Astros’ All-Time Best Seasons: Third Base

Jul 26, 2014; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Baseballs lay in the dugout between the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

1977: Enos Cabell

The 1977 Houston Astros finished in 3rd place in the NL West, with a record of 81-81. The consistent producer of the lineup was Enos Cabell at third base.

His stats from Baseball Reference:

• .282 BA (7th among 3B in MLB)
• .438 SLG (8th among 3B in MLB)
• 16 HR
• 68 RBI
• 176 Hits (T-1st among 3B in MLB)
• 36 doubles (T-1st among 3B in MLB)
• 42 stolen bases (1st among 3B in MLB)
• 140 putouts (1st among 3B in NL)

That season, the stars were J.R. Richard, who struck out 214 batters, and Jose Cruz, who had a .299 batting average and 44 stolen bases.  But, Cabell played 150 games and was a consistent producer with a 2.8 WAR. Considering the fact that the Astrodome was definitely not a hitter’s park, it’s very impressive to see that Enos was able to finish in the top 10 in slugging for his position as well as hit 16 home runs. It’s equally impressive that he was able to have 42 stolen bases, showing off an always valuable combination of speed and power, especially from the third base position.

Enos Cabell would go on to play three more seasons in Houston before joining the San Francisco Giants for a year and then the Detroit Tigers for two years. He would return to Houston for two years from 1984-1985 before retiring shortly afterwards in 1986. He finished his career with 1,647 hits, 238 stolen bases, and a .277 batting average. In the end, Enos Cabell would never hit for more home runs, steal more bases, score more runs, or hit more doubles than he did in 1977.

Next: 1994: Ken Caminiti