Former Braves All-Star Announces His Retirement After 16 Seasons

As the 2026 season is getting underway for the Atlanta Braves, one of their former All-Stars is calling it a career. Outfielder Jason Heyward has announced his retirement after 16 seasons. He first came onto the scene with the Braves before spending time with five other teams, most notably the Chicago Cubs.

Jason Heyward has announced his retirement after 16 seasons spent with the Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, Dodgers, Astros and Padres.

He is an All-Star, 5x Gold Glove Award winner and 2016 World Series champion. pic.twitter.com/oKaNASvOUh
— MLB (@MLB) March 27, 2026

Before Ronald Acuña Jr., before Nick Markakis, there was Jason Heyward. He patrolled right field for the team from 2010 to 2014. While born in New Jersey, he's essentially a Georgia native. He spent his upbringing in the Atlanta metro area, attending high school in McDonagh.

Heyward finishes his career with five Gold Glove awards, two of which were received while in Atlanta (2012, 2014). Four of his Gold Gloves came in consecutive seasons from 2014 to 2017. He wraps up his career with a .255 batting average, a .744 OPS, 186 home runs, 730 RBIs and 125 stolen bases.

His lone All-Star appearance came during his first season in the big leagues. He represented the Braves in 2010, heading to Anaheim as part of the reserves. He followed it up by finishing second in National League Rookie of the Year voting behind Giants All-Star catcher and fellow Georgia native, Buster Posey.

The Braves traded him, along with Jordan Walden, to the St. Louis Cardinals ahead of the 2015 season in exchange for Shelby Miller and Tyrell Jenkins. It spawned a mini trade tree that, in turn, landed the Braves Dansby Swanson and Ender Inciarte. Swanson was part of the Braves World Series team in 2021.

However, while the Heyward trade ultimately proved fruitful for the Braves in the long run, he was not without a championship of his own, and won one that is hard to top. He was a member of the 2016 Cubs team that won the World Series for the first time since 1908.

He's credited with giving a speech during the rain delay in Game 7 that helped spark the go-ahead runs in extra innings, putting them over the top against the Cleveland Indians. Following seven seasons with the Cubs, he spent time with the Dodgers, Astros and Padres.

Heyward last saw action in the major leagues last season when he played 34 games with the Padres. He was released on June 24, a couple days after he was designated for assignment, and that's all she wrote.