Erik Kratz

Erik Kratz was born June 15, 1980 and is a catcher for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball. Kratz played baseball at Christopher Dock Mennonite High School and then Eastern Mennonite University. He was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 29th round of the 2002 Major League Baseball draft. After playing for seven years with minor-league affiliates of the Blue Jays, from 2002 through 2008, Kratz signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2009. He made his Major League Baseball debut on July 17, 2010. Before the 2011 season, Kratz signed a minor-league deal with the Philadelphia Phillies and played with the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, appearing several times in 2011 and 2012 at the Major-League level and ultimately winning the backup catcher job on the Phillies' 2013 roster. He was dealt back to the Toronto Blue Jays organization prior to the 2014 season, dividing his playing time between Toronto and the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons before being traded to the Kansas City Royals in July. He returned to the Phillies in 2015, and played for the Houston Astros and Pirates in 2016. He played for the New York Yankees in 2017. He was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2018.