HOUSTON — Doubt had crept into the Astros’ clubhouse. A World Series hung in the balance. And then Michael Brantley spoke.
Shoulder surgery sidelined him from the active roster, but many within the organization insisted he remain around the team during its 2022 postseason journey. Brantley brought the team together after a Game 3 loss dug Houston a 2-1 series deficit. He could not contribute on the field, but became irreplaceable off of it. Brantley addressed his teammates, reminding them how far they had come and where they intended to go.
The Astros didn’t lose another game, and Brantley won the World Series ring that had long eluded him.
Brantley, 36, is retiring, he announced Friday, capping the career of a five-time All-Star, one of the steadiest hitters of the last decade and the definition of a consummate professional. Lauded early for his exquisite left-handed swing and strike zone discipline, Brantley blossomed from a player-to-be-named-later into one of baseball’s most respected players, a man defined by his meticulous routines and mentorship.
“With great appreciation, I’m announcing the end of an amazing journey in baseball. It’s been a great honor to live out my dreams and wear a Major League uniform for the past 15 years,” Brantley wrote in his announcement statement.
After the Astros booted the Indians from the 2018 postseason and the crowd started to dissipate in Cleveland’s clubhouse, veteran players flocked to Brantley’s corner locker, a double stall typically reserved for a team leader. Jason Kipnis, Josh Tomlin and Yan Gomes occupied leather chairs in the area. Yonder Alonso sat on the floor near the base of Brantley’s setup.
They all knew some or most of them wouldn’t be back, Brantley included. The band was breaking up. At Brantley’s exit interview the following day with manager Terry Francona and executives Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff, everyone in the room cried. In his decade with the organization, Brantley emerged as a reliable presence Francona would say could fall out of bed and collect a couple hits. He grew into a leader, one so influential that Francisco Lindor credited him with teaching him how to be a big leaguer.
Everyone in that office on that day in October 2018 figured Brantley would don a different jersey the following season. No one knew it would be an Astros uniform.
Houston prioritized a corner outfielder all winter, but understood the potential void developing inside its clubhouse. Carlos Beltrán retired after winning the 2017 World Series and, a season later, Brian McCann departed for Atlanta, depriving the club of its two most trusted veteran leaders.
Finding a player aligned with the Astros’ offensive philosophy and prepared to mentor some still-maturing players felt mandatory. After signing Brantley to a two-year, $30 million deal, former general manager Jeff Luhnow called it “one of our highest priority moves.”
Brantley slashed .305/.365/.463 in 394 games as an Astro, earning two All-Star selections and a permanent place atop one of baseball’s most potent lineups. During Game 6 of the 2019 American League Championship Series, Brantley initiated one of the most memorable defensive plays in franchise history, diving to snare a sinking liner from Aaron Hicks before doubling off Aaron Judge at first base to preserve a two-run lead.
Those heroics prompted a smile and shout Brantley rarely allowed the public to see. He led in relative silence, allowing teammates to see his detailed routines while offering advice bred from experience few in that clubhouse had. During Brantley’s first spring training, teammates dubbed him “Uncle Mike,” a moniker that made its way onto T-shirts, promotional material and the team’s TV broadcast throughout his tenure.
“There’s guys who have been here that aren’t here that have been unbelievably helpful to me personally. I think Mike so far has really kind of been the guy,” George Springer said in 2019. “I want to be successful all the time. And when stuff doesn’t go my way — or our way — it’s not for me. It’s because I want to succeed for the team. When I fail, I feel like I’m letting the team down. Mike has kind of provided a lot of in-depth (advice) of ‘You didn’t let the guys down. Just go play the game. There’s a lot more game to play. Go be who you are and make sure you don’t let a pitch, a play or an at-bat spiral into the next one.’”
The respect Brantley engendered inside the organization is almost impossible to quantify. Signing him to three separate free-agent contracts is proof. Dusty Baker spoke of him with reverence he reserved for a select few players and insisted his 24-year-old son, Darren, learn hitting from Brantley. Both Springer and Kyle Tucker have credited Brantley with aiding their ascent among the sport’s elite.
