Adrian Gonzalez announces retirement from baseball

22 years after being drafted, Adrian Gonzalez announced his retirement from baseball on Saturday. He spent 15 years in the big leagues, including six with Los Angeles.

The 39-year-old took to Instagram to announce he’s retiring.

Gonzalez was a five-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove Award winner and a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner.

He was acquired by the Dodgers on August 25, 2012. The Dodgers and Red Sox completed a blockbuster deal, as LA also acquired Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Nick Punto. The Red Sox acquired Ivan De Jesus, James Loney and Allen Webster. The Dodgers then sent Rubby De La Rosa and Jerry Sands to the Red Sox on October 4 to complete the trade.

Gonzalez was with LA from 2012 through 2017. During his tenure, he hit .280 with an OPS of .793. In 735 games, Gonzalez hit 101 home runs and 448 RBI. His best season with the Dodgers came in 2014, when he hit 27 home runs and led the majors with 116 RBI. He finished seventh in National League MVP voting.

His time with the Dodgers came to an end on December 16, 2017. He was traded to the Atlanta Braves along with Charlie Culberson, Scott Kazmir, Brandon McCarthy and cash in exchange for Matt Kemp.

Links

• The Yankees are reportedly interested in free agent Freddie Freeman, according to Jon Heyman. The Dodgers have also been linked to Freeman, as they could bring him in should the Braves not re-sign their superstar.
• The Major League Baseball Players Association on Friday rejected the league’s request to involve federal mediation in bargaining, an expected decision the players delivered one day after MLB formally proposed the process. Evan Drellich from The Athletic has everything you need to know.