The 1992 Houston Astros season was the 31st season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 28th as the Astros, 31st in the National League (NL), 24th in the NL West division, and 28th at the Astrodome, The Astros entered the season with a 65–97 record and in last place in the NL West, 29 games behind the division-champion and NL pennant-winning Atlanta Braves.

The season began for Houston on April 7 in which they hosted Atlanta, but were defeated, 2–0. Pete Harnisch was the Astros' Opening Day starting pitcher. The Astros' first-round draft pick in the amateur draft was third baseman Phil Nevin, at first overall. Nevin was the Astros' second number-one overall pick, following Floyd Bannister in 1976.

Pitcher Doug Jones and second baseman Craig Biggio represented the Astros at the MLB All-Star Game, This was the third career selection for Jones, and second for Biggio, who was previously selected as a catcher. Broadcaster Milo Hamilton, who began calling games for the Astros in 1985, was recognized for his work with the Ford C. Frick Award by the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Astros also retired the uniform numbers of outfielder José Cruz and right-handed pitcher Mike Scott.

Due to the Republican National Convention being hosted at the Astrodome from August 17–20, the Astros played 26 consecutive road games from July 27 through August 23, going 12–14 on the road trip. The club played in all National League cities except Montreal, New York City, and Pittsburgh.

In their first game back at The Astrodome on August 25 following the 28-day road trip, shortstop Andújar Cedeño hit for the cycle, the fourth in club history. The Astros won 25 of their final 38 games following the long road trip to finish at .500 (81–81), in fourth place in the NL West and 17 games behind the Braves, who repeated as division champions and NL pennant winners. This represented a 16-game improvement from the year prior for Houston. Hence, the 1992 season was the start of the longest period of consistent regular-season success in franchise history, where they finished at .500 or above in each of 15 of 17 seasons through 2008, and made the playoffs six times.

The 1992 Astros became the first Major League team to roster three relief pitchers to each log both 100 innings pitched (IP) and a sub-2.75 earned run average (ERA), by Doug Jones, Joe Boever and Xavier Hernandez. Boever also led the major leagues in games pitched. Following the season, Jones was recognized with The Sporting News NL Fireman of the Year Award.

Offseason December 10, 1991: Kenny Lofton and Dave Rohde were traded by the Astros to the Cleveland Indians for Willie Blair and Eddie Taubensee. January 27, 1992: Joe Boever was signed as a free agent by the Astros. January 27, 1992: Ernest Riles was signed as a free agent by the Astros. January 27, 1992: Denny Walling was signed as a free agent by the Astros.

Regular season Summary April—May + Opening Day starting lineup Player Position 7 Craig Biggio Second baseman 12 Steve Finley Center fielder 5 Jeff Bagwell First baseman 28 Pete Incaviglia Right fielder 11 Ken Caminiti Third baseman 26 Luis Gonzalez Left fielder 9 Scott Servais Catcher 17 Andújar Cedeño Shortstop 27 Pete Harnisch Pitcher Venue: Astrodome • Final: Atlanta 2, Houston 0 Sources:

The Astros launched their 1992 campaign on April 7 by hosting the Atlanta Braves, the previous year's division champions, who pitted reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Tom Glavine against Houston's emerging ace, Pete Harnisch in his first Opening Day start. All-time in Opening Day meetings the Braves were 0–5 against Houston; moreover, in his career, Glavine had never won a start in 13 outings against Houston. However, Glavine was dominant this time, hurling a two-hit shutout as he changed speeds and location to keep the Astros off balance and better Harnish in a 2–0 pitchers' duel in front of 34,761 in attendance. Glavine, also the reigning Silver Slugger winner, singled in the top of the eighth inning to start a decisive rally for Atlanta.

On May 8, pitcher Butch Henry became the first major leaguer to attain his first hit by connecting for an inside-the-park home run. The knock was via a Doug Drabek offering at Three Rivers Stadium.

First baseman Jeff Bagwell came off the bench on May 10 to deliver two home runs, including one in an extra innings. He hit the decisive blow in the 10th inning for a 6–4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bagwell became the first player in club history to enter a contest as a pinch hitter and homer twice, the 27th major leaguer, and first since Steve Balboni on May 23, 1990.

June On June 14, outfielder Pete Incaviglia tied the club record with 7 runs batted in (RBI) to lead a 15–7 victory over the San Francisco Giants. He homered twice and hit a run-scoring double. Incaviglia's performance equaled infielder Rafael Ramírez' effort on August 29, 1989, in which the Chicago Cubs came all the way back from a 9–0 deficit to claim victory, 10–9, in the tenth inning.

The Astros' Jones duo of Jimmy and Doug combined to deliver a 1–0 shutout of the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 20. Jimmy tossed the first 8 innings to earn the win, while Doug closed the final three outs for the save. On June 21, Butch Henry and Doug Jones combined on another shutout of Los Angeles, en route to 2–0 win and series sweep. The two contests were the last of 20 consecutive innings in which Houston held Los Angeles scoreless. Incaviglia's two-run home run accounted for all the scoring in the game. On June 28, with the Dodgers hosting the Astros, the Landers earthquake in nearly San Bernardino County struck in the morning of the game. The Astros lost, 8–2. Meanwhile, Ken Caminiti led the Astros with four hits.

MLB All-Star Game Closer Doug Jones and second baseman Craig Biggio were selected to the MLB All-Star Game, which was hosted at Jack Murphy Stadium. It was the third career selection for Jones, and second for Biggio, who was also selected to the previous year's All-Star Game as a catcher. Biggio became the first player ever to make the All-Star team at both positions.

