This section of the website is devoted to chronicling, in detail, some of the biggest days in franchise history. The focus will be primarily on games, and you can guess what type of games will be listed: no-hitters, playoff games, playoff clinchers, special "firsts", etc. Since our plan is to give each "day" a detailed treatment, they will be added as we acquire the necessary material.

In other words, the games listed here are not necessarily the "biggest" days, but merely the first ones for which we have collected enough material. There will certainly be many more "big days" featured here, and I hope you enjoy reading about them.

May 17, 1963  Don Nottebart pitches the first no-hitter in franchise history, a 4-1 victory over the Phillies in Colt Stadium.

September 27, 1963  The Astros start a lineup of all rookies, a first in major league history.

April 23, 1964  Ken Johnson makes history, no-hitting the Cincinnati Reds but losing, 1-0, on an unearned run in the 9th inning.

June 18, 1967  Don Wilson pitches his first no-hitter, striking out 15 batters in an amazing effort against the Braves.

July 14, 1968  Don Wilson ties the major-league record (since broken) with an incredible 18 strikeouts against the Reds.

May 1, 1969  Don Wilson pitches his second no-hitter, a "revenge" no-hitter against Cincinnati just one day after the Reds' Jim Maloney no-hit the Astros.

September 5, 1971  Rookie fireballer J.R. Richard sets the league on its ear, tying a major-league record by striking out 15 batters in his first major-league start.

April 9, 1974  Larry Dierker becomes the first pitcher to win 100 games in franchise history

July 30, 1974  Don Wilson joins Larry Dierker as the only pitchers to win 100 games in franchise history

July 9, 1976  Long-time Astro Larry Dierker places an exclamation point on his player career, tossing the fifth no-hitter in franchise history.

April 7, 1979  Ken Forsch pitches a no-hitter, becoming the second half of the first brother duo to accomplish the feat in major-league history.

April 25, 1980  J.R. Richard is in his prime, becoming the third pitcher to win 100 games as an Astro.

October 6, 1980  The Astros clinch their first-ever playoff appearance with a 7-1 victory over the Dodgers in a one-game playoff.

1980 NL Championship Series  A game-by-game rundown of what has to be the most exciting playoff series in the history of Major League Baseball. Unfortunately, the good guys lost, 3 games to 2

September 26, 1981  Nolan Ryan pitches his fifth career no-hitter, breaking the record held by Sandy Koufax while keeping the Astros ahead in a tight divisional race.

1981 NL West Division Series  The Astros' "Chinese Water Torture" offense backed into the playoffs courtesy of the split-season caused by the players' strike, and almost upset the Dodgers before collapsing to lose the last three games of the series.

August 28, 1982  Joe Niekro wins his 100th game as an Astro and becomes the fourth Astro to reach that plateau.

April 27, 1983  Nolan Ryan fans Brad Mills to record his 3509th career strikeout, breaking Walter Johnson's all-time major league record.

July 11, 1985  Nolan Ryan whiffs ex-Astro Danny Heep, becoming the first player to reach 4000 career strikeouts.

September 23, 1986  Rookie Jim Deshaies sets a major-league mark by striking out the first eight batters he faces, reducing the team's magic number to 2.

September 25, 1986  Mike Scott does the unimaginable, clinching the NL West for the Astros by no-hitting the San Francisco Giants.

1986 NL Championship Series  The dramatic showdown with the New York Mets is presented in great detail, culminating with what some call "The Greatest Game Ever Played"

July 9, 1988  The Ryan Express keeps rolling, with Nolan becoming the fifth Astro to win 100 games in an Astro uniform.

September 9, 1989  Mike Scott becomes the sixth pitcher in franchise history to win 100 games, tossing a three-hitter to keep his team in contention.

September 8, 1993  Darryl Kile walks only one batter in a 7-1 no-hitter over the Mets

September 25, 1997  Mike Hampton pitches a complete-game victory as the Astros clinch the NL Central division title and make their first playoff appearance in 11 years.

1997 NL Divisional Series  In the post-season for the first time in 11 years, the Astros face a heavily-favored Atlanta team with predictable results.

1998 NL Divisional Series  With arguably the strongest team in franchise history, the Astros take on San Diego in a battle of aces and fall short.

October 3, 1999  In the last regular-season game played in the Astrodome, the Astros beat the Los Angeles Dodgers to clinch their third-consecutive playoff appearance.

1999 NL Divisional Series  One of the most memorable seasons in franchise history culminates with a best-of-five matchup against the Atlanta Braves. The games are close, but the Astros fall short.

October 7, 2001  The Astros win a battle for the NL Central Championship with the Cardinals on the last day of the season. Shane Reynolds picks up his 100th career victory in the effort.