St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong has officially retired from Major League Baseball after an 11-year career. The 34-year-old made the announcement on Friday while being inducted into the Circle of Honor at the University of Hawaii, his alma mater.
Wong, who last played in the majors in 2023, shared his decision with Spectrum News in Honolulu, saying, “I’ve pretty much decided I’m done. With the way the game is going, there’s no point in chasing it anymore. I’m a dad now, and I’m focused on being the best big league dad I can be.”
Wong was selected in the first round of the 2011 MLB Draft by the Cardinals and debuted in 2013. He had a standout rookie campaign in 2014, batting .292 with 12 home runs and 20 stolen bases, earning him a third-place finish in the NL Rookie of the Year race.
Wong spent the first eight seasons of his career in St. Louis (2013–2020), winning back-to-back NL Gold Glove Awards at second base in his final two seasons with the team.
Following his time with the Cardinals, Wong played two seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers before splitting the 2023 season between the Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cardinals honored him with a post on X (formerly Twitter), saying, “Congratulations on a great career, Kolten!”
Over the course of his MLB career, Wong posted a .256 batting average, hit 86 home runs, drove in 405 runs, recorded a .719 OPS, and stole 120 bases in 1,189 games.
