Late last month we heard that Lance Berkman was leaning towards calling it career after the season, but that does not mean his decision is final yet. The currently injured Cardinal spoke to Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch about potentially coming back next year as a DH with an AL club (Sulia link).
"I wouldn't want to just limp around as a DH," said Berkman, who continues to battle knee problems. "If I can't get [my knee] back pretty close to where it's 100 percent, I'm not going to fool with it."
There has been some speculation that the 36-year-old Berkman could join the Astros and fill their DH spot next season after they move into the AL. He came up with Houston in 1999 and remained there until the 2010 trade deadline, when they traded him to the Yankees as part of their rebuilding effort. Berkman has played just 31 games this year due to continued knee issues, which have hampered him for years.
If he can’t contribute for my Cardinals, I wish him all the luck in the world in the AL. The dude was a class-act his whole career and is surely someone who went underappreciated for a long time due to playing in Houston, especially during the later years in Houston when the other “B”s were all retired (or at least diminished by age, hell, I’m pretty sure Biggio’s still hiding on a roster somewhere under a pseudonum).
I’d be concerned though. He went to the AL once before with the Yankees and was pretty mediocre. I’m not sure what brought about his St. Louis renaissance, but outside of Houston for nostalgic reasons (not to mention the fact that they’re not really going to compete next year anyway), I’m not sure I’d really want to take much of a chance on him.
@Matt Talken
The problem in NY was that after years of playing without much pressure in Houston, he became somewhat complacent. He arrived in NY a bit out of shape and not prepared to compete in a pennant race. He was nothing like the player
That performed in Houston. He quickly got hurt running the bases and did nothing for the Yankees. My everlasting memory of his time in NY, is him chasing a foul pop near 1st base in the play-offs and falling on his keister.
But NY’s bad fortune begot St Lou’s good luck! Class act that he is, he decided to get in shape and did so in the off season before signing with your Cards. That’s the reason he had the monster year for you guys.
I think that if he is able to rehab his knee,he can help the Astros at 1st base and DH, provide leadership and put a cherry on top of an outstanding career with the team he started with.
Not true totally the yankees never win game 2 in minnesota without his HR and double otherwise yes he was mostly useless but he won that game for the yanks with his contributions
It’s quite unfair to criticize Berkman’s conditioning because he had knee problems and struggled for the Yankees when they acquired him in his worst season as a major leaguer.
@MetsMagic.
It is a fair criticism because he was not in good condition when he came to NY. He admitted to that in an interview the following off season when he was preparing as a FA for the next year. I wasn’t knocking him in my earlier post, just stating the facts.
I wouldn’t be too concerned about going to the AL. I believe that making the transition from NL to AL or AL to NL for a hitter can be difficult, particularly if you’ve spent your entire career in one league. You don’t know the other league’s pitchers and have to step into the heat of a pennant race. OTOH, if you make the switch in the off-season, you have time to watch film and go thru spring training and learn the other league’s pitchers probably with a good deal less pressure.
At this point in his career, I would rather see him as a bench player, but he must also be able to play the OF.
Astros would be perfect. If Berkman is still battling with knee issues throughout next year, it wouldn’t hurt the team too much if he needs to take chunks of time off throughout the year to recuperate. If he can produce at a high level next year, healthy, they could trade him to a team in contention for a prospect or two.
*Disclaimer* – Not trying to rip the Astros or anything, since everyone knows they have a while until they are going to be competitive again,
Berkman was a great player for the ‘stros for 10 years and also was rejuvenated last year for the Cards. But father time has passed him by. He could hang on for another year as a DH, but other than wanting to see him retire with the ‘stros, I don’t think it would benefit him or the team much. Hang it up, Lance……enjoyed very much watching you play for 10 years, and sorry that it is the end of the line.
trade berkman for Altuve??!!!:)
Why all the dislikes? Pretty sure he is joking.
Message to Jim Crane: BERKMAN, not Clemens, is the guy you want to sign for your team next year. Lance is outspoken, but he’s usually right, and he’s a stand-up player that everyone respects and can learn from. Bring him back for a year while the kids get one more season in the minors. THAT’S the correct way to put fans in the seats!
Wasn’t Berkman the guy who hated the designated hitter rule and totally outspoken about the whole concept…. now forced to become a designated hitter… talk about irony