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Astros not looking back; Houston aims to get back on top after subpar 2000

If the Houston Astros have a mantra coming off a disappointing 2000 season, it'll likely be this: turn the page."I hope everybody's put last year behind us," pitcher Scott Elarton said. "I don't know what happened last year. It's history, so there's no use worrying about it now."Elarton and other Astros players and officials were in Temple Wednesday concluding the team's four-day stop in the area as part of its annual off-season caravan. The team is owned by Temple businessman Drayton McLane Jr.For a squad that established itself as a National League power in winning Central Division titles from 1997-99, 2000 was a humbling experience for the Astros, who finished 72-90, good for fourth place.Moving to Enron Field after 35 seasons at the Astrodome, the team never got comfortable in its new surroundings. In their first three homestands, the Astros lost 13 of 19 games, a performance that set the tone for an at-times nightmarish season."It was more of a problem than we anticipated," manager Larry Dierker said of the move. "It was a park that was vastly different than the Astrodome from the standpoint of offense and I think a lot of the pitchers got psyched out."Last year, our problems in our own home park were the source of our psychological problems overall. If you can't play well at home, you've got no chance." by Greg Rajan
 

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