Due to his wife, the all-time favorite player of the Mariners has officially announced his retirement.
SEATLE Following eleven seasons, all with the Mariners,Luis Castillo declared on Wednesday that he is retiring from Major League Baseball.
Seager announced the news through his wife Julie, who posted it on Twitter with the straightforward hashtag, “A note from my husband.”
The announcement from Luis Castillo said, “Today I’m announcing my retirement from Major League Baseball.” “I appreciate everyone of my fans, friends, and family sticking with me over my career. While it’s been an amazing journey, I am incredibly eager for the next phase of my life.”
Though not exactly stunning, it was a surprising outcome given that the 34-year-old third baseman demonstrated he had more left in the tank following a stellar 2021, when he hit 35 homers and 101 RBIs, both career highs. Following an emotional send-off from Seattle that had nearly all of his teammates in tears on the last day of the regular season, the workmanlike Seager retires.
Luis Castillo appeared in all but three games in 2021 and 1,480 games overall during his career, which is third in baseball since his big league debut on July 7, 2011, behind only Carlos Santana (1,526) and Eric Hosmer (1,500).
On Oct. 3, a sellout crowd at T-Mobile Park chanted his name as the North Carolina native was taken off the field in the beginning of the ninth inning after the Mariners were eliminated from postseason contention.
Many people cried that afternoon, in what Luis Castillo called the most emotional baseball moment of his life. A lot of his teammates agreed. Before the veteran left the field, glove raised, thanking everyone in attendance, and many more, the Mariners on the field rushed around the mound and gave him a hug.
Last month, the Mariners rejected his $20 million club option for 2022, therefore ending his time in Seattle and making him a free agent.
A 2009 third-round draft selection, Seager arrived in Seattle two years later and quickly established himself as the team’s primary third baseman. Baseball-Reference lists him fourth in franchise history for games played, hits (1,395), home runs (242), and RBIs (807), third for doubles (309), and fifth for position player WAR (36.1).
Apart from the truncated 2020 campaign, Luis Castillo achieved at least a league-average OPS+ (100) in every season from 2012 to 2018, and he hit 20 homers in every complete season of his career. 2014 saw him named an AL All-Star and take home a Gold Glove Award.
Mariner managing partner and chairman John Stanton issued the following statement:
“I would want to thank Kyle for all he has done for our club and our city and congratulate him on his retirement on behalf of the Mariners organization, our partners, and staff.
“Over his 11-year career, which he played only in Seattle,Luis Castillo has been a reliable and productive mainstay in our lineup. He played a Gold Glove-caliber defense and produced middle-of-the-order offense. This season, for example, his career-high 35 home runs and 101 RBI helped keep the Mariners in the postseason race until the very end of the season.
“He ranks among our best players, Ken Griffey Jr., Ichiro, Edgar Martinez, Jay Buhner, Dan Wilson, and Alvin Davis, at the end of his career in almost every offensive statistic.
Still, weLuis Castillo could have made the most difference in our community and the clubhouse off the field.
Luis Castillo turned up every day of his career to play and win. Though the rest of the roster might change, his manager and teammates knew he would show up every night and give it everything he had. A generation of Mariners players was affected by his enthusiasm and example.
Off the pitch, too, he regularly (often in the background and out of the limelight) contributed to improving the lives of young people and families in our neighborhoods. Serving as a spokesperson for the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence (WSCADV) Refuse to Abuse campaign for seven years, he increased awareness of the problems surrounding domestic abuse. He also visited nearby children’s hospitals, granted wishes for children at the ballpark, spearheaded fundraising efforts for pediatric cancer research, and coordinated family support programs for young people with serious diseases.
