Astros in the Sky
by Darrell Pittman

Last updated: June 19, 2008

Houston's baseball club is, by MLB standards, a very young one: the 2007 season was only its 46th. Still, over the years, the franchise has lost a number of players, including the tragic deaths of Jim Umbricht in 1963 of cancer, and Don Wilson in 1975 of carbon monoxide poisoning. Both were active players at the time of their deaths, and their numbers were later retired by the club.

This page is dedicated to the memory of all former Colt .45s and Astros players who have since passed on.

You can view the player details in the chronological order of their passing, or select alphabetically from the following:

A-C

Tommie Agee, John Anderson, John Bateman, Jim Beauchamp, Bo Belinsky, Curt Blefary, Walt Bond, Pidge Browne, George Brunet, Jim Busby, John Buzhardt, Ken Caminiti, Andujar Cedeño, Al Cicotte, Willie Crawford,

D-L

Jay Dahl, Ron Davis, Dick Drott, Arnold Earley, Dick "Turk" Farrell, Nellie Fox, Gary Geiger, Billy Goodman, Howie Goss, Al Heist, Joe Hoerner, John Hoffman, Gordon Jones, Darryl Kile, Jack Lamabe, Norm Larker, Aurelio Lopez

M-R

Marty Martinez, Eddie Mathews, Lee Maye, Don McMahon, Aurelio Monteagudo, Ivan Murrell, Joe Niekro, Don Nottebart, Jim Pendleton, Howie Reed, Vern Ruhle, Pete Runnels

S-Z

Carroll Sembera, Larry Sherry, Johnny Temple, Bobby Tiefenauer, Jim Umbricht, Cecil Upshaw, Jose Uribe, Glenn Vaughan, Johnny Weekly, Ron Willis, Don Wilson, Chris Zachary


(c) Houston Astros
Jim Umbricht
Full name: James Umbricht
Nickname: Big Jim
Born: 9/17/30, Chicago, IL
Died: 4/8/64, Houston, TX; cancer.
Career: PIT (1959-61); HOU (1962-63)
Jersey retired: #32, 4/12/65
Notes:
  • First jersey number to be retired by Houston
  • His ashes were spread over the Astrodome construction site by his brother Ed from a private airplane as his parents and teammates looked on.


(c) Houston Astros
Jay Dahl
Full name: Jay Steven Dahl
Born: 12/6/45, San Bernadino, CA
Died: 6/20/65, Salisbury, NC; auto accident.
Career: HOU (1963)
Notes: Starting pitcher for Colt .45s "All-Rookie Team" against the Mets, 9/27/63.


(c) Houston Astros
Walt Bond
Full name: Walter Franklin Bond
Born: 10/19/37, Denmark, TN
Died: 9/14/67, Houston, TX; leukemia
Career: CLE (1960-62), HOU (1964-65), MIN (1967)
Notes: One of the last alums of the Negro Leagues' Kansas City Monarchs


(c) Houston Astros
Johnny Weekly
Full name: Johnny Weekly
Born: 6/14/37, Waterproof, LA
Died: 11/24/74, Walnut Creek, CA; auto accident
Career: HOU (1962-64)


(c) Houston Astros
Don Wilson
Full name: Donald Edward Wilson
Born: 2/12/45, Monroe, LA
Died: 1/5/75, Houston, TX; carbon monoxide poisoning
Career: HOU (1966-74)
All-Star: 1971
Jersey retired: #40, 4/13/75
Notes: Pitched two no-hitters for Houston:
  • 6/18/67, 2-0 victory over the Braves in Houston
  • 5/1/69, 4-0 victory over the Reds in Cincinnati


(c) Houston Astros
Nellie Fox
Full name: Jacob Nelson Fox
Nickname: Mighty Mite, Little Nel
Born: 12/25/27, St. Thomas, PA
Died: 12/1/75, Baltimore, MD; skin cancer.
Career: PHI-A (1947-49); CHW (1950-63); HOU (1964-65)
All-Star: 1951-61, 1963
Hall of Fame: Inducted 1997, Veterans Committee
Notes:
  • Brought to Houston to mentor rookie second-baseman Joe Morgan.
  • 1959 World Series MVP for "Go-Go" Chicago White Sox.


