Larry Dierker Chapter meeting recap – 4/12/2025
On the 60th anniversary of the first regular season game held in the Houston Astrodome, SABR’s Larry Dierker Chapter hosted a meeting on April 12, 2025, at Constellation Field in Sugar Land, Texas. Tal Smith was our guest speaker, talking about his role in putting together the Houston baseball franchise in the early 1960s and his role in making the Astrodome project come together.
Many people believe, including Houston SABR chapter namesake Larry Dierker, that “Tal Smith, with the exception of team owners, has had the biggest impact on the team in its 60-year history.” This quote is from a chapter newsletter article from February 2022. Brownie wrote a series of articles for the newsletters in 2022 detailing Tal’s life.
Tal spent over an hour speaking passionately to our group about this pivotal time in the early years of the Houston Colt .45s/Astros.
Remember that our next chapter meeting will be on Monday, May 19, at the Spaghetti Western Italian Restaurant. Jimmy Scruggs will be the guest speaker, talking about Walter Johnson and Christy Matthewson. Joe Thompson will give a presentation on a game he attended at the Dome in September 1986.
— Joe Thompson