List of Houston Astros minor league affiliates explained

The Houston Astros farm system consists of seven Minor League Baseball affiliates across the United States and in the Dominican Republic. Six teams are owned by the major league club, while the Asheville Tourists are independently owned.

The Astros have been affiliated with the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks of the Texas League since 2005, making it the longest-running active affiliation in the organization. The longest continuous affiliation in team history was the 21-year relationship with the Double-A Southern League's Columbus Astros/Mudcats from 1970 to 1990. Their newest affiliates are the Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys of the Pacific Coast League and the High-A Asheville Tourists of the South Atlantic League, which became Astros affiliates in 2021.

Geographically, Houston's closest domestic affiliate is the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, which are approximately 20miles away. Houston's furthest domestic affiliate is the Single-A Fayetteville Woodpeckers of the Carolina League some 1165miles away.

Current affiliates

The Houston Astros farm system consists of seven minor league affiliates.^[1]

Class	Team	League	Location	Ballpark	Affiliated
Triple-A	Sugar Land Space Cowboys	Pacific Coast League	Sugar Land, Texas	Constellation Field	2021
Double-A	Corpus Christi Hooks	Texas League	Corpus Christi, Texas	Whataburger Field	2005
High-A	Asheville Tourists	South Atlantic League	Asheville, North Carolina	McCormick Field	2021
Single-A	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	Carolina League	Fayetteville, North Carolina	Segra Stadium	2017
Rookie	FCL Astros	Florida Complex League	West Palm Beach, Florida	The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches	2023
	DSL Astros Blue	Dominican Summer League	Boca Chica, Santo Domingo	Houston Astros Complex	2022
	DSL Astros Orange

Past affiliates

Key

Season	Each year is linked to an article about that particular Astros/Colt .45s season.	-		League champions -->

1962

Minor League Baseball operated with six classes (Triple-A, Double-A, Class A, Class B, Class C, and Class D) in 1962.^[2]

1963–1989

Prior to the 1963 season, Major League Baseball (MLB) initiated a reorganization of Minor League Baseball that resulted in a reduction from six classes to four (Triple-A, Double-A, Class A, and Rookie) in response to the general decline of the minors throughout the 1950s and early-1960s when leagues and teams folded due to shrinking attendance caused by baseball fans' preference for staying at home to watch MLB games on television. The only change made within the next 27 years was Class A being subdivided for the first time to form Class A Short Season in 1966.^[2]

Season	Triple-A	Double-A	Class A	Class A Short Season	Rookie
1963	Oklahoma City 89ers	San Antonio Bullets	Durham Bulls Modesto Colts Moultrie Colt .22s	—	—	^[4]
1964	Oklahoma City 89ers	San Antonio Bullets	Durham Bulls Modesto Colts	—	Cocoa Colts	^[5]
1965	Oklahoma City 89ers	Amarillo Sonics	Cocoa Astros Durham Bulls Salisbury Astros	—	FRL Astros	^[6]
1966	Oklahoma City 89ers	Amarillo Sonics	Cocoa Astros Durham Bulls Salisbury Astros	Bismarck-Mandan Pards	—	^[7]
1967	Oklahoma City 89ers	Amarillo Sonics	Asheville Tourists Cocoa Astros	—	Covington Astros	^[8]
1968	Oklahoma City 89ers	Dallas–Fort Worth Spurs	Cocoa Astros Greensboro Patriots	—	Covington Astros	^[9]
1969	Oklahoma City 89ers	Savannah Senators	Cocoa Astros Peninsula Astros	Williamsport Astros	Covington Astros	^[10]
1970	Oklahoma City 89ers	Columbus Astros	Cocoa Astros	Williamsport Astros	Covington Astros	^[11]
1971	Oklahoma City 89ers	Columbus Astros	Cocoa Astros Sumter Astros	—	Covington Astros	^[12]
1972	Oklahoma City 89ers	Columbus Astros	Cocoa Astros	—	Cocoa Astros Covington Astros	^[13]
1973	Denver Bears	Columbus Astros	Cedar Rapids Astros	—	Covington Astros	^[14]
1974	Denver Bears	Columbus Astros	Cedar Rapids Astros	—	Covington Astros	^[15]
1975	Iowa Oaks	Columbus Astros	Dubuque Packers	—	Covington Astros	^[16]
1976	Memphis Blues	Columbus Astros	Dubuque Packers	—	Covington Astros	^[17]
1977	Charleston Charlies	Columbus Astros	Cocoa Astros	—	GCL Astros	^[18]
1978	Charleston Charlies	Columbus Astros	Daytona Beach Astros	—	GCL Astros	^[19]
1979	Charleston Charlies	Columbus Astros	Daytona Beach Astros	—	GCL Astros	^[20]
1980	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Daytona Beach Astros	—	GCL Astros Blue GCL Astros Orange	^[21]
1981	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Daytona Beach Astros	—	GCL Astros Blue GCL Astros Orange	^[22]
1982	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Daytona Beach Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[23]
1983	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Daytona Beach Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[24]
1984	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Daytona Beach Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[25]
1985	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Osceola Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[26]
1986	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Osceola Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[27]
1987	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Osceola Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[28]
1988	Tucson Toros	Columbus Astros	Asheville Tourists Osceola Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	^[29]
1989	Tucson Toros	Columbus Mudcats	Asheville Tourists Osceola Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros DSL Astros/Rangers/White Sox	^[30] ^[31]