(c) Houston Astros
Dick "Turk" Farrell
Full name: Richard Joseph Farrell
Nickname: Turk
Born: 4/8/34, Boston, MA
Died: 6/10/77, Great Yarmouth, England; auto accident.
Career: PHI (1956-61); LA (1961); HOU (1962-67); PHI (1967-69)
All-Star: 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965
Notes:
  • Houston's first All Star
  • Famous for his practical jokes. Once sneaked a baby alligator into the whirlpool in the Colt .45s' clubhouse


(c) Houston Astros
Ron Willis
Full name: Ronald Earl Willis
Born: 7/12/43, Willisville, TN
Died: 11/21/77, Memphis, TN; brain tumor
Career: STL (1966-69); HOU (1969); SD (1970)


(c) Houston Astros
Al Cicotte
Full name: Alva Warren Cicotte
Nicknames: Bozo, because of the brand of ice cream he favored.
Count Dracula, because he favored black suits, often with a cape.
Born: 12/23/29, Melvindale, MI
Died: 11/29/82, Westland, MI.  No cause reported.
Career: NYY (1957), WAS (1958), DET (1958), CLE (1959), STL (1961), HOU (1962)
Notes: Great-nephew of Eddie Cicotte, who was banned from baseball in the 1919 "Black Sox" scandal.


(c) Topps
Billy Goodman
Full name: William Dale Goodman
Born: 3/22/26, Concord, NC
Died: 10/1/84, Sarasota, FL; cancer
Career: BOS-A (1947-57); BAL (1957); CHW (1958-61); HOU (1962)
All-Star: 1949, 1953
Notes:
  • 1950 AL batting champion
  • Played five games in the World Series for the 1959 Chicago White Sox in a losing effort against the Los Angeles Dodgers.


(c) Topps
Howie Reed
Full name: Howard Dean Reed
Nickname: Diz
Born: 12/21/36, Dallas, TX
Died: 12/7/84, Corpus Christi, TX. No cause reported.
Career: KC (1958-60), LA (1964-66), CAL (1966), HOU (1967), MON (1969-71)


(c) Houston Astros
Dick Drott
Full name: Richard Fred Drott
Nickname: Hummer
Born: 7/1/36, Cincinnati, OH
Died: 8/16/85, Glendale Heights, IL; stomach cancer.
Career: CHC (1957-61); HOU (1962-63)


(c) Houston Astros
Don McMahon
Full name: Donald John McMahon
Born: 1/4/30, Brooklyn, NY
Died: 7/22/87, Los Angeles, CA; heart attack.
Career: MIL-N (1957-62); HOU (1962-64); CLE (1964-66); BOS-N (1966-67); CHW (1967-68); DET (1968-69); SF (1969-74)
All-Star: 1958


(c) Houston Astros
Aurelio Monteagudo
Full name: Aurelio Faustino (Cintra) Monteagudo
Nickname: Monty
Born: 11/19/43, Caribarien, Cuba
Died: 11/10/90, Saltillo, Mexico; auto accident
Career: KC (1963-66); HOU (1966); CHW (1967); KC (1970); CAL (1973)
Notes: Son of major-leaguer Rene Monteagudo


(c) Houston Astros
Pete Runnels
Full name: James Edward Runnels (b. James Edward Runnells)
Born: 1/28/28, Lufkin, TX
Died: 5/20/91, Pasadena, TX; stroke
Career: WAS (1951-57), BOS (1958-62), HOU (1963-64)
All-Star: 1959, 1960, 1962
Honors:


(c) Houston Astros
George Brunet
Full name: George Stuart Brunet
Nickname: Lefty
Born: 6/8/35, Houghton, MI
Died: 10/25/91, Poza Rica, Mexico; heart attack
Career: KC (1956-60), MIL (1960-61), HOU (1962-63), BAL (1963), CAL (1965-69), SEA (1969), WAS (1970), PIT (1970), STL (1971)
Notes: Played minor league ball in the Mexican League into his fifties.


