Zack Greinke, 40, the “nerdy pitcher” who has accomplished just about everything in his career except winning a World Series, is mulling over his next move. While retirement seems likely, he hasn’t made a decision yet, so there’s a chance he could extend his career for another year.
According to MLB Network’s John Morosi, Kansas City Royals general manager J.J. Piccolo “hasn’t made a decision on whether or not Greinke will pitch next year,” according to the network. After signing a one-year, $8.5 million guaranteed contract with Kansas City in February, Greinke is a free agent again.
“It’s unclear if Greinke has a desire to pitch for a team other than Kansas City, as he turned down similar offers from the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers in the 2021-2022 offseason to return to his hometown of Kansas City, where he began his career,” Major League Baseball Trade Rumors (MLBRT) reported on Tuesday.
‘This past offseason, Greinke was not linked to any other team and returned to Kansas City. He is due a base salary of $13 million in 2022 and $8.5 million this year, with $4.5 million in incentives based on innings pitched.” “If he were to return to Kansas City, he would receive a smaller salary, but could include similar incentive terms based on starts and innings pitched.
MLBTR went on to say, “Re-signing Greinke could make sense for Kansas City, as it would take some pressure off their younger pitchers who are still developing, and it would give fans more memories.
Greinke is a legendary pitcher who will likely be inducted into the Hall of Fame upon retirement. After making his debut with Kansas City in 2004, he went on to play for the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Houston Astros, compiling a 20-year major league career record of 586 games (541 starts, 3389⅓ innings), 225-156-1 with a 3.49 ERA and 2979 strikeouts.
The 2009 American League (AL) Cy Young Award winner is a six-time All-Star. In addition to leading the league in ERA twice, he has won six Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers. He ranks first among active pitchers in innings pitched, second in wins, and third in strikeouts. 보스토토 주소
He’s done just about everything as a player except win a World Series championship, which he did twice, signing a six-year, $147 million deal with the Dodgers in December 2012 (he opted out after three years) and a six-year, $26.5 million free agent contract with Arizona in December 2015. But Greinke still seems to have some lingering regrets about his playing days. It could be a World Series title, which he never had, or 3,000 career strikeouts, which he has 21 left. Or maybe it’s just pure baseball.
Greinke has struggled this year, going 2-15 with a 5.06 ERA in 30 games (27 starts-142⅓ innings). The losses were unusually high given the weakness of Kansas City’s lineup, but it’s also the second-highest ERA of his career.