Garrett Cooper, whose eight-year major league career began with the New York Yankees and ended with the Boston Red Sox, announced his retirement Sunday on Twitter/X.
“After 13 years, including 8 unforgettable years in the Big Leagues, it’s time to officially hang up my cleats,” Cooper wrote. “Baseball has been my life for as long as I can remember. I’m grateful for what it gave me, and proud of what I gave back. Here’s to what’s next.”
This season, Cooper appeared in 35 games with the Atlanta Braves’ Triple-A club in Gwinnett, batting .228/.312/.309 before his release in May. He did not sign with another team afterward.
An All-Star in 2022 with the Miami Marlins, Cooper played six seasons in Miami (2018–23) and set career highs in 2023 between the Marlins and Padres, hitting 17 homers with 61 RBI. He retires with a .265/.333/.427 career slash line across stops with the Yankees (2017), Marlins (2018–23), Padres (2023), Cubs (2024), and Red Sox (2024).
A sixth-round pick out of Auburn in 2013, Cooper joined the Yankees in a July 2017 trade from Milwaukee for Tyler Webb. He made his MLB debut that summer, hitting .326 in 13 games. Later that year, he was traded again, with the Yankees sending him and Caleb Smith to Miami for pitching prospect Michael King.
Cooper became the Marlins’ regular designated hitter in 2020, helping them reach the postseason and pull off a surprising Wild Card sweep of the Cubs — Miami’s lone playoff run during his tenure. He stayed with the club until being dealt to San Diego at the 2023 trade deadline.
From there, his career took on a journeyman arc: a brief stint with the Cubs, a short run with the Red Sox, and a stop with the Orioles’ Triple-A team to finish 2024. Now, the Torrance, California native steps away from the game for good, preparing for his first fall in over a decade without a baseball season ahead.