(c) Houston Astros
Ron Davis
Full name: Ronald Everette Davis
Born: 10/21/41, Roanoke Rapids, NC
Died: 9/5/92, Houston, TX.  No cause reported
Career: HOU (1962, 1966-68); STL (1968); PIT (1969)
Notes: Appeared in two games for Cardinals in 1968 World Series


(c) Houston Astros
Aurelio Lopez
Full name: Aurelio Alejandro (Rios) Lopez
Nickname: Señor Smoke
Born: 9/21/48, Tecamachalco, Mexico
Died: 9/22/92, Matehuala, Mexico; auto accident.
Career: KC (1974), STL (1978), DET (1979-85), HOU (1986-87)
All-Star: 1974, 1983


(c) Houston Astros
Johnny Temple
Full name: John Ellis Temple
Born: 8/8/27, Lexington, NC
Died: 1/9/94, Anderson, SC; pancreatitis
Career: CIN (1952-59), CLE (1960-61), BAL (1962), HOU (1962-63), CIN (1964)
All-Star: 1956-57, 1959, 1961
Notes: Part of baseball's first inter-league trade (in 1960 from Cincinnati to Cleveland for Billy Martin and Cal McLish)


(c) Houston Astros
Gordon Jones
Full name: Gordon Bassett Jones
Born:4/2/30, Portland, OR
Died: 4/25/94, Lodi, CA; cause unknown
Career: STL (1954-56); NYG/SF (1957-59); BAL (1960-61); KC (1962); HOU (1964-65)


(c) Houston Astros
Cecil Upshaw
Full name: Cecil Lee Upshaw
Born: 10/22/42, Spearnsville, LA
Died: 2/7/95, Lawrenceville, GA; heart attack
Career: ATL (1966-73); HOU (1973); CLE (1974); NYY (1974); CHW (1975)
Notes: Pitched three games in 1969 NLCS


(c) Houston Astros
Jim Pendleton
Full name: James Edward Pendleton
Nickname: The Guv'nor
Born: 1/7/24, St. Charles, MO
Died: 3/20/96, Houston, TX; heart attack
Career: MIL-N (1953-56); PIT (1957-58); CIN (1959); HOU (1962)


(c) Houston Astros
Gary Geiger
Full name: Gary Merle Geiger
Born: 4/4/37, Sand Ridge, IL
Died: 4/24/96, Murphysboro, IL; liver failure
Career: CLE (1958); BOS (1959-65); ATL (1966-67); HOU (1969-70)


(c) Houston Astros
Jim Busby
Full name: James Franklin Busby
Born: 1/8/27, Kennedy, TX
Died: 7/8/96, Augusta, GA; heart attack
Career: CHW (1950-52), WAS (1952-55), CHW (1955), CLE (1956-57), BAL (1957-58), BOS (1959-60), BAL (1960-61), HOU (1962)
All-Star: 1951


(c) Houston Astros
Howie Goss
Full name: Howard Wayne Goss
Born: 11/1/34, Wewoka, OK
Died: 7/31/96, Reno, NV.  No cause reported.
Career: PIT (1962); HOU (1963)
Notes: First Houston player reported to be a health-food enthusiast.


(c) Topps
Joe Hoerner
Full name: Joseph Walter Hoerner
Born: 11/12/36, Dubuque, IA
Died: 10/4/96, Hermann, MO; farming accident
Career: HOU (1963-64); STL (1966-69); PHI (1970-72); ATL (1972-73); KC (1973-74); PHI (1975); TEX (1976); CIN (1977)
All-Star: 1970
Notes: Played in World Series twice with St. Louis, in 1967 and '68.


(c) Houston Astros
John Bateman
Full name: John Alvin Bateman
Born: 7/21/40, Killeen, TX
Died: 12/3/96, Sand Spring, TX. No cause reported
Career: HOU (1963-68), MON (1969-72), PHI (1972)


(c) Houston Astros
Pidge Browne
Full name: Prentice Almont Browne
Born: 3/21/29, Peekskill, NY
Died: 6/3/97, Houston, TX.  No cause reported.
Career: HOU (1962)
Notes:
  • 1955 Texas League MVP for Shreveport Sports
  • Member of Houston Buffaloes when they won back-to-back Dixie Series, 1956-57
  • Only player to play for both the Houston Buffaloes and Colt .45s


