535 | 145 | .271 | 8 | 39 |
| SS | Dickie Thon | 154 | 619 | 177 | .286 | 20 | 79 |
| 3B | Phil Garner | 154 | 567 | 135 | .238 | 14 | 79 |
| LF | José Cruz | 160 | 594 | 189 | .318 | 14 | 92 |
| CF | Omar Moreno | 97 | 405 | 98 | .242 | 0 | 25 |
| RF | Terry Puhl | 137 | 465 | 136 | .292 | 8 | 44 |

#### Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| Kevin Bass | 88 | 195 | 46 | .236 | 2 | 18 |
| Tony Scott | 80 | 186 | 42 | .226 | 2 | 17 |
| Jerry Mumphrey | 44 | 143 | 48 | .336 | 1 | 17 |
| Denny Walling | 100 | 135 | 40 | .296 | 3 | 19 |
| Craig Reynolds | 65 | 98 | 21 | .214 | 1 | 6 |
| Luis Pujols | 40 | 87 | 17 | .195 | 0 | 12 |
| John Mizerock | 33 | 85 | 13 | .153 | 1 | 10 |
| Harry Spilman | 42 | 78 | 13 | .167 | 1 | 9 |
| George Bjorkman | 29 | 75 | 17 | .227 | 2 | 14 |
| Tim Tolman | 43 | 56 | 11 | .196 | 2 | 10 |
| Scott Loucks | 7 | 14 | 3 | .214 | 0 | 0 |
| Bert Peña | 4 | 8 | 1 | .125 | 0 | 0 |

### Pitching
#### Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Joe Niekro | 38 | 263.2 | 15 | 14 | 3.48 | 152 |
| Bob Knepper | 35 | 203.2 | 6 | 13 | 3.19 | 125 |
| Nolan Ryan | 29 | 196.1 | 14 | 9 | 2.98 | 183 |
| Mike Scott | 24 | 145.0 | 10 | 6 | 3.72 | 73 |

#### Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Mike LaCoss | 38 | 138.0 | 5 | 7 | 4.43 | 53 |
| Vern Ruhle | 41 | 114.2 | 8 | 5 | 3.69 | 43 |
| Mike Madden | 28 | 94.2 | 9 | 5 | 3.14 | 44 |
| Jeff Heathcock | 6 | 28.0 | 2 | 1 | 3.21 | 12 |

#### Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| Frank DiPino | 53 | 3 | 4 | 20 | 2.65 | 67 |
| Bill Dawley | 48 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 2.82 | 60 |
| Dave Smith | 42 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 3.10 | 41 |
| Frank LaCorte | 37 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5.06 | 48 |
| Julio Solano | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6.00 | 3 |

## Awards and honors

* Ray Knight, Hutch Award

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Tucson Toros | Pacific Coast League | Matt Galante |
| AA | Columbus Astros | Southern League | Jack Hiatt |
| A | Daytona Beach Astros | Florida State League | Dave Cripe |
| A | Asheville Tourists | South Atlantic League | Tom Spencer |
| A-Short Season | Auburn Astros | New York–Penn League | Bob Hartsfield |
| Rookie | GCL Astros | Gulf Coast League | José Tartabull |