The New York Mets received a surprise Friday, as 15-year veteran Michael Cuddyer announced his retirement.
The New York Mets made a bold move signing veteran Michael Cuddyer last season. Despite being given a qualifying offer by the Colorado Rockies and costing the Mets a first round draft pick, they signed Cuddyer to be a complimentary piece in their lineup. It was a sign that the Mets were finally going to start going for it after building the stable of young power arms they had in the rotation.
Cuddyer signed a two-year, $21.5 million deal with the Mets last season. He was fully expected to play both of those seasons, and earn $12.5 million this season in the second year of the deal. It does not seem that will be happening, as Cuddyer has announced that he will be retiring, effective immediately.
Mets say they have no comment on MLB transaction page listing Michael Cuddyer as retired. So they're not denying it.
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinMedia) December 12, 2015
Got confirmation: Michael Cuddyer retiring
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinMedia) December 12, 2015
This comes as a surprise, as it is hard to imagine anyone turning down the money that Cuddyer was set to make this season despite the high probability of being moved to a bench role and the fact there were no rumors surrounding the subject. But, that is exactly as you would expect a player such as Cuddyer to announce his retirement; no farewell tour, no big press conference, just quick and to the point.
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Cuddyer played 15 seasons in the majors after being a first round pick of the Minnesota Twins in 1997. He spent the first 11 seasons of his career with the Twins before moving on to the Rockies and finishing things out with the Mets last season. He finished his career with a slash line of .277/.344/.461 with 197 home runs and 794 RBI. Cuddyer’s numbers never blew you away, but he was a solid contributor throughout his season and doing whatever it took for his team to win.
That was never more evident than last season with the Mets. Cuddyer wanted to finish his career on a winning team, which the Mets were. But for it to happen, he had to take a lesser role on the team, which he did not complain about. He was a quintessential veteran leader and fit in perfectly with the team the Mets assembled to make their run last season.
He was selfless and had the leadership qualities many teams would have loved to have in their club house. With his role expected to diminsh even further next season with Michael Conforto expecting to get everyday at-bats in left field, Curtis Granderson locked into right field and Lucas Duda locked into first base, Cuddyer felt it was best to step away now.
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With Cuddyer retiring, the Mets are now given a little more flexibility for their payroll this season to make some moves in free agency. Who knows if that was part of Cuddyer’s thinking in announcing his retirement, but with the character that he has shown and the way he has carried himself throughout his career, it would not surprise anyone if he once again put the team ahead of his own wants.