HOUSTON – Former first lady Barbara Bush was an avid baseball fan, cheering on the Houston Astros for years at Minute Maid Park.
"She was very consistent throughout her life for love of baseball, her love of this organization," said Reid Ryan, president, Houston Astros.
Barbara Bush and President George H.W. Bush loved to catch Astros games at Minute Maid Park, Ryan said. The pair often cheered on Houston's home team from seats directly behind home plate. Barbara Bush often kept a score card, as Astros team historian, Mike Acosta, tweeted in a tribute post.
As a big fan of the Astros, Barbara Bush often kept score while at games. This is one of her scoresheets from 2006 that resides in the Astros archives. The Bushes usually left after the seventh inning. She signed this one. RIP. pic.twitter.com/i8QNs8XRoh
— Mike Acosta (@AstrosTalk) April 18, 2018
The score card is from May 4, 2006, when the Astros took on the Cardinals.
"It's kind of a lost art," Ryan said about score cards. "People make their own notes on the score card," he continued.
There aren't notes on Barbara Bush's score card, but there is a quirk: she stopped keeping score after the seventh inning -- that's usually when the Bushes would leave the game.
"They loved to have a hot dog, watch the game, just sitting from the front row taking it all in," Ryan said.
The Houston Astros paid tribute to Barbara Bush for her unwavering support and also the example she set for helping others.
"She gave an example to many of the others of how to live a life well and that's what we're trying to with the Houston Astros," Ryan said.