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May 23, 2025 • 13 mins
Dan and Cole are joined by former MLB catcher and host of the Foul Territory TV podcast Erik Kratz, discussing the Astros' season thus far and what things still need to be worked on. Erik also shares his take on the win over the Mariners, and if the Astros can sustain this type of play throughout the rest of the season to the postseason.
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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
As promise, Let's head out to the hot line.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
Let's talk with foul Territory TV and former Astros that.

Speaker 1 (00:07):
Catcher Eric Krautz.

Speaker 2 (00:09):
Eric Kratz, excuse me joining us here on the Sean
Salisbury Show. Eric, appreciate the time you got myself, Dan Matthews,
got Cole Thompson here with you first and foremost. I
remember a video of you years ago when you were
with the Brewers and you guys got the final out
of your series against the Rockies and you turned around

(00:29):
shook the umpire's hand. Hey, it was great to work
with you. I've always wanted to ask you if I
ever met you, Like, did you do that at all times?
Or was it just kind of a special time to
do that?

Speaker 3 (00:39):
No? All times?

Speaker 4 (00:40):
I mean Teddy Barrett was one of my favorite umpires,
So it was cool that, like we got to work
together in the playoffs.

Speaker 3 (00:46):
But no, like you do that all the time.

Speaker 4 (00:49):
Like the guys, even even when they sucked, you were like,
you know what, like it was fun working with them,
enjoyed the time. Like sometimes you have to kind of
grit your teeth and say it, but I tried to
say it all the time, and you said earlier, you
said former Astros catcher.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
I mean that is a loose, loose term. I was
there for like a minute.

Speaker 2 (01:12):
Well, I mean I saw the video of your buddies
showing up in the jerseys and there was an Astros
jersey in there. Eric, So once an Astro, always an Astro.

Speaker 3 (01:22):
Absolutely, I claim to be an Astro.

Speaker 2 (01:25):
There you go again, Foul Territory TVs. Eric Kratz joined
us here on the Sean Salisbury So let's talk about
the strows on the field right now. That was a
nice showing last night, and the bats really broke out
for this team. And we've kind of seen, you know,
hot and cold with that portion of this team all
throughout the season. What you saw last night is that

(01:46):
something that you feel like is something that they can
ride the rest of the season, especially with the injuries
they have to their starting pitching.

Speaker 4 (01:55):
It was perplexing to me that their best hitter essentially
was either Jeremy Payne or Eastoc Paradis before.

Speaker 3 (02:04):
This game, and you know, it's still.

Speaker 4 (02:07):
Those numbers would probably say that, but you sit there
and you go, why was this team not hitting? Was
Kyle Tucker, who missed most of the season that big
a deal with Alex Bregman.

Speaker 3 (02:18):
That big a deal. Yeah, I think he was that
big of a deal.

Speaker 4 (02:22):
I think he added a element to the lineup that
is not irreplaceable. It's just difficult to simulate. It's difficult
to say, Okay, well, this is the guy that's going
to be able to hit that ninety eight up at
the top of the zone on a consistent basis. The

(02:43):
biggest thing with Bregman to replace in a lineup, besides
his swagger, is confidence and just the like will to win,
which is immeasurable. It's essentially a guy that strikes out
less than I mean, yeah, strikes out less thing walks,

(03:03):
which sounds like an easy thing to do, but in
the big leagues at the level that he had played
for a long time, I think.

Speaker 3 (03:09):
It's hard to duplicate.

Speaker 4 (03:11):
But I think moving forward, this team has those pieces.
The only thing that I would say is probably going
to be tough for Joe Aspata in a platoon type
of world is the fact that they have right handed
hitters galore.

Speaker 3 (03:28):
I mean it is with.

Speaker 4 (03:30):
Jordann out, with Kyle Tuffer gone, you.

Speaker 3 (03:33):
Really lose a lot of like.

Speaker 4 (03:35):
Consistent left handed power, which helps a pitcher right handed
or left handed, navigate a lineup so so much easier
because you don't have to worry about that power from
the left side and right on right off speed, right
on right power against power which a lot of teams
bring out of the bullpen can kind of neutralize this team.

(03:59):
But moving forward, you're going to continue to me, we
felt like Jerry Penney was going to when we talked
to the Astros guys in the spring training, he was
going to break out this season. Obviously he's you know,
he's trending towards the All Star type of season. Christian
Walker is going to start hitting. Christian Walker is not

(04:20):
jose A Breu at the age that they signed him
last time, so Astro fans don't need to worry about it.

