World Record Gold Glover announces his retirement After what Transpired within the Team
Simba is officially headed back to Pride Rock.
Veteran MLB shortstop Andrelton Simmons announced this week that he is retiring, per Los Angeles Angels writer Jared Tims of TalkinHalos. Simmons hangs up his cleats at 34 years old and after 11 MLB seasons.
One of the best and smartest defenders of his generation, Simmons was a four-time Gold Glove Award winner. He won two with the Atlanta Braves (whom he began his MLB career with) in 2013 and 2014 and another two with the Angels in 2017 and 2018 after being traded there.
Simmons played his final two MLB seasons with the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago Cubs before being drafted earlier this year by the Mumbai Cobras of the fledgling Baseball United league.
The righty hitter Simmons finishes his career as a .263 batter over 1,225 total MLB games. Once an eight-place finisher in AL MVP voting, Simmons lost his effectiveness as he got older due to various ankle and shoulder injuries. But at least his career highlight reel will live on forever.
The top two teams on the list were the Mets and the Padres, a pair of teams that paid a lot of money only to miss the 2023 postseason. The World Series champion Rangers, though, ranked third. So, you can’t totally discount making big offseason moves. But the Braves ended up winning a Major League-best 104 games despite not vying for that mythical offseason championship.
It’s great to see fans get excited about what is happening during the offseason. Dodgers fans should be thrilled. That’s good for the game. It was also fun to see D-backs owner Ken Kendrick react to the Shohei Ohtani signing by reminding reporters the superstar is just one of nine players for a team his club beat in this year’s postseason.
The offseason is fun, but it’s different for every team. Some teams need significant upgrades. Other teams just need some patchwork. At the end of the day, October is really the only month you want to win. You can help yourself from November to January, but nothing is guaranteed during these winter months.
My mother has always preached that it’s not how much money you have — it’s how you spend your money. Spending lavishly is fun. Spending effectively is rewarding.
Here are four topics to ponder as we look forward to the upcoming season
Yeah, adding a difference maker like Aaron Nola or Sonny Gray would have given the Braves a proven starter who could add significant value in October over the next few years. There are still other potential difference makers like Blake Snell on the free agent market. But if the cost doesn’t fit projected value, president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos has proven he won’t spend just to spend.
He gained some insurance with Reynaldo López, who could be used as a starter or reliever. AJ Smith-Shawver, Darius Vines and Allan Winans provide further depth to a rotation that starts with two Cy Young Award candidates in Max Fried and Spencer Strider. Getting the right starter might help. But this is also a potential need that could be addressed again before the Trade Deadline.
In Seattle, Kelenic was always going to deal with the pressure of being the top prospect who the Mariners gained when they dealt All-Star closer Edwin Díaz to the Mets. Yeah, the Braves have made a significant financial investment (nearly $17 million) in Kelenic’s future. But in Atlanta, he should be free from the pressure he felt while playing with the Mariners.
He’ll have the potential to hit 20-plus homers while sitting near the bottom of a lineup that features Ronald Acuña Jr., Austin Riley and Matt Olson. Having the chance to work with Chipper Jones and the Braves’ many other hitting instructors should also help this left-handed slugger begin to realize his great potential.
