2 former Astros to fill Phillies broadcast booth

Two former Astros will house the road radio broadcast booth for the Phillies in 2022.

On Tuesday, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reported that two former Houston Astros — Michael Bourn and Erick Kratz — will be on a rotating radio booth as color analysts for the Philadelphia Phillies. The two will alternate along with Chad Durbin and Kevin Stocker for road games in 2022.

Bourn, a former outfielder, played for Houston from 2008-2011, following the start of his career in Philadelphia for one season prior. The now 39-year-old and Houstonian was traded to the Astros in 2007 with Geoff Geary and Mike Costanzo for Brad Lidge and Eric Bruntlett.

While mastering Tal’s Hill, Bourn earned his first of two All-Star bids in Houston, along with two Gold Glove Awards for centerfield and three stolen base titles. He was traded at the deadline of the 2011 season, when the Astros were on the brink of a massive rebuild.

Bourn was traded for Jordan Schafer, Brett Oberholtzer, Paul Clemens and Juan Abreu to the Atlanta Braves, which wasn’t a stellar return for an All-Star the next season.

For Kratz, his stay in Houston isn’t one the average fan can recall, while the catcher was a backstop for the Astros for only 14 games. The Astros dealt right-handed pitcher Dan Straily, who recently signed a minor-league deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks, for Kratz prior to the 2016 season.

Kratz had only two hits in his 30 plate appearance stretch with the Astros, amounting to a .069 batting average. This rough stretch led to his release on May 22, 2016. Kratz, now 41-years-old, played across 11 seasons with nine different teams. He only played over 100 games with one franchise that being in Philadelphia.

Durbin and Stocker both shared time in Philadelphia in their careers as well, showing that all four rotating broadcasters have the Phillie connection.

Astros Orbit:

Right-handed pitcher Brad Peacock agreed to a minor-league deal with the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday.