Beltran enters 20th season as he turns 40
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Carlos Beltran chuckled at the suggestion he somehow is defying “father time.”
The nine-time All-Star is in his 20th major league season, three weeks into a second tour of duty with the Houston Astros.
And while he no longer is the dynamic young player he was during his first stint with the team, the three-time Gold Glove outfielder and 1999 AL Rookie of the Year is making an impact on and off the field.
Beltran turned 40 on Monday, a day after drawing a leadoff walk and coming around to score the goahead run in an extra-innings victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
He hit his first homer for the Astros since October 2004 last week, then homered again the following night to move within one extra-base hit (1,040) of tying Pete Rose for third-most among switch-hitters in major league history.
“We’re winning. We’re playing good baseball. We’re having a good time,” Beltran said of his return to the Astros.
He starred for Houston during the 2004 postseason, homering in five consecutive games and positioning himself to sign a $119 million deal with the New York Mets in free agency.
He’s also made postseason appearances with the Mets, St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers during a career that began with the Kansas City Royals.
Beltran hit 41 homers and drove in 131 runs in 232 games over the past two seasons with the New York Yankees, who sent him to the Rangers at the trade deadline last summer.
When the slugger, who has 423 career homers, became a free agent again last fall, the Astros didn’t hesitate to add him to a talented young roster that includes Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa and George Springer.
“He brings a lot. He has a great presence on our team,” manager A.J. Hinch said.
“He’s a stabilizer when it comes to everything from the mental side of the game for some of our younger players to the controlled at-bats in the middle of our lineup that 20 years in the league will give you,” Hinch added. “He’s just a very influential presence on a team that needed it.”