The New York Mets signed outfielder Michael Cuddyer to a two-year, $21 million contract last offseason and lost their first-round draft pick for 2015 because of the deal. The veteran is now retiring after one season with the MLB club.
Cuddyer, 36, played 15 MLB seasons before officially announcing his retirement on Saturday via The Players' Tribune. Rumors on Friday indicated the veteran was going to retire before the 2016 season.
"I've made the decision to retire. With one year left on my contract, it is especially difficult to imagine not suiting up in a Mets uniform for one more year. As an athlete, retiring is the toughest decision you have to make and I don't make it lightly. I've always run out every hit like it was my last. As an untested high school kid drafted with a dream, I've never taken a single moment in the Majors for granted. It goes against every grain in my body to consider a future without the game. But after 15 years, the toll on my body has finally caught up to me."
The veteran had a career year in 2013 with the Colorado Rockies when he won the NL Batting Title and hit .331/.389/.530 with 74 runs scored, 20 home runs and 84 RBI in 130 games. However, injuries limited him to just 166 games over the past two seasons and his play was clearly declining as a result.
He owns a .277/.344/.461 career stat line with 809 runs scored, 197 home runs and 794 RBI in 11 seasons with the Minnesota Twins, three with the Rockies and one with the Mets.
On the same day Cuddyer's retirement was reported, the autopsy results of former pitcher Tommy Hanson were revealed. Hanson, 29, passed away last month after he was found not breathing at a friend's house in Georgia.
According to Coweta County coroner Richard Hawk, a combination of cocaine and alcohol resulted in Hanson's death back on Nov. 9. The Associated Press reported the news of the autopsy results.
It was previously believed Hanson death was the result of an overdose, but it was unknown what the exact substance may have been. He reportedly suffered "catastrophic organ failure."
Hanson played five MLB seasons with the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels before enduring failed minor league stints in 2014 and 2015. The former highly-touted prospect was 49-35 with a 3.80 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 648 strikeouts in 128 games (708 innings).
