Former star outfielder Jason Bay can't envision a situation in which he continues his playing career, and is therefore "essentially retiring," Shi Davidi of SportsNet.ca tweets. Last month, it appeared that Bay might play in Japan, but Davidi says Bay decided against it in favor of spending more time with his family.
Bay, who is 35, will end his career with a .266/.360/.481 line and 222 home runs in parts of 11 seasons. He was traded three times (the last of them a high-profile trade that sent Brian Giles to the Padres) before he won the NL Rookie of the Year award with the Pirates in 2004. He replaced Giles as the Bucs' biggest star until 2008, when the Pirates dealt him to the Red Sox in the three-team Manny Ramirez trade that also involved the Dodgers.
After spending the rest of 2008 and 2009 hitting well in Boston, Bay signed a four-year, $66MM contract with the Mets. That deal quickly became a debacle for the team, leading Bay and the Mets to come to an unusual agreement in which the contract was terminated early and Bay became a free agent. From there, Bay signed a one-year deal with the Mariners, who released him in August after he hit .204/.298/.393.
He has way too much talent to retire. He just needs to find the right team and maybe get on a minor league contract and work his way back up.
You must be a relative to Jason Bay. The guy has been done for years. The one positive I can say about Jason is that he didn’t let his poor play and the boos affect his professionalism. Jason worked very hard to try to figure it what was going wrong in New York, and it just never really came to him. I do think he tried his best, and it had to be beyond frustrating for him with how his career has ended. Nevertheless, Jason had a solid career. He is one of the few, perhaps the only, that I truly felt bad for while making millions for playing poorly.
Boston are so lucky for not signing him to a long term contract after a great 2009 season.
Maybe, maybe not. Jason Bay and Fenway Park were like a marriage. When Bay strayed, he wasn’t going to put up the numbers he had with Boston. Except for Cecil Cooper, I can’t think of too many hitters who prospered by leaving the Red Sox.
There was that hitter…..he was ok……Babe……Babe Ruth I think??
Though he was primarily a pitcher when the Sox sold him…
He was the greatest hitter of the age. His position was pitcher, but he was always a hitter. Read a little history
I’m very well aware of the history of baseball. and of Babe Ruth in particular. My comment, please notice, is in regard to a sub-thread talking about hitters who left Fenway park and then prospered; Babe Ruth was mentioned, which is why I mentioned that, at the time he was sold (ie, “left Fenway”) he was primarily a pitcher, so may or may not count in the discussion. Discussion is good. So are manners.
Beltre???
He was a great fit in Boston. You can say he would’ve had the same issues in Boston. He was an instant fan favorite and the ballpark played to his advantage. He made a bad decision leaving but after all, he got a bigger pay day with the Mets. I think he would’ve been good in Boston.
It’s almost too bad. He was solid in Boston. Shea/Citi really hurt his power and then he never stayed healthy to be productive.
Never played at Shea, but your point stands
Never played at Shea, but I get what you’re saying.
His health concerns were the reason why the Sox did not sign him. He would not sign an “injury clause” for the contract (pretty standard for the Sox).
The Mets payed his way to easy street..lol
Pirates fans: “Thanks for everything, Jason Bay!”
Red Sox fans: “Thanks for one and a half successful seasons, Jason Bay!”
Mets fans: “He’s a witch! Get him!”
A witch? That joke was almost good.
Jason Bay has been retired for the past 4 years
Yeah, that was sure nice of him to wait until that big contract expired before he officially retired though.
You’d have to be an idiot to walk away from free money. Anyone would have done it.
He played left field in Seattle just last year?
Should have happened ages ago
Wish Bay the best moving forward. Tough way to end a career for sure, and hope that there aren’t any lasting effects from his concussions. Dude was always a hustler no matter what and always addressed the media with poise.
Agreed. Bay dealt with adversity, animosity, and his own dismay and disappointment at his production with candor and class. He never ducked the criticism nor questioned the harshness of the spotlight he was under. Peformance: F. Character: A.
Performance F?
He posted over an .800 OPS for his career and that’s with a couple really good years and a couple really really bad years. He’s more of a C+ in performance
He meant during his time with the Mets not his entire career. Bay was a solid player until he went to NY.
Thanks. Correct. I was speaking of his time in NY. I should have clarified.
