There's a new 'Mr. October' around now

Reggie Jackson defined the word "clutch" with his postseason performances for the New York Yankees. Jackson amassed 10 home runs in five World Series championships and hit nearly .360 during his tenure with the Athletics, Yankees and Angels. Because of his accomplishments, Jackson was given the nickname "Mr. October," which was only fitting given the amazing things he did.\nBut that was then, and this is now.\nThere's a new "Mr. October" in the neighborhood now, but he doesn't need some flashy nickname or impressive resume to blow people away. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Carlos Beltran of the Houston Astros. Though he may not be able to take his team to the World Series, he is making pitchers regret they even showed up to the ballpark. In only nine postseason games, Beltran has hit a whopping eight home runs and has touched 'em all in five straight games, which is a league record. \nNot to take anything away from Jackson's accomplishments, but anything he could do, Beltran can do better. Beltran's age and ability to hit from both sides of the plate are two things Jackson never had to his advantage. Beltran played a huge role in the Astros late season push in the wild card race and helped to further the Cubs' curse. \nRight around the All-Star break, though, while several big free agent names were being tossed around, Beltran's name was seemingly whispered around the league rather than plastered onto billboards and blimps, which would have been more fitting. \nThe funny thing is that nobody seemed to pursue this guy as much as they should have. Houston eventually committed to Beltran, and Beltran committed to using games as his batting practice. I'm just waiting for him to belt one out of the stadium or into some overhead lights, like a scene right out of "The Natural."\nWhat's amazing about Beltran is that his size is mediocre at best compared to other sluggers in the big leagues. He's no bodybuilder, yet he hits the ball harder than a lot of players. What it all comes down to is exceptional speed. While he's extremely talented running the base paths, Beltran's best speed is in his hands and his swing.\nBack when he was with the dismal Kansas City Royals, the team built special batting cages underneath the dugout. Rather than using normal pitching machines with baseballs, they used tennis ball machines. Each ball was labeled with a different number like an oversized game of bingo. Now imagine a tennis ball flying your way at 80 to 150 mph. If that's not intimidating enough, imagine trying to decipher the number printed on the ball. Hey, if Carlos Beltran can do it, why can't you?\nBeltran is a perfect example of how much the game has changed over the years. Jackson used to throw his entire body into every swing and nearly fall to the ground on his home-run swings. Nowadays, guys can stick their bat out with one hand and hit a 350-foot home run with no problem.\nBeltran, along with guys like Albert Pujols and Hideki Matsui, make watching every second of the postseason worthwhile. With a single swing of the bat, they can change the entire landscape of a game. While most of these guys just do it sparingly for their teams, Beltran does it every single game.\nI don't think it's fair to officially take Reggie's title away from him just yet. But for the time being, I think Beltran should be very happy -- there are plenty of other months to choose from.