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Former Dodgers utility player, World Series champion, retires at 33
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- Former Dodgers utility player, World Series champion, retires at 33
Matt Beaty announced his retirement from professional baseball in a post to his Instagram account on Monday, Aug. 24. The 33-year-old spent parts of five seasons in MLB, leaving his biggest mark with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2019-21.
A utility player and left-handed hitter, Beaty set career highs in plate appearances (268), home runs (nine), RBIs (46), doubles (19), slugging percentage (.458) and OPS (.775) as a rookie.
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The following year, after a long layoff induced by the COVID-19 pandemic, Beaty helped the Dodgers end their 32-year World Series drought. He batted three times in the 2020 National League Championship Series and reached base on two walks and a hit by pitch.
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After Beaty set career highs in games (120), on-base percentage (.363) and OPS+ (104) in 2021, the Dodgers traded him to the San Diego Padres for pitcher River Ryan in March 2022. Ryan was one of the three players the Dodgers traded to the Detroit Tigers earlier this month for Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal .
Shoulder injury derails career
Meanwhile, Beaty's career faded after a May 2022 shoulder injury knocked him out of the Padres' lineup and onto the 60-day injured list.
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After bouncing from San Diego to the San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Royals from 2022-23, Beaty racked up a .247 career batting average, 18 home runs and 96 RBIs in 290 regular-season games.
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Beaty last played in 2024, appearing in 53 games in the Arizona Diamondbacks ' minor-league system. The Diamondbacks released him in September of that year.
"The time since then has been filled with questions and back-and-forth," Beaty wrote on Instagram . "Should I keep playing? Is there another opportunity out there? Or is it finally time to close this chapter?
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"In my experience, a decision like this isn't easy. You spend your entire life devoting time, effort and sacrifice to a game. You make choices and give up opportunities because baseball doesn't always allow you to experience life the way everyone else does. When something has been such a huge part of your life for so long, walking away is hard. Deep down, I think I knew my last game was my last game. I just held onto the hope that it wouldn't be."
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