Never in the 44-year history of the Houston Astros franchise has a player been engraved into a Hall of Fame plaque and mounted in Cooperstown. For decades, the Astros were without a franchise player, a player to inspire legends and continually awe his loyal fans.
And then, in the early 1990s, there were two.
Second baseman Craig Biggio and first baseman Jeff Bagwell, who played their first game together in 1991, have now been teammates for 15 seasons. Over the years, Biggio has amassed 604 doubles and 1,697 runs; Bagwell, 449 homers and 1,529 RBI.
Side by side, Bagwell and Biggio have anchored the Astros for a decade and a half, carrying the team to new heights. Houston has since made six playoff appearances, winning four National League Central division titles. The "Killer B's" have cemented their place in history among the great duos of all time - Ruth and Gehrig, Aaron and Mathews, Mays and McCovey.
The only difference is that these two men, both likely future Hall-of-Famers, are lacking World Series rings.
After winning their first NL Championship, the Astros are now just four wins away from cementing the duo's legacy, and quite possibly making both men first-ballot Hall-of-Famers. But now, as Houston opens its biggest series in franchise history, both superstars have been silenced in their first two games against the American League champion Chicago White Sox.
Sox hurlers Jose Contreras and Mark Buehrle have gotten the best of both Bagwell and Biggio at the plate. In 14 combined plate appearances in the first two games, each has just one single.
Biggio, 39, and Bagwell, 37, are both running out of chances to add a World Series title to their r?©?µm?©?® After having led the Astros to their first-ever NL pennant, the two entered the series optimistic that they could propel Houston to four more wins. But now, with the team down 0-2 and headed home to face the Sox' Jon Garland, hope is running out.
Tonight, the Astros' Roy Oswalt will take the mound to start the first World Series game ever played in the state of Texas. Oswalt is Houston's go-to man. He is 3-0 in the playoffs. His performances have been emblematic of the entire Astro rotation in October - solid from top to bottom.
But pitching alone will not be enough for the Astros to win the team's first World Series. The offense needs to fall into place, and that just hasn't been happening.
Willy Taveras and Lance Berkman are performing well in the heart of the order, but two men can't carry an entire lineup. The White Sox are hitting, from top to bottom, and Houston so far is lacking that kind of offensive depth.
For the Astros, the brunt of the offensive weight has been carried by two players -Taveras and Berkman - and that just isn't enough. If the Astros want to win the World Series, they will need their two leaders to come through in the clutch and ignite the rest of the offense. Many of Houston's stars are still young, and will have more chances to win a ring. But Biggio turns 40 in December, and Bagwell isn't far behind.
This is the year. This is the series, if the Killer B's want to be remembered as champions, it all has to come together - and time is running out.
