I've been an Astros fan since the first time my dad took me to the Astrodome in June 1977. I have been with them through the good times, and the very bad times (including last year). As painful as it was, I came to grips with them being shipped to the American League in 2013, by the forceful hand of Bud Selig, even though I prefer the National League game much more. Now Jim Crane, the new owner, is contemplating having a name change to coincide with the 2013 move.
Crane says the name might be outdated now that the space shuttle program has been scrapped. He says that many fans were upset in the 60's when they changed the Colt .45's name to the Astros, and life went on. My retort would be that the franchise was only 3 years old at the time the first name change came about, so there would not be near the backlash of a change back then then there would be now. Maybe the space program is not what it used to be, but after a certain amount of time (almost 5 decades), I would think that the term "Astros" is firmly embedded when you talk Houston, or maybe even MLB, baseball.
Crane is going to do a study, and come to a conclusion by the end of next year. I have no problem with new uniforms. I think the ones they have been wearing for the last decade are a hideous shade of red, and could be updated, but to change the name? Crane can say that the Astros will always be a part of their history, but with the move to the AL, and the name change, it won't be the same team to me.
Crane says the name might be outdated now that the space shuttle program has been scrapped. He says that many fans were upset in the 60's when they changed the Colt .45's name to the Astros, and life went on. My retort would be that the franchise was only 3 years old at the time the first name change came about, so there would not be near the backlash of a change back then then there would be now. Maybe the space program is not what it used to be, but after a certain amount of time (almost 5 decades), I would think that the term "Astros" is firmly embedded when you talk Houston, or maybe even MLB, baseball.
Crane is going to do a study, and come to a conclusion by the end of next year. I have no problem with new uniforms. I think the ones they have been wearing for the last decade are a hideous shade of red, and could be updated, but to change the name? Crane can say that the Astros will always be a part of their history, but with the move to the AL, and the name change, it won't be the same team to me.
