The 2015 Astros FanFest was a resounding success, welcoming about 6,000 people. On January 24 visitors enjoyed various ways of feeding their fandom, from on-field activities to the star-studded Fan Forums.
As a hardcore fan/writer fortunate enough to have attended the Fest, I snapped the following nine photos (hey, what a baseball coincidence) while there. Here they are with captions. Enjoy.
---
Minute Maid Park takes in the day's brilliant sun.
Fans line up for player autographs.
A small herd of Chick-Fil-A cows enjoys the festivities on the concourse.
The view from the Crawfish Crawford Boxes.
New manager A.J. Hinch (left) and general manager Jeff Luhnow answer audience questions at the Fan Forums.
Jose Altuve (left), Dallas Keuchel (center), and Keuchel's beard (center, foreground) enjoy a conversation with longtime Astros TV broadcaster Bill Brown.
Carlos Correa (far left) responds to a question from Astros radio commentator Steve Sparks (far right). Prospects Colin Moran (second to left), Mark Appel (center), and Preston Tucker (second to right) listen on.
Hall of Famer Craig Biggio answers audience questions, one of which was, "Who was your craziest teammate?" "Jose Lima," he said.
Writer Joe Thompson (left) and Vice Chair Michael McCroskey promote the Houston/Larry Dierker Chapter of the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR), accepting membership applications and selling copies of Houston Baseball: The Early Years 1861-1961, for which Thompson co-wrote a chapter. The book can be purchased at houstonbaseball.org. You can also join the Houston/Larry Dierker Chapter of SABR at sabrhouston.com, where you get to hear Dierker's familiar voice.