1990–2020

Minor League Baseball operated with six classes from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, the Class A level was subdivided for a second time with the creation of Class A-Advanced. The Rookie level consisted of domestic and foreign circuits.^[2]

Season	Triple-A	Double-A	Class A-Advanced	Class A	Class A Short Season	Rookie	Foreign Rookie
1990	Tucson Toros	Columbus Mudcats	Osceola Astros	Asheville Tourists	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	DSL Astros/Cardinals	^[32] ^[33]
1991	Tucson Toros	Jackson Generals	Osceola Astros	Asheville Tourists	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[34] ^[35]
1992	Tucson Toros	Jackson Generals	Osceola Astros	Asheville Tourists Burlington Astros	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[36]
1993	Tucson Toros	Jackson Generals	Osceola Astros	Asheville Tourists Quad Cities River Bandits	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	DSL Astros DSL Astros/Giants/Phillies	^[37]
1994	Tucson Toros	Jackson Generals	Osceola Astros	Quad Cities River Bandits	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	DSL Astros/Brewers	^[38]
1995	Tucson Toros	Jackson Generals	Kissimmee Cobras	Quad Cities River Bandits	Auburn Astros	GCL Astros	DSL Astros/Brewers	^[39]
1996	Tucson Toros	Jackson Generals	Kissimmee Cobras	Quad Cities River Bandits	Auburn Doubledays	GCL Astros	DSL Astros/Red Sox	^[40]
1997	New Orleans Zephyrs	Jackson Generals	Kissimmee Cobras	Quad Cities River Bandits	Auburn Doubledays	GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[41]
1998	New Orleans Zephyrs	Jackson Generals	Kissimmee Cobras	Quad Cities River Bandits	Auburn Doubledays	GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[42]
1999	New Orleans Zephyrs	Jackson Generals	Kissimmee Cobras	Michigan Battle Cats	Auburn Doubledays	Martinsville Astros	DSL Astros	^[43]
2000	New Orleans Zephyrs	Round Rock Express	Kissimmee Cobras	Michigan Battle Cats	Auburn Doubledays	Martinsville Astros	DSL Astros	^[44]
2001	New Orleans Zephyrs	Round Rock Express	—	Lexington Legends Michigan Battle Cats		Martinsville Astros	DSL Astros	^[45]
2002	New Orleans Zephyrs	Round Rock Express	—	Lexington Legends Michigan Battle Cats	Tri-City ValleyCats	Martinsville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Venoco	^[46]
2003	New Orleans Zephyrs	Round Rock Express	Salem Avalanche	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Martinsville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Venoco	^[47]
2004	New Orleans Zephyrs	Round Rock Express	Salem Avalanche	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Venoco 1	^[48]
2005	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Salem Avalanche	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Astros	^[49]
2006	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Salem Avalanche	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Astros	^[50]
2007	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Salem Avalanche	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Astros	^[51]
2008	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Salem Avalanche	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros	DSL Astros VSL Astros	^[52]
2009	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[53]
2010	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[54]
2011	Oklahoma City RedHawks	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[55]
2012	Oklahoma City RedHawks	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Lexington Legends	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[56]
2013	Oklahoma City RedHawks	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[57]
2014	Oklahoma City RedHawks	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros Blue DSL Astros Orange	^[58]
2015	Fresno Grizzlies	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros Blue DSL Astros Orange	^[59]
2016	Fresno Grizzlies	Corpus Christi Hooks	Lancaster JetHawks	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros Blue DSL Astros Orange	^[60]
2017	Fresno Grizzlies	Corpus Christi Hooks	Buies Creek Astros	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	Greeneville Astros GCL Astros	DSL Astros Blue DSL Astros Orange	^[61]
2018	Fresno Grizzlies	Corpus Christi Hooks	Buies Creek Astros	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[62]
2019	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	GCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[63]
2020	Round Rock Express	Corpus Christi Hooks	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	Quad Cities River Bandits	Tri-City ValleyCats	GCL Astros	DSL Astros DSL Astros

