1961 – 494 acres of land on the south end of Houston are bought by R.E. “Bob” Smith and Judge Roy Hofheinz. 180 acres are sold to Harris County as the site where the new domed stadium will be built.
1961 – Houston holds their first rookie camp in Jacksonville, FL. Farm director Bobby Bragan conducts the camp for young players under contract with the newly-named Colt .45s.
1961 – The Houston Sports Association announces “Colt .45s” as the winner of the “Name That Team” contest. Entries from as far away as Australia came in. Many had suggested “Colts” but the gun, rather than the horse, won out much to the later chagrin of Judge Roy Hofheinz.
1961 – The first tryout camp is held in Houston for the new National League expansion team. It is held at Busch Stadium, the same southeast Houston locale that had been called Buffs Stadium for decades.
1961 – Houston Sports Association announces an agreement with Apache Junction, AZ for spring training facilities beginning the following season. Geronimo Park, in the shadow of Superstition Mountain, serves as the spring home of the Colt .45s in their first two seasons and is remembered best for its desolation and rumored curses.
1961 – Harris County officials and members of the Houston Sports Association stump for votes in favor of the upcoming bond election to be held on January 31st. The bonds would allow the County to begin building the first indoor baseball arena, a condition National League owners gave Judge Hofheinz while approving Houston for an expansion franchise.
1961 – The Houston Sports Association buys the minor league Houston Buffs, a team affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals for decades. The HSA runs the team for the rest of the season while building a transition to National League play the following year.
1961 – Rumors swirl that legendary manager Leo Durocher, currently a coach with the Dodgers, would be named the first manager of the new Houston franchise. Reports of phone conversations between Durocher and General Manager Gabe Paul are true but nothing materializes beyond that. Durocher would eventally lead the club in 1972 after several years as skipper of the Cubs.
1960 – Roland Americo “Buddy” Biancalana is born in Greenbrae, CA. A career .205 hitter who bats .042 during his 18 games as an Astro in 1987, Buddy gains notoriety as the butt of David Letterman jokes.
Julio Solano is born in Agua Blanca, DR. The pitcher would spend his first five big league seasons with the Astros followed by two years in Seattle.
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