Society for American Baseball Research - Dome Sweet Dome: History and Highlights from 35 Years of the Houston Astrodome: SABR Digital Library, #45

In July 2014 I attended the SABR national convention in Houston, and recall vividly the impressive organization of the event and the many engaging research sessions. Of particular interest was the session at Minute Maid Park, the Houston Astros stadium with its retractable roof. After listening intently to former Astros players speak about the careers, and members of the clubs analytics department discuss advanced sabermetrics, I thought that a SABR volume focusing on the Astros former home, the Astrodome, known as The Eighth Wonder of the World, would be an exciting book project. When I returned home, that idea landed on the back burner until Rick Bush called me in April 2015 and asked me if I would consider editing a volume on the iconic stadium. And if that werent enough, Rick already had a name for the book: Dome Sweet Dome: History and Highlights from 35 Years of the Houston Astrodome . That was all the encouragement I needed, and the project was launched.

This book evokes memories of the Astrodome through detailed summaries of 70 games played there, and nine insightful feature essays about the history of the ballpark. It was an arduous task limiting the volume to just 70 games. Our preliminary list had probably three times that many, and had other editors chosen the games, their list might have been substantially different. Some of the games might be considered great, like Nolan Ryans record-breaking fifth no-hitter; or historical, like the first regular-season game in the Dome; yet other contests might be remembered for outstanding or milestone accomplishments, such as Jim Wynn becoming the first player to hit three home runs in the Astrodome, or fantastic finishes like the Astros 22-inning victory in 1989. It would have been easy to create a volume consisting solely of great games by Ryan, J.R. Richard, Mike Scott, Jeff Bagwell, and Craig Biggio; however, we were guided by an overarching principle to present the history of the Astrodome through the baseball games played there. For us that meant including games focusing on and showcasing as many different players as possible, some well known, others less so, from Rusty Staub, Bob Watson, and Daryl Kile to Walter Bonds, Milt May, and George Bjorkman. And no volume could be complete without the Astros memorable, and often heartbreaking, losses in postseason games in the 1980s and 1990s. The nine feature essays contextualize the stadiums history. Included are pieces focusing on the Astrodomes engineering, the major movers and shakers in the early stages of the stadiums history, such as Roy Hofheinz, George Kirksey, and Craig Cullinan, the Astrodome as a home to nonbaseball events, and of course, an in-depth historical sketch of the Astrodome itself.

Members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) made this book possible. These volunteers are united by a passion for researching and writing about baseball history. I thank all of the authors for their contributions, meticulous research, cooperation through the revising and editing process, and finally their patience. I am impressed with your dedication to preserve baseball history by combing archives, interviewing players, and telling the story of so many exciting games played in, and the history of, the Astrodome.

A special shout-out goes to Bill McCurdy, a member of the Larry Dierker (Houston) chapter of SABR. Not only did he write a very heartfelt personal reflection about his 35 years attending sporting events in the Astrodome, he connected me with Astro icons Tal Smith and Larry Dierker, and with the Houston Astros in my search for photos. I am forever grateful to Tal Smith and Larry Dierker for agreeing to write introductions for this volume. Their personal observations about the Astrodome lend the book an additional sense of authenticity.

We had an All-Star editorial team. The second reader, Bill Nowlin, read every submission, and can spot a missing comma or a colon a mile away. This is the sixth book weve worked on together, and I think he anticipates my questions before I ask them. Rick Bush served as the third reader. His superb and conscientious editing made every contribution better. Rick also wrote most of the photo captions. James Forr was the fact-checker. He verified every statistic and fact in every essay, and offered addition insights, suggestions, and information for authors to consider. The copy editor was Len Levin, who has served in this capacity for all of the SABR books. I am not sure what we would do without his deft touch he made us all look good. Thanks to each of you.

This book would not have been possible without the generous support of the staff and Board of Directors of SABR, SABR Publications Director Cecilia Tan, and designer Gilly Rosenthol (Rosenthol Design).

Special thanks go to the Houston Astros Baseball Club for providing the overwhelming majority of photos for this book. Id also like express my gratitude to the Astros Mike Acosta, manager, authentication, and Alex Bierens de Haan, photographer, for their coordination in sending the photos to us. The Astros support of SABRs nonprofit mission is greatly appreciated. I also extend my thanks to John Horne of the National Baseball Hall of Fame for supplying additional photos.

And finally, I wish to thank my wife, Margaret, and daughter, Gabriela, for their support. Theyve gotten use to my late evening working on SABR projects. Thankfully they are baseball fans who also got to see a game at Minute Maid Park during the SABR convention in Houston.

Gregory H. Wolf

March 1, 2017

A trio of stars for Astros. Jimmy Wynn, Mike Cuellar, and Rusty Staub represented the Astros at the 1967 All-Star Game at Anaheim Stadium. (Courtesy of Houston Astros Baseball Club).