Right-hander Josh Beckett pitched a no-hitter this season; he has earned two World Series rings during his career, and was Series MVP in 2003; he’s made three All-Star teams.
He also turns 35 years old next season and has an injured hip that requires surgery. He doesn’t need to play baseball forever. So he plans to retire.
Beckett posted a 2.88 ERA for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2014, a season that included his only no-hitter, against the Phillies in May. He ended the season unable to help the Dodgers in the playoffs because of a torn labrum in his left hip.
From MLB.com:
Although many pitchers return from the arthroscopic operation and the resulting three-month rehab, Beckett said that’s not in his plans.
“I just don’t see me going through that rehab and coming back to pitch at this point in my life,” he said.
The second overall pick in the 1999 draft by the Marlins (right after the Rays took Josh Hamilton), Beckett broke into the majors during the 2001 season, and he led the Fish to the World Series two years later. He was traded with Mike Lowell to the Boston Red Sox after the 2005 season (Hanley Ramirez and Anibal Sanchez went to Florida), and was the ALCS MVP in 2007 on the way to another World Series title for Boston.
Beckett was part of another blockbuster deal, though as a lesser chip, in 2012 when the Red Sox scrapped much of their “chicken and beer” roster and started anew. Beckett didn’t always provide a perfect example for others in the clubhouse to follow — but few probably have, right?
Beckett owns a 3.88 ERA with 1,901 strikeouts in 332 career starts.
Beckett’s no-hitter was a crowning individual achievement in a very good career that wasn’t always rosy, usually because of nagging injuries. Although he steered clear of major elbow and shoulder problems, Beckett missed most of the 2013 season because of thoracic outlet syndrome, which required surgery to remove a rib near his neck. He was having his most productive season in years with the Dodgers until his hip injury came.
Beckett, famously bothered by blisters, made at least 30 starts four times out of 13 full seasons. He reached 200 innings three times, which never afforded him the chance for 200 strikeouts in a season. But he had great stuff and a reputation for smarts on the mound. Though he never won a Cy Young, at any given moment he was one of the best pitchers in the league.
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David Brown is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter!
