Utilityman Skip Schumaker has departed Padres camp and appears to be wrapping up his MLB career, manager Andy Green told reporters including Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Though he’s not referring to the decision as a formal retirement, the veteran made clear he is moving on from his playing days to spend more time with his family.
Schumaker, 36, signed a minor league deal with San Diego a month ago, and had made a strong impression in camp on the field staff and younger players in the organization. Earlier in the winter, the Reds declined an option to put him onto the open market.
Schumaker has spent parts of eleven seasons in the majors. Most recently, he logged two disappointing seasons in Cincinnati, putting up a meager .238/.297/.322 batting line over 539 turns at bat.
He’ll be remembered most for his time with the Cardinals, where he was a strong contributor for eight campaigns. Schumaker was a regular contributor over 2008 through 2012, and ultimately provided St. Louis with over 2,500 plate appearances with a .288/.345/.377 slash line while splitting his time between second base and the outfield. Schumaker also played for one season with the Dodgers.
With the move, the Padres seem positioned to infuse some additional youth onto the active roster, as players such as Jose Pirela and Jabari Blash now have a clearer path to cracking the club. The competition is also thinned for other potential utility/bench/platoon options in camp, including Alexi Amarista, Brett Wallace, Adam Rosales, Nick Noonan, Jemile Weeks, and Alex Dickerson.
MLBTR wishes Schumaker the best in his future pursuits.
slideskipslide
Well that was fast.
Goodbye Skip. We never even got to know you.
Good riddance. Bum.
Well, aren’t you just a little ray of sunshine?
Good guy and good ballplayer.
Always enjoyed watching him play… Would have liked seeing him play for the Sox at some point but he was never really quite talented enough to make our team. Enjoy retirement Skip!
With him struggling the past two seasons, he would have fit in quite well with the Red Sox lol
Savage.
You have to be the biggest homer on this site.
He means talented at eating, not playing baseball
Good guy for a team to move into minor league coaching
Skip retires with a career ERA of 4.50. Not too shabby.
That 11.3 BB/9 rate leaves a lot to be desired, though.
True. If he’d had better command of the strike zone he might have been a closer.
Skip the ShoemanShoemaker!
Congrats on a nice career and best of luck in retirement in sunny California
That 11.9 BB/9 rate leaves a lot to be desired, though.
So long Skip! Thanks for your time in St. Louis!
A handful of years ago, I used to hate him as a cardinal! It seemed as though he would always burn my Pirates whenever he would get a spot start to rest a regular or as a pinch hitter. definitely a solid MLB career for a guy that fell short in the talent area to be an every day player, but made up for that lack of talent thru grit, hard work, and heart. Even though he frustrated the heck out of me on more than 1 occasion, I do wish him the best in his life after baseball and in a weird kinda way, will miss seeing him on someone’s lineup card once per week. Good luck Skip!