(c) Topps
John Anderson
Full name: John Charles Anderson
Born:11/23/32, St. Paul, MN
Died: 12/20/98, Houston, TX; cause unknown
Career: PHI (1958), BAL (1960), STL (1962), HOU (1962)


(c) Houston Astros
Arnold Earley
Full name: Arnold Carl Earley
Born: 6/4/33, Lincoln Park, MI
Died: 9/29/99, Flint, MI; no cause reported
Career: BOS (1960-65); CHC (1966); HOU (1967)


(c) Houston Astros
Bobby Tiefenauer
Full name: Bobby Gene Tiefenauer
Born: 12/10/29, Desloge, MO
Died: 6/13/00, Desloge, MO.  Cause not reported.
Career: STL (1952, 55); CLE (1960); STL (1961); HOU (1962); MIL-N (1963-65); NYM (1965); CLE (1965, 67); CHC (1968)


(c) Houston Astros
Andujar Cedeño
Full name: Andujar Cedeño Donastorg
Born: 8/21/69, La Romana, D.R.
Died: 10/28/00, Santo Domingo, D.R.; auto accident.
Career: HOU (1990-94), SD (1995-96), DET (1996), HOU (1996)
Notes:


(c) Houston Astros
Tommie Agee
Full name: Tommie Lee Agee
Born:8/9/42, Magnolia, AL
Died: 1/22/01, New York, NY; heart attack
Career: CLE (1962-65), CHW (1965-67), NYM (1968-72), HOU (1973), STL (1973)
All-Star: 1966, 1967
Honors: 1966 AL Rookie of the Year
Notes: Hero of the 1969 "Miracle Mets" for his homer in Game 3 of the World Series off Jim Palmer, and two great catches in the outfield.


(c) Houston Astros
Curt Blefary
Full name: Curtis LeRoy Blefary
Nickname: Clank, because of his poor fielding.
Born: 7/5/43, Brooklyn, NY
Died: 1/28/01, Pompano Beach, FL; pancreatitis
Career: BAL (1965-68), HOU (1969), NYY (1970-71), OAK (1971-72), SD (1972)
Honors: 1965 AL Rookie of the Year for Baltimore Orioles
Notes:
  • Had his ashes scattered at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium while it was being demolished in May 2001.
  • Member of 1966 World Champion Orioles team
  • Caught Tom Phoebus' 4/27/68 no-hitter for Baltimore


(c) Houston Astros
Eddie Mathews
Full name: Edwin Lee Mathews, Jr.
Born: 10/13/31, Texarkana, TX
Died: 2/18/01, La Jolla, CA; pneumonia
Career: BOS-N (1952); MIL-N (1953-65); ATL (1966); HOU (1967); DET (1967-68)
All-Star: 1953, 1955-62
Hall of Fame: Inducted 1978
Notes: Only player to play for Braves in all three cities: Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta.


(c) Houston Astros
Bo Belinsky
Full name: Robert Belinsky
Born: 12/7/36, New York, NY
Died: 11/23/01, Las Vegas, NV; heart attack
Career: LAA (1962-65); PHI (1965-66); HOU (1967); PIT (1969); CIN (1970)
Notes:
  • As a 25-year-old rookie on 5/5/62 , threw a nine-strikeout, four-walk no-hitter for the Los Angeles Angels against the Baltimore Orioles, the first no-hitter on the West Coast in MLB history.
  • Married, and divorced, Playboy centerfold Jo Collins, then paper heiress Jane Weyerhauser.


(c) Houston Astros
John Hoffman
Full name: John Edward Hoffman
Nickname: Pork Chop
Born: 10/31/43, Aberdeen, SD
Died: 12/27/01, Seattle, WA; cause unknown
Career:  HOU (1964-65)


(c) Houston Astros
Darryl Kile
Full name: Darryl Andrew Kile
Nickname: DK
Born: 12/2/68, Garden Grove, CA
Died: 6/22/02, Chicago, IL; coronary artery blockage due to athereosclerosis
Career:  HOU (1991-97), COL (1998-99), STL (2000-02)
All-Star: 1993, 1997, 2000
Notes:
  • Pitched no-hitter against Mets, 9/8/93
  • Died four days after beloved Cardinals' announcer Jack Buck also died