Speaker 3 (04:26):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (04:26):
Yes, they could find a left handed bat and I
think that's Jordan Avarez. Hopefully this hand muscle, seeing mystery
injury that there is, can come back. And this team
is still at five hundred and so this lineup has
so much potential and I think will turn it around
the rest of the year.

Speaker 5 (04:44):
Yeah, Eric, I want to get your opinion on the
Christian Walker situation. This is his lowest batting average and
his lowest ops since twenty eighteen, and during that span
he only played thirty seven games, he only had forty
nine at bats.

Speaker 1 (04:56):
He's beat in less than two hundred right now. And
I agree with you.

Speaker 5 (04:59):
I can't stomach when Astros fans are saying, jose A
Bray you two point zero because jose A Brady wasn't
offering this type of defense. But what is it right
now that needs to change? Is his approach to the plate?
Is it something with his swing discipline? When you go
back and you watch the tape, what's up with Christian
Walker and why he's not able to have that same

(05:20):
similar success that we saw on Arizona for the last
five seasons.

Speaker 4 (05:25):
Changing changing scenarios, the pressure, all that stuff could be factors. Obviously,
only Christian Walker can answer to that when I watch
his swings, when I watch and I you know, I
need to watch more Astros baseball to see how teams
are not just facing him, but also how they attack
the rest of the lineup. He was in a lineup

(05:47):
that he understood. He understood how pitchers were attacking him
in the NL West consistently with other guys around him.
The last few years, Corbyn, Carroll cal Marte, you know,
even even a Heraldo Perdomo like guys that were consistently
in the lineup. Now he's consistently in the lineup with

(06:08):
new guys in.

Speaker 3 (06:09):
The American League West.

Speaker 4 (06:11):
How are teams going to face him? And that's what
a veteran hitter will learn. But also ultimately I got
to see him take advantage of the home team bullpen
in right center field more. Sometimes when you get to
the Crawford Boxes pool, happiness is exciting. He sat Paradis

(06:33):
never hits the ball pass center field to the right
of center field, so it's a different type of dynamic
for him. Easily fits in. Hey, you know what, keep
your game plan. Keep pulling the ball like you do.
Christian Walker was banging balls into the pool for a
minute out in Arizona. If you sit there and you go, wow,

(06:56):
I can just easily pull hook a ball to.

Speaker 3 (06:59):
Left field and the homer.

Speaker 4 (07:01):
Now all of a sudden, whether or not he's trying
to do that, his elevated amount of strikeouts at this
point in the season has struck out percent And don't
forget what exactly it is. He's just going to go
up ultimately, because you're not staying on the ball as
long as you can.

Speaker 3 (07:19):
For me, when he.

Speaker 4 (07:20):
Starts to drive the ball to right center, that's when
you buy on the upside because Christian Walker is going
to start to get hot and he will. Nothing that
I've seen in any of his outlier metrics besides the
strikeouts is crazy down. I haven't heard any injuries. And
you know what, I would bet on his track record

(07:42):
more than his first what.

Speaker 3 (07:45):
Are we at fifty games? I would say he will turn.

Speaker 1 (07:49):
It around again.

Speaker 2 (07:50):
Eric Kratz i felt Territory TV, join us here on
the Sean Salisbury Show and two parter for you here, Eric,
first part is the astro pitching, I mean starting to
see some attrition. It looks like Renelle Blanco might be
done for the year. We already know Hayden was Nesky
is done getting Lance mccullors back in. So that's the
first part is do the Astros have enough pitching to

(08:12):
be able to run this thing? And the other part
is if you are the Astros, who do you feel
like you have to stave off more? Is it Seattle
or is it eventually Texas? If they start to get
things figured out at the plate.

Speaker 3 (08:26):
Can I say yes, sure, teams please.

Speaker 4 (08:31):
I really see this as a three horse race, and
not to be negative towards Astro fans, but I don't
know if they have enough starting pitching. They have an elite,
cy young candidate who is to I mean, come into
his own like nobody's business. In Hunter Brown. He got
hit by a few wind aided home runs in George

(08:54):
Steinbrenner Field, Tropiccana Stadium, whatever they're calling it this year,
and that was really that's really his only stinker and
it was only a couple pitches. To me, he's really
come into his own and he can be. For the
last year and a half, even the year and three quarters,
he's been that consistent number one for this team. Everybody

(09:16):
knows a Fromber can do. It's awesome, and then some
days you're like, is this the real Probber or is
this a different Promber. So the inconsistency with Fromber is
you can live with it because of how great the
great is. And from there, somebody needs to step up

(09:38):
in this rotation to be.

