Michael Brantley retired from baseball as a player back in January, but he’s still going to have a place with the Houston Astros, as the former big league outfielder will be part of the team’s think tank eventually, per Astros beat reporter Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.
“I asked him to come back again and put a uni on and spend some time,” Astros manager Joe Espada said of Brantley.
“His presence is very valuable. The guys really ask him to come around and I ask him to come around. I’m happy to have him around.”
A five-time All-Star, Brantley last played in the majors in the 2023 MLB season with the Astros. In his final season in the big leagues, he appeared in only 15 games and hit .278/.298/.426 with two home runs and seven RBIs across 57 plate appearances. Shoulder issues hampered Brantley in the last years of his career.
As for the Astros, they are in the middle of their preparation for the 2024 campaign. In 2023, they topped the American League West division for the fourth year in a row (and in six of the last seven years) despite going just 90-72 after putting up a 106-56 record in 2022 — the season they last won the World Series. In any case, the Astros are expected to be a force and a serious World Series contender again in 2024. With the help of Brantley soon, Espadas will look to steer Houston back to the playoffs and to the World Series.
Brantley, who spent five years with the Astros as a player, retired with career batting lines of 298/.355/.439 to go with 129 home runs and 720 RBIs through 1,445 games and 6,149 plate appearances.
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