The San Diego Padres had Ian Kinsler under contract for one more season, which would be his fifteenth. Kinsler has decided to hang up the spikes and retire after fourteen seasons in the big leagues. The team will keep Kinsler around with the organization within the front office in a new role. The team has announced that they will be working on a settlement for the remaining cash that is owed to Kinsler. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic has announced that Kinsler was going to hang it up and call it a career.
Ian Kinsler is retiring, but will remain with the #Padres in front-office capacity, sources tell The Athletic. Kinsler is still owed $4.25M on his contract, and will work out a financial settlement with the club. Full story coming shortly.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 20, 2019
Kinsler spent fourteen years in the big leagues with five different teams in the MLB. He started out with the Texas Rangers where he would spend eight years and be a three-time all-star representative. After that, he was traded to the Detroit Tigers in the blockbuster Prince Fielder trade. Kinsler would then spend four years with the Tigers where he would add another all-star appearance and two Gold Glove awards to his career resume. After leaving the Tigers organization for the Los Angeles Angels, he would spend half a season there before being traded over to the Boston Red Sox to finish out the season.
In 2019, Kinsler played for the Padres, where he would play in 87 games for the ballclub. In 281 plate appearances, he would produce a .217/.368/.278 slash line with 9 home runs and 22 RBI on the season. The Padres current infield situation is set with the signing of Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr., and trade for Jurickson Profar. Kinsler has decided that after fourteen years in the big leagues, it is time to hang them up.
