Carlos Beltran announces retirement

Veteran outfielder Carlos Beltran officially announced his retirement from baseball Monday, via a post on The Players Tribune:

Beltran, 40, was widely expected to retire after winning his first World Series ring with the Astros this season. He hit just .231/.283/.383 with 14 homers as Houston’s primary designated hitter this season, in what many expected to be his last go-around following his decision to sign a one-year, $16 million deal with the club a year ago.

Beltran retires with a career .279/.350/.486 line and 435 homers in 20 seasons with the Royals (1998-2004), Astros (2004, 2017), Mets (2005-11), Giants (2011), Cardinals (2012-13), Yankees (2014-16) and Rangers (2016). He was named an All-Star in nine of his 20 seasons, winning three Gold Gloves, two Silver Sluggers and a Rookie of the Year award in the process.

Beltran will be strongly considered for the Hall of Fame when he is eligible in five years, as five of the seven players most similar to him on Baseball Reference have already been inducted. He is one of just a handful of players to announce their retirements this season, joining Bronson Arroyo, Joe Nathan, Matt Cain and Jered Weaver.

Beltran’s retirement is now reflected in our Free Agent Tracker.