{"id":8359,"date":"2024-12-07T03:36:14","date_gmt":"2024-12-07T03:36:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=8359"},"modified":"2024-12-07T03:36:14","modified_gmt":"2024-12-07T03:36:14","slug":"former-dodgers-outfielder-wont-retire-from-mlb-this-offseason-after-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=8359","title":{"rendered":"Former Dodgers Outfielder Won\u2019t Retire From MLB This Offseason After All"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Five months ago, outfielder Kevin Pillar planned to hang up his cleats after the 2024 season. But, Pillar, who will turn 36 in January, has decided to postpone his retirement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve just had some time to reflect and I still enjoy doing it,\u201d Pillar said on Monday\u2019s episode of Hot Stove with Harold Reynolds and Matt Vasgersian. \u201cI\u2019m pretty sure I still want to play, I\u2019m still keeping myself in shape.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" class=\"\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=samgarciadb&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1863635239253234163&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fdodgersnation.com%2Fformer-dodgers-outfielder-wont-retire-from-mlb-this-offseason-after-all%2F2024%2F12%2F06%2F&amp;sessionId=2cbe582293a0408ed84a5727d892da96a0dcedb0&amp;siteScreenName=dodgersnation&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1863635239253234163\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The Chicago White Sox released Pillar in April, allowing him to sign a one-year contract with his hometown team, the Los Angeles Angels. After the move, Pillar improved at the plate and logged his highest batting average since 2020. Pillar expressed his gratitude for the Angels and credited the move for helping him rediscover his passion for baseball.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor the first time in probably ever, I was just playing for the love of the game, the joy of the game,\u201d Pillar said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t worried about tomorrow or the next day, my future and I found a lot of success in that. Even going up towards the end of the season, I really thought it was gonna be my last year, I thought I was gonna retire.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Pillar\u00a0played one season with the Dodgers\u00a0in 2022. He struggled in the Major Leagues, recording a .083 batting average across four games. But, Pillar thrived in the minors, averaging .315 and hitting 10 home runs. He elected free agency at the end of the season.<\/p>\n<div class=\"stream-item stream-item-in-post stream-item-inline-post aligncenter\">\n<div class=\"stream-item-size\">\n<p>Pillar is now back in free agency after a finishing the 2024 season with the Halos. The 36-year-old will be at the Winter Meetings in Dallas next week to search for an interested team.<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, Pillar said he will approach this offseason differently than in the past. Rather than focusing on which team will pick him up, Pillar will relax and see where the cards fall. He plans to raise his llamas, and spend time outside and with his kids.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cObviously, in this game, it takes two to tango,\u201d Pillar said. \u201cI could want to play \u2019til I\u2019m blue in the face, but it\u2019s gonna take someone on the other side to want me to join their team. \u2026 If someone calls, I\u2019ll be ready to play. If no one calls, it\u2019s probably meant to be the end.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The MLB veteran reached 10 years of service time in July, meaning his pension is fully vested.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Five months ago, outfielder Kevin Pillar planned to hang up his cleats after the 2024 season. But, Pillar, who will turn 36 in January, has decided to&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8361,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Former Dodgers Outfielder Won\u2019t Retire From MLB This Offseason After All - 24\/7 News America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=8359\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Former Dodgers Outfielder Won\u2019t Retire From MLB This Offseason After All - 24\/7 News America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Five months ago, outfielder Kevin Pillar planned to hang up his cleats after the 2024 season. 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