Astros make tracks with runs, wins

HOUSTON » Dizzy Dean would break into an off-key rendition of “Wabash Cannonball” while broadcasting games.

Even before that, Walter “The Big Train” Johnson, another Hall of Fame pitcher, was a 417-game winner.

Baseball also had “Choo Choo” Coleman and Dontrelle “The D-Train” Willis.

For this World Series, Houston has an oversized replica of an old-time locomotive simply known as “The Train” that moves along a track about 90

Game 5 of the World Series was not completed in time for this edition. For a recap, visit: MORNINGJOURNAL.COM.

feet above left field when the hometown Astros hit a home run or win a game.

“The only one that matters is driving it at the end of the ball game,” said Bobby Vasquez, the former Astros intern and tour guide now in his 17th season operating the train. “If I’m driving at the end, that means we won.”

The largest entrance to Minute Maid Park, which replaced the Astrodome, is inside what was once Houston’s Union Station. The train, running on a track that spans nearly the entire length of one side of the stadium, is a nod to the building’s history and the city’s railroad roots.

While lacking a catchy nickname, “The Train” comes with all the bells and whistles to mark big moments and big victories. Those can be heard when the Astros score, and those sounds seem to get louder and last longer for home runs and victories.

“I could probably come up with something better than like opposing fans would come up with,” Vasquez said about a nickname, recalling some things he saw on Twitter at the start of this month’s AL Championship Series. “Yankees fans were complaining about the aggressive train blowing.”

ERIC GAY — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Bobby Vasquez operates a train in and around Minute Maid Park before Game 4 of the World Series between the Astros and the Dodgers on Oct. 28 in Houston.