(c) Houston Astros
Lee Maye
Full name: Arthur Lee Maye
Born: 12/11/34, Tuscaloosa, AL
Died: 7/17/02, Riverside, CA; complications from liver cancer
Career: MIL-N (1959-65); HOU (1965-66); CLE (1967-69); WAS (1969-70); CHW (1970-71)
Notes:
  • Lead NL in doubles, 1964 (44)
  • Died on the 43rd anniversary of his MLB debut with the Milwaukee Braves (7/17/59)
  • AstrosDaily interview, 7/16/01
  • Had a successful R&B recording/singing career, leading "Arthur Lee Maye and the Crowns"
  • Used to sing after games at the "Dome Shadow" nightclub, across the street from the Astrodome


(c) Houston Astros
Chris Zachary
Full name: William Christopher Zachary
Born: 2/19/44, Knoxville, TN
Died: 4/19/03, Knoxville, TN; bone marrow cancer
Career: HOU (1963-67); KC (1969); STL (1971); DET (1972); PIT (1973)
Notes:
  • Once described himself as "a pretty decent 10th-man on a 10-man staff."
  • Inducted into Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame


(c) Houston Astros
Willie Crawford
Full name: Willie Murphy Crawford
Born: 9/7/46, Los Angeles, CA
Died: 8/27/04, Knoxville, TN; kidney disease
Career: LAD (1964-75), STL (1976), HOU (1977), OAK (1977)


(c) Houston Astros
Ken Caminiti
Full name: Kenneth Gene Caminiti
Born: 4/21/63, Hanford, CA
Died: 10/11/04, Bronx, NY; heart attack
Career: HOU (1987-94), SD (1995-98), HOU (1999-2000), TEX (2001), ATL (2001)
Notes:
  • 1996 NL MVP
  • All-Star 1994, 1996, 1997 (all elected)


(c) Houston Astros
Glenn Vaughan
Full name: Glenn Edward Vaughan
Nickname: Sparky
Born: 2/16/44, Compton, CA
Died: 12/18/04, Houston, TX; natural causes
Career: HOU (1963)
Notes:
  • Signed by Houston as amateur free agaent, 1962
  • Starting third baseman in the All-Rookie Game, 9/27/63
  • Son of Hall-of-Famer Arky Vaughan
  • Ran a successful insurance business in Houston following his retirement from baseball.


(c) Houston Astros
Carroll Sembera
Full name: Carroll William Sembera
Nicknames: Pencil, The Hat
Born: 7/26/41, Shiner, TX
Died: 6/15/05, Shiner, TX; cause not announced
Career: HOU (1965-67), MON (1969-70)
Notes:
  • Served as a scout for the Seattle Mariners


(c) Houston Astros
Al Heist
Full name: Alfred Michael Heist
Born: 10/5/27, Brooklyn, NY
Died: 10/2/06, Tahlequah, OK; cause not reported
Career: CHI (1960-61) HOU (1962)
Notes:
  • Signed by St. Louis Browns in 1949.
  • Acquired by Houston in the National League expansion draft after the 1961 season.
  • Appeared in 27 games for the Colt .45s, batting .222 as an outfielder.
  • Singled in his final major league game, 9/27/62.
  • Coached in the Astros organization in 1966 and 1967. Later coached in the Padres organization.


(c) Houston Astros
Ivan Murrell
Full name: Ivan Augustus (Peters) Murrell
Nicknames: Banana Man, El Toro, Bull, Ivan the Terrible
Born: 9/28/43, Almirante, Panama
Died: 10/8/06, Stuart, FL; cause not reported
Career: HOU (1963-64, 1967-68), SD (1969-73), ATL (1974)
Notes:
  • Undefeated amateur middleweight boxer
  • Picked to play soccer for Panama in 1963 Pan-Am Games
  • Played in Mexican League until 1984
  • Scout for Oakland A's
  • In 1989, played for the St. Lucie Legends of the Senior Professional Baseball Association, hitting .272 with 5 HR over 47 games
  • Astros Daily interview, 2002


