2008 Topps Heritage Relic - Lance Berkman

I went to Target today to pick up a few supplies and they finally had some packs of 2008 Topps Heritage available. I picked up a few, hoping to add to my set. I did get a few for my set and a few for the doubles pile. Plus, I got an unexpected jersey card of Lance Berkman.

I have a soft spot for the Astros, ever since I laid eyes on those rainbow uniforms when I was a kid. They are ugly as sin, but it made quite an impression on my young mind. There are some teams that I could never truly dislike because of some weird association with them as a child. The Astros are one of those teams.

I follow them a little bit now. Nothing like I used to, but I do keep my eye on them. The only time I really didn't like them was in the 2005 postseason. It was a nightmare come to life to see the Astros against the White Sox. Of course I was rooting for the White Sox all the way, but a part of me wanted the Astros to at least do well.

To their credit, the Astros put up one hell of a fight. Any one of those games could have gone either way. As it turned out, the Astros were swept. They kept in each game though. You have to admire a team like that. They wouldn't roll over and die, they fought tooth and nail until the final out.

I usually can't catch Astros games because of where I live. If they aren't playing the Cubs or on a national broadcast, I can pretty much forget seeing them. Sometimes they don't even make the Sportscenter or Baseball Tonight highlights.

I can remember going to a game in Detroit, with a friend, to see the Tigers take on the Astros. A third of me wanted to see the Astros, another third wanted to see the Tigers brand new stadium and the other third wanted to see a baseball game outside of Chicago. All three thirds of me enjoyed the experience of watching the Astros win in a battle of interleague last place teams in a brand new stadium in a strange city.

I wore my White Sox hat. My friend wore his Cubs hat. Everyone was friendly and welcomed us to Comerica Park. We were expecting to be the strange highlight for this interleague game that no one cared about. ESPN never showed a clip. They just showed a quick score and on to the commercials.

When I see certain players from that 2000 Astros squad, I always think of that game. The five hour drive and the hotel bathroom that was bigger than the actual room. I suppose this card gets me that much closer to the game that I saw that July night in 2000. I can live with that. Lance, your jersey wasn't cut up for nothing. It sparked wonderful memories.