Rest of July During the bottom of the 12th inning on July 21, Juan Guerrero swatted a Roger Mason offering for a walk-off home run to stun the Pirates, 4–3. This remained the lone home run of Guerrero's major league career. Prior to Guerrero's heroics, the Astros rallied for three runs during the bottom of the ninth, capped by a double to left by Pete Incaviglia and two sacrifice flies. Doug Jones (7–6) earned the victory by closing out the final two frames.

August The Republican National Convention was held at the Astrodome from August 17–20; however, a total of three weeks was required or preparation. As a result, the Astros played 26 games in a span of 28 days on the road.

Andújar Cedeño's cycle In their first game back at The Astrodome on August 25 following the 28-day road trip, shortstop Andújar Cedeño hit for the cycle, the fourth in club history. With the Astros hosting the St. Louis Cardinals, Cedeño's first hit was a triple, he homered in the seventh inning, doubled in the 11th inning and got the single off Les Smith in the 13th inning. It was the first cycle for an Astros player since Bob Watson accomplished the feat on June 24, 1977. The final cycle hit at the Astrodome, the next Astros cycle after Cedeño was by teammate Jeff Bagwell on July 18, 2001 at Enron Field.

Retirement of José Cruz' (25) and Mike Scott's (33) uniform numbers On October 3, 1992, the team officially retired the uniform numbers of outfielder José Cruz and right-handed starting pitcher Mike Scott, also former teammates. Both players were key figures during the Astros' playoff run in 1986, at the time, the club's most recent.

During his career with the Astros, Scott accumulated the most regular-season outings with a game score of 90 or higher in club history (6). In the 1986 playoffs, Scott tossed one other such outing.

Cruz retired as the franchise leader in numerous categories—many of which would be passed by Biggio—including games played (1,870), runs scored (871), hits (1,937), total bases (2,846), RBI (842), singles (1,384), times on base (2,670), and intentional base on balls (123), among others. Cruz remains the club leader in triples (80), walk-off home runs (six), and the NL record-holder with eight bases-loaded triples—all with Houston—and tied for the Major League record with Shano Collins in the American League. (Steve Finley would eventually tie the Major League record.) Through each of Houston's first nine playoff runs, Cruz remained an on-field presence: the first three as a player (1980, 1981, and 1986) and as a coach during the next six (1997–1999, 2001, 2004, and 2005).

Performance overview The Astros concluded the 1992 campaign with a final record of 81–81, in fourth place, and 17 games trailing the first-place Atlanta Braves, an overall improvement of 16 wins from the year before. The 1992 season also initiated an era of unprecedented success and consistency for the club, as they continued to assemble a regular season record of .500 or higher on 15 occasions over a span of the next 17 seasons through 2008, while qualifying for six playoff appearances. It was also the first of eight successive campaigns each with a winning percentage of .500 or more through 1999, an achievement ultimately establishing a club record.

The Astros won six games via walk-off home runs, the most of any MLB team in 1992. Two were hit by Bagwell, which tied for second in the majors with three others.

The 1992 Astros became the first team in Major League history to feature three relief pitchers who each accrued 100 or more innings pitched (IP) while yielding a sub-2.75 earned run average (ERA), who were Doug Jones ( IP, 1.85 ERA), Joe Boever (, 2.51) and Xavier Hernandez (111, 2.11). The most recent team with two such pitchers were the 1983 New York Mets (eighth overall), and as of 2026, no other team have had as many as two. Jones also converted 36 saves to established a then-club single-season record, surpassing Dave Smith, in 1986 (33). This remained the club record until Billy Wagner converted 39 saves in 1999.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions April 2, 1992: Curt Schilling was traded by the Astros to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jason Grimsley.

Roster 1992 Houston Astros Roster Pitchers Catchers

Infielders Outfielders

Other batters Manager

Coaches

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI C 104 297 66 .222 5 28 1B 162 586 160 .273 18 96 2B 162 613 170 .277 6 39 3B 135 506 149 .294 13 62 SS 71 220 38 .173 2 13 LF 122 387 94 .243 10 55 CF 162 607 177 .292 5 55 RF 137 440 105 .239 19 80

Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI Pete Incaviglia 113 349 93 .266 11 44 Casey Candaele 135 320 68 .213 1 18 Scott Servais 77 205 49 .239 0 15 Rafael Ramírez 73 176 44 .250 1 13 Juan Guerrero 79 125 25 .200 1 14 Gerald Young 74 76 14 .184 0 4 Chris Jones 54 63 12 .190 1 4 Ernie Riles 39 61 16 .262 1 4 Benny Distefano 52 60 14 .233 0 7 Eddie Tucker 20 50 6 .120 0 3 15 24 6 .250 1 3 Eric Yelding 9 8 2 .250 0 0 Tuffy Rhodes 5 4 0 .000 0 0 3 3 1 .333 0 0

Pitching

Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Pete Harnisch 34 206.2 9 10 3.70 164 Butch Henry 28 165.2 6 9 4.02 96 Jimmy Jones 25 139.1 10 6 4.07 69 Darryl Kile 22 125.1 5 10 3.95 90 Mark Portugal 18 101.1 6 3 2.66 62 Brian Williams 16 96.1 7 6 3.92 54 11 33.2 0 7 10.96 22

Other pitchers