Biggio and 3,000

Craig Biggio will begin this season 70 hits shy of 3,000 for his career. Over his likely Hall of Fame career, Biggio has been all that you could ever ask for in a player. He could hit for power (career .436 SLG), get on base (career .367 OBP), play great defense and run. However, those days are gone, and now Bidge is playing to get his 3,000th hit.

The problem will be when Biggio struggles this season, how long will Garner let him play everyday? Evidence already shows that he should not be playing everyday. In the second half of 2006 Biggio hit for an embarrassing .201/.251/.397 and in the second half of 2005 he hit just .237 with a .294 OBP. So you can expect similar numbers in the second half this year as well.

However, his biggest problem now is when he is away from the Crawford Boxes at Minute Maid Park. On the road last season, Biggio, in 236 AB's hit just a paltry .178/.253/.288. Yeah, he is a class act and a Houston icon, but if he hits like that this season he will have to be relegated to the bench because he will be a detriment to the ball club if he plays.

The problem begins with the number 3,000. It is one of those numbers that has been ingrained into the minds of Hall of Fame voters and is looked at as a ticket to the Hall of Fame. Biggio doesn't need 3,000 hits to validate his Hall of Fame candidacy.

The next problem is that he has to be given the starting gig to start the season because of his value to the franchise, the city of Houston and to the Houston fan base. There would be an uproar if Biggio wasn't given an opportunity to go after 3,000 hits in Houston. And it is understandable because the Astros are still selling entertainment and are trying to make money. To do that, Biggio has to be a part of it.

The solution to this dilemma is to start the season with Biggio the starter at 2B, where he shouldn't play day games after night games (which he has been doing for the last 3 years now anyway). He should play mostly during home games where in 2006 he hit .296/.346/.522 with 15 of his 21 homers. Once he gets hit 70, if he is struggling he needs to be replaced. Hopefully Bidge would take himself out if he hit like he did on the road and in the 2nd half last year anyway.