Minute Maid Park opened on April 7, 2000 as the new home of the Houston Astros, replacing the iconic Astrodome and returning open-air baseball to the city for the first time in 35 years. Located at 501 Crawford Street in downtown Houston, the roughly $248 million retractable-roof ballpark was designed by HOK Sport (now Populous) and incorporated the historic 1911 Union Station building into its main entrance, blending the city’s railroad past with a modern Major League Baseball experience.
Seating 41,168 fans, the park became famous for distinctive features — including the ‘Crawford Boxes,’ a short left-field porch just 315 feet from home plate, a vintage locomotive that rolls along a track above left field after every Astros home run, and a manual out-of-town scoreboard in left-center field. The three-panel retractable roof can open or close in as little as 12 minutes, shielding fans from Houston’s notorious summer heat. Ahead of the 2025 season, the venue was renamed Daikin Park after a new naming-rights agreement, though its championship legacy remains firmly attached to its longtime identity.
Stats at a Glance
- Team(s): Houston Astros (MLB)
- Location: 501 Crawford Street, Houston, Texas
- Opened: April 7, 2000
- Capacity: 41,168
- Roof: Retractable (opens in 12–20 minutes)
- Surface: Natural grass (Platinum TE Paspalum)
- Construction Cost: ~$248 million
- World Series Games Hosted: 2017 (Games 3–5 in Houston); 2022 (clinched Game 6 at home)
A Ballpark Built for Houston
Designed by HOK Sport and constructed on a former rail yard in downtown Houston, Minute Maid Park was built to harness natural sunlight while shielding fans from the city’s intense heat and humidity. Its three glass-and-steel roof panels cover 50,000 square feet and travel a combined 14.6 miles over a typical season. The integration of the 1911 Union Station terminal as the ballpark’s primary entrance gave the venue an identity rooted in Houston history, with the station’s brick facade and arched windows framing the main gate.
On the field, the park’s most talked-about feature has always been the Crawford Boxes — elevated seats in left field sitting just 315 feet from home plate, one of the shortest home run distances in the majors. A hand-operated scoreboard in left-center and a vintage steam locomotive on an upper-deck track after every home run added a layer of character that few modern ballparks can match.
Home to Champions
Minute Maid Park became synonymous with Astros postseason baseball, hosting pivotal games in two World Series runs. In 2017, the Astros hosted Games 3, 4, and 5 of the Fall Classic against the Los Angeles Dodgers — including a memorable Game 5 slugfest — before clinching their first championship in Game 7 on the road at Dodger Stadium. In 2022, the Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in six games, sealing their second title at home in Game 6 on November 5 at Minute Maid Park.
Beyond baseball, the park has hosted college football, concerts, and major civic events over the years. As Daikin Park from 2025 onward, the venue carries forward more than two decades of championship legacy under a new name.
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Minute Maid Park FAQs
What is Minute Maid Park called now?
Ahead of the 2025 MLB season, Minute Maid Park was renamed Daikin Park after Daikin Comfort Technologies secured a 15-year naming-rights deal with the Houston Astros.
What are the Crawford Boxes at Minute Maid Park?
The Crawford Boxes are an elevated seating section in left field positioned just 315 feet from home plate — one of the shortest home run distances in Major League Baseball — and one of the park’s most distinctive and debated features.
Has Minute Maid Park hosted the World Series?
Yes. The park hosted World Series games in both 2017 and 2022. In 2017, the Astros hosted Games 3–5 against the Dodgers but clinched the title in Game 7 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. In 2022, the Astros clinched their second championship at home in Game 6, defeating the Philadelphia Phillies 4–2 in the series.
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Photo: Another Believer / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.