Cabrera announced his retirement from professional baseball Friday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.
The 37-year-old hasn't played since 2019, when he appeared in 133 games for the Pirates. Cabrera played for eight different teams across 15 seasons and finished with a career slash line of .285/.334/.417. The outfielder hit 144 home runs but never more than 18 in a single season. He also had 854 RBI and scored 895 runs while stealing 101 bases.
Cabrera was released by the Mets on Wednesday, Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News reports.
Cabrera's offense slipped in his 15th big-league season last year, as he hit a modest .280/.313/.399 in 397 plate appearances for the Pirates, good for just an 85 wRC+. Whether or not that's enough to convince another team to take a chance on the 35-year-old remains to be seen.
Cabrera signed a non-guaranteed contract with the Mets on Monday and is expected to be included in the club's 60-man roster pool.
Cabrera had been unsigned since the end of the 2019 season after batting .280 with seven home runs and 47 RBI in 397 plate appearances with the Pirates. As the high average and his strong 10.3 percent strikeout rate illustrate, Cabrera still makes contact at an elite level at this stage of his career, but his lack of power and diminished speed render him a rather low-upside fantasy option even when he's getting meaningful playing time. He'll likely have to settle for part-time duty at best with the Mets in 2020, with Michael Conforto, J.D. Davis, Brandon Nimmo, Jake Marisnick and Dominic Smith all likely ahead of him in the outfield pecking order.
Cabrera is not starting Wednesday against the Phillies.
Cabrera has fallen out of a starting role recently, getting the nod just twice in the last nine games. Jose Osuna, who starts in right field Wednesday, has moved ahead of him on the depth chart, though the fact Osuna has also gotten playing time at the infield corner spots is leaving some starts open for Cabrera.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Retreats to bench
Rotowire
Cabrera isn't starting Tuesday's game against the Phillies.
Cabrera picked up a pair of base knocks in Monday's series opener, but he'll get the night off Tuesday. Jose Osuna is set to man right field and will bat fifth in Cabrera's place.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Gets start Monday in Philly
Rotowire
Cabrera will bat fifth and start in right field Monday against the Phillies.
The outfielder is 11-for-31 with six extra-base hits (including two homers) in his career against starter Jason Vargas. Interestingly, he's never walked against Vargas. Cabrera, who has just one hit in his last 19 at-bats, is slashing .276/.308/.396 in 339 plate appearances in 2019.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Out of Sunday's lineup
Rotowire
Cabrera is not in the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Reds.
Cabrera is 6-for-50 (.120 average) through 19 games in August, and he'll head to the bench for the series finale. Jose Osuna will start in right field and bat sixth for the Pirates.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Not in Friday's lineup
Rotowire
Cabrera is not in Friday's lineup against the Reds.
He has sat in three of the last five games and should continue to start a few times per week over the rest of the season. Jose Osuna will start in right field and bat sixth.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: On bench Wednesday
Rotowire
Cabrera is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Nationals.
He has started six of the last 10 games, but only one of the last four. Pablo Reyes will start in right field and hit sixth against lefty Patrick Corbin.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Retreats to bench
Rotowire
Cabrera isn't in the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against the Nationals.
Cabrera appears to be in line for a normal day of rest after failing to register a hit in each of his last four contests (0-for-13). Jose Osuna gets the call in right field and will hit sixth with Cabrera on the bench.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Out of Sunday's lineup
Rotowire
Cabrera is not in Sunday's lineup against the Cubs.
He is hitting .132 with zero home runs in 38 at-bats this month. Pablo Reyes will start in right field while Bryan Reynolds shifts to left field.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Sitting Tuesday
Rotowire
Cabrera is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Angels.
He has sat out four of the last seven games, as the floundering Pirates have started leaning more on younger players like Jose Osuna and Pablo Reyes. Cabrera will still get his fair share of starts, particularly against lefties, but he probably won't play enough to be useful in mixed leagues.
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Pirates' Melky Cabrera: Starts in right field Monday
Rotowire
Cabrera went 1-for-5 and scored a run in Monday's 10-2 win over the Angels.
Although he has just three hits in 30 at-bats since July 30, Cabrera has appeared in all of Pittsburgh's games in August, starting six times. While he's likely frustrated with his recent results, the 35-year-old has seen an uptick in playing time. Cabrera is batting .287/.318.417 with six homers and 38 RBI in 315 plate appearances.