Well in that case, F is being generous 🙂
The slide downhill was as overnight and dramatic as it was for Tony Armas, power wise that is, as well as career wise which is the single attribute both of those had. Armas had a leg injury, running around second base as remember.. He passed 2nd, then turned to retreat, pulled up short and went on the DL in August, but never was the same again when he came after returning from that Hammy injury. Yeah, it’s strange.. Coincidence or whatever, yet Armas was power + for over a decade up to that moment.
Bay went to the Mets and almost immediately got hurt and was never the same, yet was the same type of 1 dimensional player. Nick Esasky in a way, just not the longevity of those 2 and he had vision problems, equilibrium. Forget the name of it right away.
I believe Esasky had Vertigo.
don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya
Jason Bay still has a chance, he should not give up, plus this should not be the way he ends his career, it should end in a high note. there will be teams wanting to give him a chance. i think teams like houston, royles, twins, and padres should give him a chance, you never know.
if he gets another chance he will still fail
Well, he could join the Magnificent Seven (Plus 1 =’s 8) that’s competing for the Orioles left field position. I mean it couldn’t hurt.
Concussions are awful.
What a waste of talent
I remember when he and Matt Holliday were on the FA market together and a TON of people were bashing the cardinals for over paying Holliday, saying they should have signed Bay instead. Typical example of how little we fans actually understand the reality of the business.
Absolutely false. The Mets signed Jason Bay that year didn’t they? And they are in the “reality of the business.” So you can’t say fans know little about a player or who deserves a contract and that people in baseball know more when it was in fact a Major League Baseball team who made the same mistake fans were claiming they would make if given the choice. Hindsight is 20/20 but in no way does it dictate the pro’s and con’s of being a fan and wanting a player signed.
My point is that there are no slam dunk FA signings like most fans would have you believe. Sure, the Mets signed him, but can any one of us actually say for sure how much NY was engaged with Holliday before they made the decision to sign Bay? Was Bay actually their top choice? The fans I’m talking about are the ones that held Bay much higher than Holliday. I’m talking these two players specifically, then using them as an example of how we fans don’t have all the information that the actual business people do.
Most Met fans we upset we didn’t get Holliday at the time. He was the better player.
Offensive Jeff Weaver
That’s what happens when you sign as a free agent with the Mets.
And in 5 years he is visiting Cooperstown?
if he buys a ticket
As a paying vistor
Bay was actually traded 4 times
I believe the three times cited above were before he joined the big leagues…
Bays complete collapse after leaving the Red Sox leads me to only 1 conclusion best left unsaid. Almost every HR he hit for the Red Sox was a bomb and out in any park. he goes to the Mets and then looks like a college player with no power.
Of all of Bay’s 2013 homers, only 1 would not have been a homer in Fenway. Google “home run distance” sometime, it’s not cool to accuse players of juicing with no evidence.
He suffered a horrible concussion and was never able to recover. Serious head injuries are nothing to joke about.
Alphabetsoup made a good point with homerun distance, but I also believe going to a bigger park could’ve effected his psyche. David Wright has a terrible power year in Citis first year.
Adrian Beltre was horrendous in Seattle (home run distance would be another good research for Beltre here too) but has done well in every other team he was on.
Power numbers can diminish in big parks and it could possibly mess with players pressing and changing approaches
Very good point; in reality this was likely the biggest factor in his sharp decline.
I don’t always agree with you, but I generally respect your opinion. This one is an exception, I’m afraid.
I hear you, but in truth… I think it was the blows to the head that did it. I watched him every game; he couldn’t make contact and looked dazed trying.
Boston needs some OF depth I say we give him a minor league deal with a spring truing invite and see how he does he has way to much potential to just give up
Of all the suggestions I’ve seen, the chance to catch lightning in a bottle back in Boston is the most intriguing…
He should take two full years off to try and heal, then play in the winter leagues and see if his hand/eye is back. He shouldn’t end his work like this if he has an alternate option; traveling and playing hasn’t given his head a chance to recalibrate.
Bay was a good player and a dangerous hitter. I wish him well.
Very sad to hear. Although basically a quiet pro, this is one of the classiest men in all of sports. We never heard one bad thing about him, and he never blamed anyone for his lack of production. Personally, I will miss him not being in MLB. (I’m a transplanted NYer now living just outside Pittsburgh.) Jason, I wish you my very best!