Several players remain Astros Hall of Fame candidates

With the recent inductions into the Astros Hall of Fame, here’s a look at some players who could soon join them.

The inaugural Astros Hall of Fame class was a star-studded one, a virtual list of the greatest players in team history. As good as it is, however, it’s not yet complete.

The class included Bob Aspromonte, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Jose Cruz, Larry Dierker, Joe Morgan, Joe Niekro, Shane Reynolds, J.R. Richard, Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott, Jim Umbricht, Don Wilson and Jimmy Wynn. This is excellent company, and there are some more names who deserve to be among them.

This list doesn’t include active players, though there are certainly a few who could end up there. The most likely seems to be Jose Altuve, who’s already sixth in club history in hits and first in batting average. George Springer, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarez could all potentially end up there too if they stay with the club long enough.

This list includes former players who could end up in the Astros Hall of Fame as soon as next year. They all had great impacts on the franchise, and one could argue that some of them should have their numbers retired as well.

Lance Berkman

Berkman certainly needs no introduction, as he was a potent middle-of-the-order bat for a decade, and joined Bagwell and Biggio as a member of the Killer B’s. Still, his accomplishments with the Astros are impressive enough to examine.

He’s the club’s all-time leader in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS. He’s also second in team history in home runs, third in RBIs, doubles and walks, and fifth in hits. He was a five-time All Star with the Astros and had four top-five MVP award finishes.

Berkman also holds single-season club records in RBIs and extra-base hits, and home runs for a switch-hitter. In short, he was one of the most feared hitters of his time and a key part of the Astros’ success in the 2000s.

Roy Oswalt

The Wizard finished his Astros career with 143 wins, one shy of Niekro’s franchise record. He’s second in club history in strikeouts, third in innings pitched and third in games started. His ERA as an Astro is lower than that of Ryan and Scott. His .634 winning percentage is third to Roger Clemens and Justin Verlander.

He had five Top-Five Cy Young Award finishes in Houston, garnered MVP votes four times and was a three-time All Star. He had a pair of 20-win seasons in an era when it was becoming less common, and he had seasons in which he led the league in wins, winning percentage, ERA, games started and strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Oswalt was the staff ace for a decade, even when surrounded by guys like Clemens and Andy Pettitte. He was also the NLCS MVP in 2005, going 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA against St. Louis. There would not have been a World Series appearance that year without Oswalt.

Billy Wagner

No Hall of Fame would be complete without the undisputed greatest relief pitcher in club history. Wagner is the franchise leader in saves (225) and is second in WHIP among qualified pitchers, trailing only Verlander.

He was a three-time All Star with the Astros and finished fourth in the Cy Young Award voting in 1999. His 124 strikeouts that season are the most in club history by a relief pitcher. The 44 saves he posted in 2003 are also a franchise record (tied with Jose Valverde).

There’s a case to be made that Wagner belongs in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He was one of the three best relief pitchers in the game for a long time and finished his career with 422 saves. He also struck out more than 12 batters per nine innings with the Astros and allowed fewer than six hits per nine. In short, he was as dominant as they come.

Darryl Kile

Admittedly, this may be a sentimental choice, but the Astros saw fit to honor Kile with the “DK” patch on the left field facade at Minute Maid Park following his untimely death in 2002. Still, it’s not as though Kile didn’t have a significant impact on the club during his time in Houston.

The right-hander was a two-time All Star in an Astros uniform, winning 71 games across seven seasons. He had his best season in 1997, winning 19 games with a 2.57 ERA, finishing fifth in the Cy Young voting.

It’s true that Kile isn’t among the franchise leaders in any of the main pitching categories, only coming in at No. 10 in strikeouts. But he was a beloved teammate and did have some good years in Houston, and would be a worthy addition to the Astros Hall of Fame.

Mike Hampton

Hampton wasn’t the longest-tenured Astros pitcher, but the southpaw was a key piece of the late ’90s division winning teams. In five seasons as a full-time starter from 1995-1999, he won 67 games, never posting an ERA higher than 3.83.

His 1999 season was one for the ages. His numbers in the wins (22) and winning percentage in a full season (.846) categories are still the best in franchise history, and he finished second in the Cy Young voting that year after being voted to the All-Star team.

He also won the NL Silver Slugger award that year, slashing .311/.373/.432 with 10 RBIs in 88 plate appearances. Hampton was a complete player and one of the keys to the Astros winning three division titles in the late 1990s.

Cesar Cedeno

What’s surprising about this is Cedeno isn’t already in the Astros Hall of Fame. He won five straight Gold Glove awards from 1972-1976, was a four-time All Star and received MVP consideration five times.

He posted six straight seasons of 50 or more stolen bases and is the franchise’s all-time leader in steals with 487. He’s fourth in club history in doubles and had a higher OPS than Biggio and Cruz. He’s also the only player in team history to post an OPS greater than .900 while also stealing 55 or more bases — and he did it two years in a row while playing top notch defense in center field.

In short, he was a star for several years and deserves to be in the team’s Hall of Fame. Any list of the Astros’ greatest players should include Cedeno.

Doug Rader

At best, Rader was a slightly above average offensive player. He is eighth on the club’s all-time RBI list, 11th in games played and 12th in home runs. But his primary value came in his glove.

Rader won five straight Gold Gloves at third base from 1970-1974. This helped him accumulate 24.4 career WAR despite a career batting average of just .250. He was a reliable presence on the field for several seasons, providing a decent bat and plus defense.

Bob Watson

Watson was a regular in the Astros lineup for most of the 1970s, playing primarily first base. He sits fifth on the club’s all-time RBI list, seventh in doubles and ninth in walks. He’s tied with Bagwell for second in franchise history with a .297 batting average and posted a higher OPS than Cedeno and Wynn.

Watson was a two-time All Star and received MVP votes in three seasons. He wasn’t the type of player to set the world on fire, only hitting 20 homers in a season once, but he always hit for a solid average and drove in runs, and he did it for a long time. That counts for something.