Turn Back the Clock: Lance Berkman powered Zephyrs to Triple-A World Series title
At the beginning of the 1998 season, the New Orleans Zephyrs hadn’t won a league title in their five years in the Crescent City. They had managed to play in one postseason playoff series (in 1997) but were swept in three games. But that would change during the 1998 campaign.
A late-season youth movement on the team, led by Lance Berkman, propelled the Zephyrs to the 1998 Pacific Coast League championship followed by a coveted Triple-A World Series title.
The Zephyrs became a minor-league affiliate of the Houston Astros in 1997, after having started out with the Milwaukee Brewers as their parent in the American Association in 1993. Another organizational change occurred in 1998, when the American Association merged with the Pacific Coast League. Memphis, Oklahoma, and Nashville became the Zephyrs’ new rivals in the East Division of the PCL.
John Tamargo took the reins as Zephyrs manager in 1998 and led them to a division championship with a 76-66 record, three games ahead of Memphis and Oklahoma. During the last month of the season, the Zephyrs roster was supplemented by promotions for Berkman, third baseman Chris Truby, shortstop Julio Lugo, catcher Scott Makarewicz, outfielder Chad Alexander, and pitchers Derek Root, Mike Blais, and Kent Wallace. They served as backfills for other Zephyrs who were called up to the majors, and the new prospects ended up seeing a lot of playing time.
The Zephyrs got a boost from several of the younger players down the stretch of the regular season. Berkman put up 6 HRs and 13 RBIs in 17 and posted a remarkable .411 on-base percentage. Chris Truby had a slash line of .412/.444/.765 in five games. Blais and Wallace made nine relief appearances between them.
The Zephyrs played the Iowa Cubs, the Central Division champion, in the first round of the playoffs. Their scheduled five-game series was shortened to three games, after Tropical Storm Frances affected the ability to get in all the games. Behind the complete-game pitching of Bob Scanlon, the Zephyrs defeated the Cubs in the third game to advance to the PCL championship round against Calgary.
After trailing Calgary 2-1 in their series, the Zephyrs rallied to even the series. Truby, Berkman, and Lugo led the hitting attack in the Game 4 win, as Scanlon hurled another complete game.
The Z’s came from behind in the deciding Game 5 to defeat Calgary and take home the PCL championship trophy. Bob Milacki gave up only five hits in recording the 4-3 win. 23-year-old Daryl Ward hit his fourth home run of the postseason.
New Orleans faced the Buffalo Bisons, the International League champion, in the Triple-A World Series.
With two home runs, Ward was the hitting star again for the Z’s in Game 1. After Buffalo rebounded with a win in Game 2, New Orleans won the next two games to capture the World Series title. In the fourth game, the Zephyrs won handily,12-6, as Berkman put on a hitting show with four hits, including three home runs (from both sides of the plate) and six RBI. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the series.
Tamargo attributed the successful postseason to his newcomers. He said, “It was the new blood. Those kids really fired everybody up.” When the big-league Astros took four of the New Orleans’ starters and traded a fifth, the Zephyrs managed to jell with the replacement players. Veteran first baseman Paul Russo observed, “The other guys left, new guys came in, and they played outstanding. The older guys tried to take the pressure off them by just telling them to relax and play ball.”
Berkman also spent parts of the 1999 and 2000 seasons with the Zephyrs. He went on to have a spectacular major-league career with the Astros, becoming one of the most productive players in their history. In 14 Astros seasons, he collected 326 home runs and 1,090 RBIs. His slash line was .296/.410/.549. With the Astros, he was a five-time All-Star and finished in the top seven in the MVP voting in five seasons.
New Orleans was declared a co-champion of the PCL in 2001 with Tacoma since the championship series was cancelled due to the 9/11 attack.
The Zephyrs remained an Astros minor-league club through the 2004 season, after which they became affiliated with the Washington Nationals (2005-2006), New York Mets (2007-2008), and Florida/Miami Marlins (2009-2019).
Crescent City Sports - < PREV Terry Rooney returns to LSU baseball program as new Associate Director of Program Development and Recruiting
- NEXT > Elite reigning state champion Lutcher program ready for life without Winfield
Richard Cuicchi
New Orleans baseball historian
Richard Cuicchi, Founder of the Metro New Orleans Area Baseball Player Database and a New Orleans area baseball historian, maintains TheTenthInning.com website. He also authored the book, Family Ties: A Comprehensive Collection of Facts and Trivia About Baseball’s Relatives. He has contributed to numerous SABR-sponsored Bio Project and Games Project books.
