One of the best defensive shortstops in baseball is taking his glove off for the final time.
Nick Ahmed announced his retirement from MLB on Thursday through a social media post after 12 seasons in the big leagues.
“For as long as I can remember, all I ever wanted to do was play baseball,” Ahmed wrote. “I got to live out my childhood dream and play baseball for a very long time! After 15 professional seasons and more than a decade in the big leagues I am officially hanging up my spikes and retiring from playing baseball… I will always love the game of baseball. I am excited for my next chapter and the opportunity to give the best of me to this game we all love!”
Ahmed was a second-round pick by the Braves in 2011, but he ended up breaking into the big leagues with Arizona in 2014.
He won both his Gold Gloves with the Diamondbacks, in 2018 and 2019. Those were also his two best hitting seasons, as he hit 16 homers followed by 19 homers across those two years.
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Ahmed spent 10 seasons with the Diamondbacks before spending short stints with the Giants, Dodgers, Padres and Rangers.
Ahmed had appeared in five games with Texas this season before calling it quits.
Ahmed's retirement comes at 35 years old.
He turned a childhood in Massachusetts and a college career at UConn into more than a decade in the big leagues, where few could pick it like Ahmed. It was quite the journey.
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