“Professional in every way,” said reliever Joe Smith, who played with Brantley in both Cleveland and Houston. “My favorite teammate ever. We were together for 10 seasons. That’s a hell of a guy to be with that long.”
Brantley learned the craft from his father, Mickey, an outfielder for the Mariners in the late ’80s who eventually coached in the majors. Throughout Brantley’s career, the two dissected his swing mechanics. Even in Brantley’s final seasons, Mickey would trek to the ballpark to watch his son take batting practice.
Some called Brantley “Junior,” since he shares a name and a passion for hitting with his father. Others, in Cleveland, referred to him as “Dr. Smooth” because of his fluid motion when lining a pitch into the gap.
Brantley spent 15 seasons in the majors, none with the team that drafted him. That’s because CC Sabathia dragged the Brewers to the playoffs in 2008, a couple months after Cleveland dealt him to Milwaukee for four unproven players. Matt LaPorta was the centerpiece, a powerful first baseman who fizzled once he reached the big leagues. Pitchers Zach Jackson and Rob Bryson never amounted to much with Cleveland. The fourth player was narrowed to two candidates, but the final arrangement hinged on whether the Brewers advanced to the postseason.
Had Sabathia not carried his new team to the NLDS, Cleveland would have settled for infielder Taylor Green, who ultimately totaled 154 plate appearances as a major-leaguer and would have cemented Mark Shapiro’s grand nightmare as head of the Indians’ front office.
Instead, the club landed Brantley, a lineup cornerstone for much of the ensuing decade. At his best, Brantley was a doubles machine, walked as often as he struck out and racked up outfield assists as he perfected the art of bare-handing a ball off the 19-foot-high wall at Progressive Field, spinning around and completing a pinpoint throw to second base.
He bloomed into an MVP finalist in 2014, when he slashed .327/.385/.506 and tallied 20 homers, 45 doubles, 23 stolen bases and a career-best 200 hits. When Cleveland dumped Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn in August 2015, Brantley stepped into more of a leadership role. That made it doubly painful when he was relegated to the audience for the team’s march to the World Series a year later.
Because of shoulder surgery, Brantley appeared in only 11 games in 2016 and was forced to watch his teammates’ playoff run from a distance. Michael Martinez, a late-game defensive replacement in left field, made the final out in the 10th inning of Game 7 of the World Series. If Brantley were healthy, Martinez — or anyone else — wouldn’t have been playing left field.
Brantley suffered an ankle injury in August 2017 that sidelined him until the final weekend of the season. He wasn’t 100 percent for the playoffs, and only entered the starting lineup, in Game 3, after Edwin Encarnación suffered an ankle injury of his own.
He finally arrived at a postseason opportunity in one piece in 2018, but the Astros made quick work of Cleveland in Brantley’s final days with the franchise.
Brantley’s clubs reached the playoffs in each of his last eight years. A shoulder injury limited him to 79 games across his final two seasons. He couldn’t play during the 2022 World Series, but the man known for his relentlessly stoic demeanor still invigorated his teetering team between Games 3 and 4.
“He’s a teammate that cared about others more than himself,” catcher Martín Maldonado told The Athletic this week. “He’s the reason we won the (2022) World Series. He (led) the best team meeting I’ve ever heard. When he was hurt, he was always in the dugout trying to help others.”
Publicly, Brantley never broke that character, intentionally resorting in interviews to his endless supply of clichés. Privately, he became essential to Cleveland’s operation and to Houston’s budding dynasty.
After an arduous rehab filled with setbacks, Brantley did contribute to the Astros’ 2023 postseason run. When it ended one win shy of a pennant, Brantley told teammates of his intention to retire — one final message inside a clubhouse where his legacy is cemented.
(Top photo: Tim Warner / Getty Images)
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