Former Angels Infielder Announces Sudden Retirement From MLB

The retirement "announcement," to the extent there was one, came in the form of an emoji-filled post on Niko Goodrum's Instagram account Friday.

The sudden, unceremonious retirement was official Wednesday, according to the Syracuse Mets' transaction log.

After being released from his minor league contract with the San Diego Padres in March, Goodrum signed a minor league contract with the Mets on April 2. Three weeks later, with a .229 batting average in 12 games, Goodrum decided to call it a career.

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Goodrum retires with 1,340 professional games between the majors, minors, and a couple brief detours to the KBO and the Venezuelan Winter League, according to his Baseball Reference page.

Only 12 of those games came with the Angels organization — four in the majors and eight with Triple-A Salt Lake, all last year.

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In the majors, Goodrum went 0-for-13 with two walks and four strikeouts, and scored a run. Six days after Goodrum was claimed off waivers by the Rays and promoted directly to the Angels' major league roster, he was sent back to Triple-A Salt Lake on May 16, 2024.

Goodrum went 5-for-25 (.200) in Salt Lake. He drew five walks, struck out nine times, and scored three runs. Although he did not record an extra-base hit, he drove in four runs.

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The Angels placed Goodrum on waivers on June 10, and he was immediately claimed by the Pittsburgh Pirates, ending his time in the organization.

Goodrum spent even less time in the Pirates' organization than the Angels'. He was placed on waivers after less than two weeks with Pittsburgh without so much as appearing in a major- or minor-league game.

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The Baltimore Orioles claimed Goodrum, and he finished the season with their Triple-A affiliate. In 43 games with the Norfolk Tides, Goodrum slashed an encouraging .291/.369/.466 to finish the season.

Goodrum debuted with the Minnesota Twins in 2017, but will ultimately be remembered for his time with the Detroit Tigers (2018-21). He played 376 of his 415 career games with Detroit, slashing .232/.306/.401 with 45 stolen bases.

Goodrum logged innings at every position except pitcher and catcher in his major league career. Still just 33, Goodrum saw action across a total of 16 seasons (2010-25) as a professional for nine different major league organizations in his career.

For more Angels news, head over to Angels on SI.