Veteran shortstop Brandon Crawford announced his retirement from Major League Baseball on Wednesday after a career that spanned across parts of 14 seasons.
Crawford, 37, walks away with a .249/.318/.395 slash line (96 OPS+) in more than 6,000 trips to the plate. He also homered 147 times and stole 47 bases. Crawford was known best for his defensive aptitude, which allowed him to capture four Gold Glove Awards (with the most recent coming in 2021). His overall contributions were worth an estimated 29.3 Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball Reference.
Crawford was originally drafted by the San Francisco Giants in 2008. He would make his big-league debut three years later, in 2011, and would spend almost all of his career with the Giants. The exception was last season, which proved to be his final year as an active player, when he spent the campaign as a part of the St. Louis Cardinals.
In addition to those Gold Glove Awards, Crawford made three All-Star Games and won a Silver Slugger Award. He has a pair of World Series rings to show for his efforts, too, having lifted the trophy with the Giants in both 2012 and 2014.
Crawford's time as a big-league player might be done, but his status as a walking piece of trivia will remain for as long as his brother-in-law, New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, remains active.
