Former Padres All-Star Could Suddenly Retire Amid 12th Season in MLB

The 39-year-old pitcher is on the injured list for a team chasing the Padres in the wild-card race.

National League pitcher Kirby Yates (39) of the San Diego Padres throws in the outfield before the 2019 MLB All Star Game at Progressive Field on July 9, 2019. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The San Diego Padres have relatively little reason to worry about the Pittsburgh Pirates, who entered the weekend 4.5 games behind them in the National League wild-card race with less than three weeks to go in the regular season.

For former Padres closer Kirby Yates, whom the Pirates acquired from the Los Angeles Angels on Aug. 3, the next three weeks aren't only a race to catch the Padres. It's a race against time with the clock winding down on his career.

Yates, 39, hasn't pitched since he went on the 15-day injured list Sept. 3 with a right shoulder injury. It comes at a delicate time in his career. 

Yates, whose eldest child is 8, told MLB.com he is considering retiring after the season.

"They want Dad home as much as they possibly can," he told Aiden Stepansky. "So, I think we're getting to a point where we've had conversations before; it kind of hits you different when they tell you they'd rather have you home. So as a father, when you hear that it kind of gets you pretty good in the heart. 

"And there's decisions to make here in the near future. I'm pretty positive in what I'm gonna do.”

Yates had some of his best seasons in San Diego after he was picked up on a waiver claim in April 2017.

In 2019, Yates led the National League in saves (41), made the first of his two career All-Star Game appearances and collected downballot Cy Young Award votes.

Yates was chosen the winner of the Padres' Clyde McCullough Pitcher of the Year Award, and their Darrel Akerfelds Bullpen Award, after both the 2018 and 2019 seasons. In April 2019, he was named National League Reliever of the Month.

Yates made 192 of his 516 career appearances, and recorded 56 of his 101 career saves, for the Padres. An elbow injury cut his 2020 season short; his six appearances in the pandemic-shortened season were the last of his career in San Diego.

The Toronto Blue Jays signed Yates after that season, but he never pitched a game for them. He missed the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in March 2021.

Not only did Yates recover from the procedure, he persisted to pitch five more seasons in the big leagues. He made the American League All-Star team with the Texas Rangers in 2024.

If he can't pitch the Pirates into the postseason, Yates can at least mount one more comeback to pitch before the 2026 season — and possibly his career — ends.

Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X/Twitter for the latest news.