(c) Houston Astros
Joe Niekro
Full name: Joseph Franklin Niekro
Nickname: Knucksie
Born: 11/7/44, Martins Ferry, OH
Died: 10/27/06, Tampa, FL; brain aneurysm
Career: CHC (1967-69), SD (1969), DET (1970-72), ATL (1973-74), HOU (1975-85), NYY (1985-87), MIN (1987-88)
All-Star: 1979
Notes:
  • Houston's winningest pitcher (144 games)
  • Houston's first back-to-back 20-game winner (1979-80)
  • Hit only career homer off brother Phil, 5/29/76
  • Won one-game playoff against the Dodgers 10/6/80 to put Houston into its first postseason appearance
  • Younger brother of Hall-of-Famer Phil Niekro
  • Father of major leaguer Lance Niekro


(c) Houston Astros
Jose Uribe
Full name: Jose Altagracia Gonzalez Uribe
Born: 1/21/59, San Cristobal, DR
Died: 12/8/06, Juan Baron, DR; auto accident
Career: STL (1984), SF (1985-92), HOU (1993)
All-Star: 1987, 1989
Notes: Second cousin of Juan Uribe


(c) Houston Astros
Larry Sherry
Full name: Lawrence Sherry
Born: 7/25/35, Los Angeles, CA
Died: 12/17/06, Mission Viejo, CA; cancer
Career: LAD (1958-63), DET (1964-67), HOU (1967), CAL (1968)
All-Star: 1959
Notes: World Series MVP, 1959


(c) Houston Astros
Vern Ruhle
Full name: Vernon Gerald Ruhle
Born: 1/25/51, Coleman, MI
Died: 1/20/07, Houston, TX; complications from stem cell transplant
Career: DET (1974-77), HOU (1978-84), CLE (1985), CAL (1986)


(c) Houston Astros
Marty Martinez
Full name: Orlando (Oliva) Martinez
Born: 8/23/41, Havana, Cuba
Died: 3/8/07, Santo Domingo, D.R. (no cause reported)
Nickname: Marty
Career: MIN (1962), ATL (1967-68), HOU (1969-71), STL (1972), OAK (1972), TEX (1972)


(c) Houston Astros
Norm Larker
Full name: Norman Howard John Larker
Born: 12/27/30, Beaver Meadows, PA
Died: 3/12/07, Long Beach, CA; cancer
Career: LAD (1958-61), HOU (1962), MIL-N (1963), SFG (1963)
All-Star: 1960
Notes:
  • Played in World Series for Los Angeles Dodgers, 1959
  • Batted .323 in 1960, second-best in NL


(c) Houston Astros
Don Nottebart
Full name: Donald Edward Nottebart
Born: 1/23/36, West Newton, MA
Died: 10/4/07, Cypress, TX; complications from stroke
Nickname: Notty
Career: MIL-N (1960-62), HOU (1963-65), CIN (1966-67), NYY (1969), CHC (1969)
Notes:


(c) Houston Astros
Jack Lamabe
Full name: John Alexander Lamabe
Born: 10/3/36, Farmingdale, NY
Died: 12/21/07, Baton Rouge, LA; no cause reported
Career: PIT (1962), BOS (1963-1965) HOU (1965), CHI-A (1966-67), NYM (1967), STL (1967), CHI-N (1968)
Notes:
  • Dealt to Houston from the Red Sox 9/65 and traded to the White Sox 12/65.
  • Appeared in three games for the 1965 Astros, losing two of them.


(c) Houston Astros
Jim Beauchamp
Full name: James Edward Beauchamp
Born: 8/21/39, Vinita, OK
Died: 12/25/07, Atlanta, GA; acute myelogenous leukemia
Career: STL (1963), HOU (1964-65), MIL-N (1965), ATL (1967), CIN (1968-69), HOU (1970), STL (1970-71), NYM (1972-73)
Notes:
  • Only player to wear an Atlanta uniform at Ponce de Leon Ballpark (as an Atlanta Cracker), Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, and Turner Field
  • Astros Daily interview, 9/7/01


(c) Houston Astros
John Buzhardt
Full name: John William Buzhardt
Born: 8/17/36, Prosperity, SC
Died: 6/15/08, Prosperity, SC; complications from a stroke
Career: CHI-N (1958-59), PHI (1960-61), CHI-A (1962-67), BAL (1967), HOU (1967-68)
Notes:
  • Earned 4-4 record with 5 saves with Astros in 1968.

Sources: