After 12 rock-solid years across Major League Baseball, pitcher Alex Wood is calling it a day.
Wood is retiring from baseball, he announced in a Friday afternoon Instagram post. The 34-year-old Charlotte native had not pitched since a stint with the Athletics in 2024.
"Baseball was my first love. Outside of God and my family, nothing else has shaped me the way this game has," Wood wrote. "Even writing this, I can’t help but smile thinking about how much I still love the game after all this time."
Wood, who pitched collegiately for Georgia, debuted with the Braves in 2013. Atlanta traded him to the Dodgers in '15 in a three-team trade after a solid start to his career.
In 2017, Wood surprised the baseball world by opening the season 10–0. The All-Star finished the year 16–3 with a 2.72 ERA, falling just short of qualifying for the ERA title. In the playoffs, he posted a 2.92 ERA and helped Los Angeles win its first pennant since 1988.
Wood's fortunes declined after that, and he bounced around four franchises in his final seven years. He did experience a brief rejuvenation in 2021, going 10–4 with a 3.83 ERA during the Giants' shock 107–55 season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Alex Wood, Pitcher Who Helped Dodgers End Pennant Drought, Announces Retirement.
