Founder of Houston Astros' push for 1 MLB team in Texas created rivalry against Rangers 60 years ago
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- It was Jan. 3, 1962. As the Colt .45s shot into the dirt, the Houston Astros were born.
"Of course, the Astros were first," Dinn Mann said. "So, they became the first major league city in the state."
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Mann's grandfather, Roy Hofheinz, founded the Astros and the Astrodome.
Like any good Houstonian, he didn't want another team in Texas. Hofheinz spent a decade lobbying Major League Baseball and then-President Lyndon B. Johnson to deny other bids.
"It kind of gives me a chuckle to reminisce about the desire of the Metroplex to keep up with Houston, frankly," Mann said.
In 1972, the Washington Senators moved, and Arlington got their team, now called the Texas Rangers. Sound familiar?
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"There definitely was a dislike and even a disdain for my grandfather up in the Metroplex," he said. "For years, the rivalry between Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth was almost more civic than it was about the teams because the teams weren't great at the same time. Now the teams are really impressive at the same time."
The Astros have a new ballpark now, and so do the Rangers, but that Hofheinz legacy still lives on.
"I've heard it called 'Mimic Maid Park', which is kind of funny," Mann laughed.
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