 |
| Lance Berkman |
- 3 for 3, BB, 4 RBI
- 2 homers, single
- Put the biggest hurting on Ohka, and for that, we salute him
|
With five extra base hits and 8 RBI over his last three games, Berkman appears to have started the finishing kick for what still might end up as the greatest offensive season by raw numbers in Astros history.
Where Berkman's 2006 Season Stands Right Now
Top Nine Astro Home Run Seasons
| Year |
Player |
HR |
| 2000 |
Jeff Bagwell |
47 |
| 2000 |
Richard Hidalgo |
44 |
| 1997 |
Jeff Bagwell |
43 |
| 2002 |
Lance Berkman |
42 |
| 1999 |
Jeff Bagwell |
42 |
| 2001 |
Jeff Bagwell |
39 |
| 1994 |
Jeff Bagwell |
39 |
| 2003 |
Jeff Bagwell |
39 |
| 2006 |
Lance Berkman |
39 |
|
|
Top Ten Astro RBI Seasons
| Year |
Player |
RBI |
| 1997 |
Jeff Bagwell |
135 |
| 2000 |
Jeff Bagwell |
132 |
| 2001 |
Jeff Bagwell |
130 |
| 2002 |
Lance Berkman |
128 |
| 1999 |
Jeff Bagwell |
126 |
| 2001 |
Lance Berkman |
126 |
| 1998 |
Moises Alou |
124 |
| 2000 |
Richard Hidalgo |
122 |
| 1996 |
Jeff Bagwell |
120 |
| 2006 |
Lance Berkman |
120 |
|
|
Top Ten Astro OBP Seasons
| Year |
Player |
OBP |
| 1999 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.454 |
| 1994 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.451 |
| 1996 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.451 |
| 2004 |
Lance Berkman |
.450 |
| 1969 |
Jimmy Wynn |
.436 |
| 2001 |
Lance Berkman |
.430 |
| 1997 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.425 |
| 2000 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.424 |
| 1998 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.424 |
| 2006 |
Lance Berkman |
.417 |
|
|
Top Five Astro ISO Seasons
| Year |
Player |
ISO |
| 1994 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.383 |
| 2000 |
Richard Hidalgo |
.323 |
| 2006 |
Lance Berkman |
.308 |
| 1997 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.306 |
| 2000 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.305 |
|
|
Top Five Astro SLG Seasons
| Year |
Player |
SLG |
| 1994 |
Jeff Bagwell |
.750 |
| 2000 |
Richard Hidalgo |
.636 |
| 2000 |
Moises Alou |
.623 |
| 2001 |
Lance Berkman |
.620 |
| 2006 |
Lance Berkman |
.620 |
|
Yes, it's true that these numbers are not adjusted for eras, and yes, it's true that only now is Lance Berkman beginning to deserve to be mentioned in the same breath with Jeff Bagwell, but no matter, 2006 has been a whale of a season for an almost ridiculously talented offensive force weighed down by the many mediocre hitters around him.
You ever read "Harrison Bergeron?" It's a story about life in the year 2081 by Kurt Vonnegut. In 2081, people "are finally equal" because the government makes those who are possessed of talents or beauties wear handicaps that drag them down to the depressed and dreary human baseline. Those who are not born average are forced to become so by the government. And the way the story goes, our hero Harrison is possessed of a ton of talents. He's smarter and stronger and more agile than anyone around him, and for that reason the government has piled the handicaps onto him. Here is our first look at Harrison:
The rest of Harrison's appearance was Halloween and hardware. Nobody had ever borne heavier handicaps. He had outgrown hindrances faster than the H-G men could think them up. Instead of a little ear radio for a mental handicap, he wore a tremendous pair of earphones, and spectacles with thick wavy lenses. The spectacles were intended to make him not only half blind, but to give him whanging headaches besides.
Scrap metal was hung all over him. Ordinarily, there was a certain symmetry, a military neatness to the handicaps issued to strong people, but Harrison looked like a walking junkyard. In the race of life, Harrison carried three hundred pounds.
And to offset his good looks, the H-G men required that. he wear at all times a red rubber ball for a nose, keep his eyebrows shaved off, and cover his even white teeth with black caps at snaggletooth random.
Point is, sometimes when I think of Lance Berkman hitting in the middle of this lineup, I think of the purposely stunted glory of Harrison Bergeron.
****
Second place is pretty sweet when you've spent most of your summer in third.
