One veteran MLB infielder is officially calling it a career — and doing it his way.
Kolten Wong, former St. Louis Cardinals second baseman, announced his retirement from professional baseball this weekend while speaking to local media at the University of Hawaii, his alma mater. Wong, who was in town to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Rainbow Warriors game, shared that he’s ready to shift his focus to family life with his wife and two children.
“Right now, I’m pretty much done,” Wong said, via Brian McInnis of Spectrum News Hawaii. “I’ve accepted that it’s time to hang them up. The way the game is moving, it doesn’t make sense to keep chasing it. I’m a dad now, and I’m loving that. I want to be the best big league dad I can be — that’s my priority now.”
Wong, 34, debuted with the Cardinals in 2013 and remained with the team through 2020. Though his early career was marked by a memorable baserunning error in the 2013 World Series, he later redeemed himself with key playoff performances and back-to-back Gold Glove Awards in 2019 and 2020.
He went on to play for the Milwaukee Brewers from 2021 to 2022, hitting .262 during that stretch, and later spent time with the Mariners and Dodgers, last appearing in the majors in 2023. Wong signed a minor league deal with the Orioles in 2024 but never returned to the big-league roster.
Most recently in the spotlight for his candid remarks about Orioles prospect Jackson Holliday, Wong now steps away from baseball after 11 MLB seasons and more than $47 million in career earnings, ready to embrace life beyond the diamond.
