It's been 11 years since the Houston Astros were in the playoffs. Eleven long years which were made more excruciating by second-place finishes the last three seasons.

Maybe you remember all the way back to the magical year of 1986, when Mike Scott no-hit the San Francisco Giants to clinch the division. If so, you'll also remember the harrowing six-game series with the cocaine-inspired New York Mets which some have called the greatest playoff series ever.

That series included the most exciting playoff game of all time, which ended when Kevin Bass struck out against Jesse Orosco with two runners on in the bottom of the 16th inning. It haunts me to this day.

There are few threads running from that team to this year's. But there have been two constants which have defined the Astros for the 1990s. Two players, inextricably linked, have carried the franchise.

Biggio and Bagwell.

It even sounds good, doesn't it? The Killer B's. Best friends, arguably the two best players in the game at their positions, and unarguably the heart and soul of this team.

Craig Biggio has won three straight Gold Gloves as the best defensive second baseman in the league. He has started for the National League in the last three All-Star games, and he's the only person ever to be both an All-Star catcher and second baseman.

This year, Biggio has been a rock. He hit .309 and had 22 homers and 81 RBIs from the leadoff position. Not bad for a guy with the league's worst-hitting pitching staff ahead of him.

He's crossed the plate 146 times, the highest run total in the National League in 65 years. Also, he stole 47 bases.

But if you want to know what Craig Biggio is all about and what he really means to the team, look no farther than the clincher against the Cubs last Thursday. He got drilled in the back of the head by a Jeremi Gonzalez fastball. The crack was audible on the replays, so you know it had to hurt like hell.

Biggio got up and went right to first. Although he was stranded then, he came back up in his next plate appearance and walked. Then stole second. Then stole third. Then scored. He's a man all right. With 34 hit by pitches, he led the league in that category for the third consecutive year.

Jeff Bagwell can tell you all about being hit by a pitch. He had a bone in his left hand broken three years in a row. That hasn't stopped him from crowding the plate in that squatty stance and sending balls into orbit that the Johnson Space Center ends up tracking. Of course, baseball isn't as exciting as figuring out what's going to explode next on Mir.

Bagwell hit .286 but had 127 walks for a .426 on-base percentage. Despite playing in the cavernous Astrodome, Bags was second in the league in both homers and RBIs with 43 taters and 135 of the latter. He also had the first ever 30-30 season for a true first baseman with 31 thefts.

He gets it done in the field as well and probably deserves a Gold Glove this year for his .992 fielding percentage and spectacular plays at first.

I'd just like to thank the Boston Red Sox for trading Bags straight up for Larry Anderson.

So there you have it. Two role models on the field and off. They were the starting right side of the infield for the National League's All-Star team. They are second and third for longest active games-played streak behind some guy named Cal. And they are this year's NL co-MVPs.

As for other "favorites," Larry Walker plays in a park where a popped-up bunt has a chance to be a gapper, and his team stank this year. Plus, do you think Biggio or Bagwell would EVER sit out a game because he was intimidated by the opposing pitcher?

Mike Piazza doesn't deserve to win because his defense is laughable and he failed to keep his team from going into the tank down the stretch.

No other players had to carry as much of the load for their team as Biggio and Bagwell. It's ironic that they'll take away votes from each other, and neither is likely to win. But that doesn't make them any less valuable.