Lance Berkman, who hit 375 doubles as the last of the Houston Astros' Killer B's from 1999 to 2010, added one more as the St. Louis Cardinals' reclamation-project right fielder Tuesday night, going 2-5 with what was nearly the game-winning RBI in the Cardinals 6-5 loss to the Astros. Berkman, a homegrown star in every sense of the word, born in Waco and schooled at Rice, was greeted by a mostly enthusiastic crowd of Astros fans, including a bonus-army contingent of honorary Little Pumas.
Despite some minor radio grumblings about the way Berkman only decided to get in the best shape of his life after leaving the Astros, fans seemed happy to welcome the slugger, who was traded for not-very-much to the New York Yankees on deadline day in 2010. Berkman finished his Astros career with the highest on-base percentage in team history, at .410, and his 1592 games with the club are fourth-most in team history, behind Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagqwell, and Jose Cruz.
Berkman's off to a white-hot start in 2011, hitting .378/.446/.716 for the Cardinals, with six home runs and 16 RBI.