HOUSTON -- Lance Berkman and Roy Oswalt, two of the greatest players in Astros history who led the team to its first World Series in 2005, joined another key member of the '05 team, pitcher Andy Pettitte, among the 20 new candidates on the '19 Hall of Fame ballot.
Berkman, Oswalt and Pettitte are on the ballot for the first time along with former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, former Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay, former Rockies slugger Todd Helton and former Astros shortstop and 2002 American League Most Valuable Player, Miguel Tejada.
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Candidates must be named on 75 percent of ballots cast by selected members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America who have 10 or more consecutive years of MLB coverage. The 2019 Hall of Fame class will be announced Jan. 22. Players may remain on the ballot for up to 10 years provided they receive at least five percent of the vote.
Former Astros who are returning to the ballot are Roger Clemens, Jeff Kent, Darren Oliver, Curt Schilling and Billy Wagner.

Berkman spent 12 of his 15 big league seasons with the Astros, hitting. 293 with a .943 OPS, 366 homers, 422 doubles and 1,234 RBIs in his career. A six-time All-Star, he's regarded as one of the greatest switch-hitters in MLB history.
Oswalt spent 10 of his 13 seasons in the Majors in an Astros uniform, going 163-102 in 365 games, including 341 starts (20 complete games). He played for the Phillies, Rockies and Rangers after leaving Houston, but made his mark with the Astros, where his 143 wins are second-most in club history.

Pettitte, whose signing with the Astros prior to the '04 season prompted Clemens to come out of retirement and join him, won 256 games and posted a 3.85 ERA in 18 seasons -- 15 with the Yankees and three in Houston. He went 19-11 with a 3.81 ERA in 44 playoff starts and holds career postseason records for innings pitched (276 2/3) and games started (44) and is second in strikeouts (183).

Tejada, the AL MVP with the Athletics in 2002, is a six-time All-Star who played for six teams in 16 seasons, including the Astros ('08-09). He had three seasons of 200 or more hits and six years of 100 or more RBIs, including a career-high 150 in '04, his first season in Baltimore.
Last year, Clemens appeared on 57.3 percent of the ballots in his sixth year on the ballot, Schilling was on 51.2 percent of the ballots in his sixth year, Kent was on 14.5 percent of the ballots in his fifth year, Wagner was on 11.1 percent in his third year.