EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
Houston broadcast media legend reveals details of infamous Astros scoop
Apr 5, 2022, 11:21 am
Here's the scoop. Composite image by Brandon Strange.
Retiring Houston Chronicle legend John McClain got it right in his farewell to the troops last week.
“I’ll miss hanging out at the Texans with Mark Berman, sports director at KRIV, another close friend of more than 40 years and the best reporter I’ve ever seen.”
Several years ago, I was playing a neighborhood pickup basketball game with Steve Patterson, then the Houston Rockets general manager. I asked him, “How come you give all your scoops to Mark Berman at Channel 26? Don’t the other TV stations get mad at you?”
Patterson answered, “I don’t play favorites. I don’t call Berman and give him Rockets stories. He’s the only TV guy who stops by my office every day and asks what’s up? If someone in the media asks what’s going on, I’ll tell them. Berman just happens to be the only one who does that.”
To be fair, none of the current batch of local sports anchors was around when Patterson told me that. The others have upped their game, and by that I mean they actually show up for games and work the beat. What a concept!
Still there’s no harder worker than Berman in Houston broadcast media. He’s a bulldog, all right. He’s old school.
Two weeks ago, in the wee hours of a weekend, Berman landed one of his biggest scoops – Carlos Correa shocking the baseball world and breaking the hearts of Astros fans by signing a 3-year, $105 million contract with the Minnesota Twins. Around that time, rumors were flying that Correa appeared likely to stay with Houston. Even Astros players in Florida for spring training were stoked that their shortstop might soon be in camp. Minnesota came straight out of leftfield. Only Berman got the story.
Here’s the scoop on Berman’s scoop.
SportsMap: Given the way journalism operates today, and your reputation and drive to break stories, how did you get your Correa news to the public? It was late at night.
Berman: I immediately reported the information on my Twitter account.
SportsMap: Did you ask Channel 26 to break into programming with a “Bulletin” or “Breaking News?”
Berman: Not at 12:41 a.m. in Houston.
SportsMap: When you get hold of a scoop like this, do you fear that somebody else has the story, too?
Berman: While I was in the moment I didn’t have time to think about anything but get the information and get it on Twitter. Of course I was thrilled to be first. Who wouldn’t be with a story of that magnitude?
SportsMap: Have you ever had a scoop that turned out not true and you had to eat it?
Berman: Certainly I’ve had a couple of stories where I interviewed people on the record and their information was wrong or just didn’t pan out. I’m guessing there’s been a story or two based on sources where the information originally checked out and ended up not being right. I’m extremely cautious when dealing with off-the-record information and that’s cost me a number of stories, because if I can’t get comfortable I just don’t do anything.
SportsMap: Give me your Top 5 scoops from your career.
Berman: Considering I’ve been doing this for 44 years, 42 in Houston, 36 at FOX26, it’s hard to create a list like that. So I figured I’d go back five years and list five in no particular order, based on the significance and in a couple cases being surprises.
1. Tilman Fertitta buying the Rockets.
2. Rudy Tomjanovich getting elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
3. Michael Brantley re-signing with the Astros when it was being reported he was joining Toronto.
4. Most recently we had an exclusive interview with former Texans safety Justin Reid who signed with the Chiefs.
5. Carlos Correa reaching an agreement with the Twins.
SportsMap: You live for this, right?
Berman: 24/7, 365.
It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
We have so much more to discuss. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday!
*ChatGPT assisted.
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