Former Toronto Blue Jays Infielder Freddy Galvis Announces Retirement

Better known for his time with the Philadelphia Phillies, Freddy Galvis has retired after 19 seasons, one of which was with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Aug 6, 2019; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Freddy Galvis (16), shortstop Bo Bichette (11) and teammates high five as they beat the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. M | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The Toronto Blue Jays signed Freddy Galvis in 2019 in the hopes that he would help them with their infield depth. On Friday, he retired.

Galvis, a long-time Philadelphia Phillies prospect and infielder who played 19 years of professional baseball, announced his retirement on social media.

Galvis ended up in Toronto on a one-year deal worth $4 million. It also came with a team option for the 2020 season. At the time, he was coming off a 162-game season with the San Diego Padres, where he .248/.299/.380 with 13 home runs and 67 RBI.

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With the Blue Jays, his slash line went up over 115 games. He had a slash of .267/.299/.444 with 18 home runs and 54 RBI. But, in August he was waived by Toronto and picked up by the Cincinnati Reds.

That season was the final campaign in which Galvis hit 10 or more home runs with a single team in a single season. He did so in four separate campaigns, with a high 20 home runs with Philadelphia in 2016. He hit a combined 23 home runs with the Blue Jays and the Reds in 2019.

Galvis, now 35 years old, had not played in Majors since 2021, when he played his final stint with the Phillies. After two years in Japanese baseball, he played his final professional season in 2024 with Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos of the Mexican League.

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Galvis posted his retirement message in Spanish.

“What was once a dream has come true, and now it’s over,” Galvis said. “After 19 years in professional baseball, my baseball career is coming to an end.”

In the message he thanked his family, friends, coaches and teammates. He tagged each of the five MLB teams he played for.

He broke into the Majors with the Phillies in 2012. Before that, he was signed as an international free agent at 16 years old in 2006 and was the organization’s minor league player of the year in 2011.

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He played for the Phillies from 2012-17 before he was traded to San Diego. He played for the Padres in 2018, the Blue Jays and Reds in 2019, the Reds in 2020 and the Baltimore Orioles and the Phillies in 2021.

He also played for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks (2022–2023) in NPB in 2022 and 2023.

For his MLB career he slashed .246/.292/.387 with 109 home runs and 426 RBI.

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