Even just five short years ago, the Astros were baseball’s popular punchline. Gone were the days of respectability. The moments of glory under Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, and Lance Berkman felt like a distant memory.
Essentially the Astros franchise punched the reset button. The radical rebuild brought to you by new ownership, and general manager Jeff Luhnow was in full swing. Even more controversial than the rebuild was the change in leagues. Houston, or Texas for that matter, wouldn’t house a National League franchise starting in 2013.