Houston Astros: Lance Berkman’s case for the Hall of Fame
By T.A. Mock
Berkman slashed .293/.406/.537 throughout his career to pair with 366 home runs and 1,234 RBIs. His OPS is absolutely outstanding at .943. He currently ranks as the second highest OPS currently outside of the Hall of Game, behind only Lefty O’Doul. In fact, his OPS ranks higher than many Hall of Famers including Will Mays and Hank Aaron.
Berkman was, without a doubt, one of the best power bats to ever step to the plate during his 15-year career. The last two years of his career were practically a wash with the Cardinals and the Rangers. He spent the major of those two seasons hurt and not producing when he played.
11+ seasons of his career were spent in Houston. After being selected in the first round out of Rice, Berkman raced through the Houston Astros minor league affiliates as a first baseman. However, as he approached the bigs, another future Hall of Famer, Jeff Bagwell, forced a position change for Berkman.
Berkman was always a little miscast as an outfielder but, he performed admirably until he got his shot at the everyday first base role. In 2006, he finally took over that role and he continued to rake. Berkman had many good years for the Houston Astros prior to 2006 but, that was without a doubt his best year.
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He slugged 45 home runs and 136 RBIs all the while slashing an outstanding .315/.420/.621. He finished that year third in MVP voting and was voted in as an All-Star. It was truly a historic season for the Big Puma.
Berkman slowly began to decline after that, he still posted All-Star caliber season but, he wasn’t on par with what he used to be. In 2010, the Houston Astros began the rebuilding process that resulted in the team we see today by trading Berkman at the deadline to the Yankees. Things did not go well there and it resulted in the Cardinals taking a gamble on him in free agency.
He rewarded St. Louis for their gamble with another great season, this time back as an outfielder. He slugged 31 homers to pair with 94 RBIs and another stellar slash line of .301/.412/547. This would turn out to be his final All-Star campaign but, it also resulted in his first and only World Series Championship.