Nearly like his father before him, Cecil Fielder, who held a record of 13 professional seasons in the same sport, Prince Fielder will be finishing his career in baseball with a significantly fewer games at 12 MLB seasons. “For about 10 years, he was one of the elite power hitters and baseball players in the game”.
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As a fan, even as a reporter, you show up and you just see what they do or don’t do during a course of a game.
Texas Rangers slugger Prince Fielder officially announced his retirement at a press conference in Arlington on Wednesday, fighting back tears at the end of a 12-year career.
“This is actually the most fun I’ve ever had and best I ever felt mentally about baseball”, Fielder told reporters.
“I’ve just been in a big league clubhouse since I was their age”, Fielder continued, gesturing to his sons, “so to not be able to play is going to be tough”.
Fielder ends his career with a lifetime.283 batting average, 319 home runs and 1,028 RBI. The only other father-son duo with more than 300 homers each is Bobby and Barry Bonds.
Primarily a designated hitter in 2015, Fielder hit.305 with 23 homers and 98 RBIs in 158 games, though midway through the season again started feeling symptoms related to neck issues.
Once one of the most feared sluggers in the game, Fielder had only eight home runs in 89 games this season, with a slash line of.212/.292/.334.
He was still wearing a neck brace 12 days after his second cervical fusion in just over two years. A person with direct knowledge of the medical decision says Fielder will have to quit playing baseball after his second neck surgery.
Prince never enjoyed talking much about himself, though he would always make time for an National Basketball Association conversation or a chat about his two sons.
Fielder still has four years and $96 million remaining on the nine-year, $214-million deal he signed with Detroit in 2012. He then thanked his agent, Scott Boras, sitting to his right, for being there for him since he was 19 or 20 years-old, joking that “getting contracts. that helps too”.
Unfortunately for Texas, that durability did not last after they traded Ian Kinsler for Fielder. However, the Rangers should receive some relief through Detroit, Fielder’s former team, and insurance. “There’s no doubt he wants to play and wants to be in the game”.
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“I’m still going to be with the fellas”, he said. “He’s going to go home with his family and hopefully look forward to the next chapter”.
