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 became 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, “For Kansas City, re-signing Greinke could make sense as it would take some pressure off the younger pitchers who are still developing, and it would give the 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, Greinke is a six-time All-Star. He has won six Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers, along with leading the league in ERA twice. He ranks first among active pitchers in innings pitched, second in wins, and third in strikeouts.
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 championship, which he’s never had, or 3,000 career strikeouts with 21 left to go. Or maybe it’s just pure baseball. 캡틴토토 주소
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 the quality of his stuff was also poor, with the second-highest ERA of his career. His average velocity on his four-seam fastball dropped to 89.5 mph (144.0 km/h), and he spent two stints on the disabled list with shoulder tendinitis and elbow soreness.