Eric Byrnes may retire, reports MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. Said Byrnes three days after being released by the Mariners:
"I think this is the end. You never say never, but I think this is it. Parts of 11 seasons, man — I gave everything I had to the game. I can look myself in the mirror and know that I gave it my all. I'm proud of that."
Known for his all-out approach, Byrnes would finish with a .258/.320/.439 line across eleven seasons for the Athletics, Rockies, Orioles, Diamondbacks, and Mariners. His best years were 2004 and '07, the latter season prompting the Diamondbacks to give him a three-year, $30MM extension that runs through this year.
What a “bird”.
He’ll be great in the booth or as a Gruden-like analyst.
Take your money and run, he will enjoy spending it I know I would.
All those phony circus catches gone to waste, Eric. It’s a pity that Ringling Bros. doesn’t have a baseball league for ya….
I hope he keeps playing for a while. Not that any team would be smart to employ him, but his reckless enthusiasm is more tolerable on the field than in front of a microphone.
I think that people should remember that Byrnes was actually pretty damn good for a while there.
He was a plus defensive outfielder that flashed good power (.181 career ISO) and speed (50 steals in 2007, 25 in 2006). During his prime he had three seasons of 3+ fWAR where he put everything together. He could’ve stood to get on base more and improve his plate discipline, but for a good amount of time he was an awfully useful player.
riding his bicycle off into the sunset i see.
I read on yahoo today that Byrnes is playing softball in some small league…lol but hes getting paid like a major league baseball player.
I will remember Eric Byrnes for unnecessary diving/flipping(when throwing). He tried to hard to show everyone he was giving it all he got.
It’s a shame if this is true, I thought he had several more years ahead of him someone has to have some use out of his defense / speed if hes still not hitting after one last chance in the bigs…
I hope he keeps playing somewhere just so he doesn’t have time for that horrible tv show that Fox Sports gave him. I know it was canceled but someone will pick him up to be an analyst even though he has proven over and over to be a horrible person to listen to.
I hear THAT (and it ain’t just him)!!
Grow up. He was a fourth outfielder, then moved to the easier league and the smallest ballpark he’s ever played in, so he put up two career years in his 30-31 seasons. Then since he was a so-so player who threw his body around, his 30s hit him like a ton of bricks. His career path would make absolute sense without juice being involved.
C’mon now…he was a good 4th outfielder who got paid like a 1st outfielder. Very solid career.
He was a solidly above average everyday outfielder for four seasons, four poor seasons split between being an everyday player and a fourth outfielder, and a few seasons where he got a cup of coffee.
Plus, he’s a really damn wealthy man right now. There are a lot of players who would kill to have success for as long as Byrnes did. No reason to bash a guy who clearly gave it his all, and was actually pretty productive for a while there. Unless you want to be a douchebag, of course.