Astros All-Time Best Seasons: Center Field

This is the sixth edition of our Astros’ All-Time Best Seasons Series. The Houston Astros have had a history of solid centerfielders, most notably Jimmy “Toy Cannon” Wynn, whose number 24 was retired in 2005.

If you want to catch up on the other positions that we’ve covered in this series, you can check them out here:

• Catchers
• First basemen
• Third basemen
• Shortstops
• Left fielders

According to Baseball-Reference, 27 players have slotted into the CF spot over 53 years as a franchise. That’s an average of a different centerfielder for every ~2 years, but that number has severely skewed over by the positional turnover of this century, which has seen 10 different players roam the spacious center field pasture of Minute Maid Park, as well as climb Tal’s Hill occasionally, just like us! (Get it? Because we’re … yeah, ok)

Tal’s Hill after a game in 2012. Photo by Larry Manch.

The only threshold I have for ranking these players is that they had to have played a full season (> ~130 games) for the Houston Astros as the starting centerfielder. That means I’m not rewarding Carlos Beltran for his incredible power display for 90 games/throughout the 2004 postseason. I do this, for the most part, because I still haven’t forgiven him for the 2004 offseason, and I openly boo him every time I see him on TV. #BeltranSucks.

To see the top 5 seasons by a Houston Astros centerfielder, click through the following slide show of candidates. And if you so desire, you can vote for your favorite at the end of the presentation.

Next: 2005: Willy Taveras

2005: Willy Taveras

Willy Taveras’ 2005 season in Houston is kind of the ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ of this list. I mostly added him to consideration for the top 5 because he had one of those well above average seasons you need out of guys nobody’s heard of (i.e. Jason Lane, Morgan Ensberg) to make a World Series run, as the Houston Astros did, in 2005. That was 10 years ago, guys. Wow.

Anyway, Taveras put up solid numbers in his first full major league season, hitting .291 and swiped 34 bags that season, the sixth most in the N.L. He and Craig Biggio were the key table setters for a National League Champion lineup.  Defensively, Taveras used his speed to record 332 putouts in center in ’05, good for fourth in the N.L.

Some of his numbers may have left something to be desired, but Taveras passed the “eye test.” He was a range-y centerfielder who had enough quickness to beat out a bunt even if the entire stadium knew he was squaring.  The baseball writers voted him second overall on the N.L. Rookie of the Year ballots only to some guy named Ryan Howard.

Taveras makes the cut for me mostly because 2004 was my first year of Astros fanhood. (Don’t call me a bandwagoner, I was 9). I have fond memories of him gliding across the outfield, displaying ridiculous speed in short bursts and that wild franchise record 30-game hitting streak in ’06. To me, this list would feel incomplete without good ol’ Willy T.

Next: 2009: Michael Bourn

2009: Michael Bourn

Alright, you caught me. I’m a sucker for centerfielders whose game is centered around their speed. But I can’t forget the Michael Bourn Era. He was occasionally one of the few reasons the Houston Astros were watchable as they headed into the Dark Era.

In 2009, Bourn stole 61 bases, which led the N.L. and was only second to Jacoby Ellsbury’s 70 for the Boston Red Sox. He hit 12 triples, which was second in the N.L. And on top of all of that, he hit .285/.354/.384, a pretty solid slash line for a speedy centerfielder.

His one downfall was strikeouts, as he whiffed 140 times in ’09, but it’s hard to fault a guy for that when he picks up a Gold Glove. It was the first of two in his career thus far, both coming with the Houston Astros. He was second in the N.L. in assists and putouts, with 11 and 371, respectively.

Overall, the dude can fly. He was a more consistent version of Willy Taveras, but it’s a shame that he only got to play on one team that finished over .500 (2008) in Houston before his career continued in Atlanta and Cleveland.

Next: 1967: Jimmy Wynn

1967: Jimmy Wynn

1972/3: César Cedeño

Wait, wait…this is two seasons!

Right you are! The stats are just too similar between the two for me to split hairs. I’m not kidding.

Cedeño hit .320 and slugged .537 in both years, stole 55 and 56 bases, hit 22 and 25 home runs, 39 and 35 doubles and had 82 and 70 RBI. That’s not only impressive, but it’s a model of consistency.

But his story is a bit of a sad one. Although he clearly possessed great skills, he was never really able to reproduce stat lines like the ones he put up in 72-73 over the rest of his career. He failed to make the All-Star team in the last ten years of his career after six great seasons to start, which included 4 Gold Gloves (won one in ’72/’73).

Aggressive defensive play and injuries eventually derailed his career. Here’s hoping that doesn’t happen to George Springer.

Next: 2000: Richard Hidalgo

Vote: Best All-Time Astros Season at CF

As promised, here is your chance to express your opinion. The five seasons I talked about are included, and there is also a write-in option for any of y’all who think a half season of #BeltranSucks is worth consideration. Come back on Saturday morning for my aggregation of the top five seasons by rightfielders in Houston Astros history, and please do exercise your right as an American citizen and vote! All fan-voted results and a brief recap will be published on February 22.