Speaker 3 (09:40):
More than a five inning guy.

Speaker 4 (09:42):
And I don't know if Lance mccullors last three years
out of the game. Recovering from what all the stuff
he recovered can be enough to be a six inning guy.
Lance McCullers is going to give you everything he has.

Speaker 3 (09:56):
That's clear. You don't come back from you don't come.

Speaker 4 (09:59):
Back from the injuries, the setbacks, the surgeries.

Speaker 3 (10:03):
That he has and be like.

Speaker 4 (10:05):
Hey, you know what, I'm just kind of playing out
the rest of my contract. He's going to give you
what he has. But take a look at last night.
He had eight punch outs I think in four and
two thirds for a third, I think, so he didn't
get to the fifth inning. He wants to get to
the fifth inning is not a desire thing. He is

(10:25):
out there for the boys. But can your team sustain
the rigors of one hundred and sixty two games. They
have one hundred and twelve left with only two and a.

Speaker 3 (10:41):
Half rotation pieces.

Speaker 4 (10:43):
Now, when someone else steps up, when someone else starts
throwing consistently.

Speaker 3 (10:48):
Six innings, this team.

Speaker 4 (10:50):
Will vault to the top of this division, just like
they have every other year. Because this bullpen is I
think I didn't check today, but I think it's the
lowest dra in baseball right now, and if not, it's
one of the best. And they just they just bring

(11:12):
out a cavalcade of arms. Now, I might go against
the trend here and say if they could add another
bullpen arm, that would stretch that out. Now, all of
a sudden, you have six guys in the back of
that bullpen with King and Okert and Ort already with

(11:33):
a Braye and Hater.

Speaker 3 (11:35):
You have six guys in that pen.

Speaker 4 (11:36):
Now, all of a sudden, you can go four deep
almost every game with two guys getting arrest. It's a luxury.
It's a luxury. But I say that because I don't
know that there's a starter that the Astros are gonna
go get until the end of July. And in this division,
the end of July might be too late.

Speaker 3 (11:57):
But we will see real quick here.

Speaker 2 (12:00):
Eric Foy gets you out the door. One of our listeners, Trevor,
wanted to ask about Opening Day, the tumble out of
the dugout.

Speaker 1 (12:06):
What do you remember from it?

Speaker 4 (12:09):
I remember that somebody said nobody will take a dive
on opening Day, and I was like, huh, yeah, right,
and Luke Gregorson goes you won't do it for one
thousand dollars.

Speaker 3 (12:21):
I said, huh. And then Scott.

Speaker 4 (12:24):
Feldman came into the dug at the same time and goes,
who's doing what for one thousand dollars, I'll put one
thousand dollars on it. They were like two grand, you
won't take a dive. I'm like in my head, I'm like, please,
I'd taken a dive for two hundred and fifty dollars,
so they would go. Eric Kratz number twenty three, just
like Jordan made it back, ran up the stairs, tripsky,

(12:47):
tripsky the girl who was holding the flag. If you
watch the video, the girl who was holding the flag,
she goes, oh no, but she never never moved. I
mean watching the video she never moved, but I'd never
hear her. I'll never forget her say oh nor ran
out guess my five. We were playing my previous team,
the world champion twenty fifteen Royals, and they were all

(13:09):
excited about it. They loved it, and I got two grand.

Speaker 1 (13:13):
There we go.

Speaker 2 (13:14):
Well, sometimes taking a dive does pay off for sure.
Eric Kratz again Foul Territory TV. It's part of my
daily routine. Finish up the show, head home, tune you
guys on you Scott Braun, aj Brazinski, Todd Frazier, Lonaizzo
part of it as well.

Speaker 1 (13:29):
It's it's it's a great.

Speaker 2 (13:31):
Product to follow, every single day podcast as well, So
Eric really appreciate it. Man, great stuff and we'll definitely
call you up here again here very soon.

Speaker 3 (13:41):
Please do. Thanks for having me on guys.

Speaker 1 (13:42):
I appreciate again. Eric Kratz
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