Those who followed the 2000s New York Yankees heavily have some fond memories of a homegrown outfielder that looked like a solid contributor, at the very least a solid reserve: Melky Cabrera.
On Friday, MLB insider Hector Gomez announced that Cabrera is retiring from baseball at 37, after playing for eight franchises: the Yankees, the Chicago White Sox, the Kansas City Royals, the Toronto Blue Jays, the Pittsburgh Pirates, the San Francisco Giants, the Atlanta Braves, and the Cleveland Indians (now Guardians).
https://twitter.com/hgomez27/status/1482043985250209793
He started his MLB tenure in 2005 with the Yankees and his last team were the Pirates, in 2019. He calls it quits with a solid .285/.334/.417 line, 144 home runs, 895 runs, 854 RBI, and 101 stolen bases. He had a 101 wRC+.
Melky’s outfield defense wasn’t good, but he was known as a contact hitter with some pop and speed. He played five seasons with the Yankees, until 2009, and he was an important part of that championship-winning team.
In 15 seasons in The Show, Cabrera was selected to an All Star game (in 2012, and he was the MVP that night) and won a World Series ring.
The former Yankees outfielder had a nice career
Quietly, Cabrera finished his playing days just shy of 2,000 career hits, at 1,962. He had some highs and lows, most notably the 50-game suspension in 2012 for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. At the time, he was leading the majors with 159 hits and was second in the National League with a .346 batting average.
He received a World Series ring for his contributions to the San Francisco Giants in 2012 before being suspended.
He became famous in the Yankees because of his friendship with second baseman and fellow farmhand Robinson Cano, and also because of his nickname: he was called Leche (milk) around the clubhouse.
All in all, he was a solid player who will be remembered by Yankees fans.