2021–present

The current structure of Minor League Baseball is the result of an overall contraction of the system beginning with the 2021 season. Class A was reduced to two levels: High-A and Low-A.^[64] Low-A was reclassified as Single-A in 2022.^[65]

Season	Triple-A	Double-A	High-A	Single-A	Rookie	Foreign Rookie
2021	Sugar Land Skeeters	Corpus Christi Hooks	Asheville Tourists	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	FCL Astros	DSL Astros	^[66]
2022	Sugar Land Space Cowboys	Corpus Christi Hooks	Asheville Tourists	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	FCL Astros Blue FCL Astros Orange	DSL Astros Blue DSL Astros Orange	^[67]
2023	Sugar Land Space Cowboys	Corpus Christi Hooks	Asheville Tourists	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	FCL Astros	DSL Astros Blue DSL Astros Orange	^[68]

External links

• Baseball-Reference: Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates

Notes and References

1. Web site: Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
2. Web site: Cronin. John. Truth in the Minor League Class Structure: The Case for the Reclassification of the Minors. The Baseball Research Journal. Society for American Baseball Research. Spring 2013. October 7, 2023.
3. Web site: 1962 Houston Colt .45s Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
4. Web site: 1963 Houston Colt .45s Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
5. Web site: 1964 Houston Colt .45s Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
6. Web site: 1965 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
7. Web site: 1966 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
8. Web site: 1967 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
9. Web site: 1968 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
10. Web site: 1969 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
11. Web site: 1970 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
12. Web site: 1971 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
13. Web site: 1972 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
14. Web site: 1973 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
15. Web site: 1974 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
16. Web site: 1975 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
17. Web site: 1976 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
18. Web site: 1977 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
19. Web site: 1978 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
20. Web site: 1979 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
21. Web site: 1980 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
22. Web site: 1981 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
23. Web site: 1982 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
24. Web site: 1983 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
25. Web site: 1984 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
26. Web site: 1985 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
27. Web site: 1986 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
28. Web site: 1987 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
29. Web site: 1988 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
30. Web site: 1989 Dominican Summer League Statistics. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 15, 2023. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140329124140/http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/league.cgi?id=8dce88c2. March 29, 2014.
31. Web site: 1989 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
32. Web site: 1990 Dominican Summer League Statistics. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 16, 2023. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140313153030/http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/league.cgi?id=3d6064f2. March 13, 2014.
33. Web site: 1990 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
34. Web site: 1991 Dominican Summer League Statistics. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 16, 2023. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140313160141/http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/league.cgi?id=af0668d5. March 13, 2014.
35. Web site: 1991 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
36. Web site: 1992 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
37. Web site: 1993 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
38. Web site: 1994 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
39. Web site: 1995 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
40. Web site: 1996 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
41. Web site: 1997 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
42. Web site: 1998 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
43. Web site: 1999 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
44. Web site: 2000 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
45. Web site: 2001 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
46. Web site: 2002 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
47. Web site: 2003 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
48. Web site: 2004 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
49. Web site: 2005 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
50. Web site: 2006 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
51. Web site: 2007 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
52. Web site: 2008 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
53. Web site: 2009 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
54. Web site: 2010 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
55. Web site: 2011 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
56. Web site: 2012 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
57. Web site: 2013 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
58. Web site: 2014 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
59. Web site: 2015 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
60. Web site: 2016 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
61. Web site: 2017 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
62. Web site: 2018 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
63. Web site: 2019 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
64. Web site: Mayo. Jonathan. MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues. Major League Baseball. February 12, 2021. February 12, 2021.
65. Web site: Historical League Names to Return in 2022. Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. March 16, 2022.
66. Web site: 2021 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
67. Web site: 2022 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.
68. Web site: 2023 Houston Astros Minor League Affiliates. Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. November 7, 2023.