Former Astros president weighs in on playoff run
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The man who helped get the Astros to where they are now will be watching from the stands Friday night because he's no longer with the team.
Former Astros President Tal Smith said when he saw Houston win game three in Los Angeles, he knew he had witnessed history.
"I think last night's game was probably the most important game in the history of franchise because it came in the World Series," he said.
Smith spent 53 years in baseball management from the Colt 45's to the Yankees,and then back to the Astros.
He served as president from 1994 until 2011, taking the team to the World Series in 2005 where they were swept by the White Sox.
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Smith loves what he sees now.
"Glad they won Game 2 and coming back here 1-1 makes all the difference in the world," he said.
Smith said the series means everything to his beloved city of Houston.
"With all they've gone through with Harvey, people are looking for an outlet and this is it," he said. "Hundreds of thousands of people that are interested now and have adopted the Astros not necessarily baseball fans but caught up in the moment."
Smith is retired but still does baseball consulting and says the next three games may be the loudest ever, but that's only added fuel to a red hot team. He predicts the Astros will win it all, just not here in Houston.
"I don't know about that, I think you've got two good teams and strong likely hood that it goes back to LA," he added.
A 10-foot tall rooster, free hot dogs, head-shaving and pumpkin carvings: We've got all the World Series bases covered.
