Five-time MLB All-Star retires after 15 seasons
Michael Brantley could've been one of the thousands of forgotten "players to be named later" after he was traded by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2008 as an outfield prospect in a part of a package to land starting pitcher CC Sabathia.
Instead, Brantley made his MLB debut late in the 2009 season with the Cleveland then-Indians and crafted a 15-year big league season that included five All-Star honors, a World Series title and a reputation as one of the classier players in recent memory.
The 36-year-old announced his retirement on Friday after 10 seasons with Cleveland and the last five with the Houston Astros. After earning his fourth and fifth All-Star nods with Houston in 2019 and 2021, Brantley was limited by injuries in 2022 and 2023, playing in just 79 games combined.
The lefty's breakout campaign came in 2014 when he set career highs in home runs (20), RBIs (97), stolen bases (23), runs scored (94) and hits (200) and posted a career-best slash line of .327/.385/.506 as well. Brantley made his first All-Star team that year, earned his lone Silver Slugger award and finished third in the AL MVP voting only behind Mike Trout and Victor Martinez.
He made two more All-Star teams in 2017 and 2018 with Cleveland before signing with the Astros ahead of the 2019 season. Brantley finished second in the junior circuit in batting average (.311) in 2019 and after the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, made his final All-Star team in 2021.
He underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery midway through the 2022 campaign but later earned a World Series ring when Houston defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in the Fall Classic. Brantley suited up for just 54 at-bats over 15 games in 2023.
Despite being one of the better contact hitters in the game and a plus defender, Brantley was at times overlooked toward the end of his career, in Houston lineups that featured the likes of former MVP second baseman Jose Altuve, star third baseman Alex Bregman and slugging designated hitter Yordan Alvarez.
On Friday though, MLB is honoring a guy who spent 15 years turning the "PTBNL" label into much more.
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