Pirates' Newly-Acquired Blanton Talks Brief Retirement
PITTSBURGH (93-7 The FAN) - Contending baseball teams oftentimes swap young prospects for veteran leadership around this time of the year when the trade deadline looms on the horizon.
The Pittsburgh Pirates, who are annually prided off youth talent and emerging stars, took the concept of acquiring "veteran leadership" to a whole new extreme Wednesday.
Joe Blanton, a 34-year-old versatile pitcher who the Pirates traded for, felt like his playing days were over this past winter, so he hung up the cleats in an effort to retire from the game.
"My plan was to never play again," Blanton told reporters after arriving in the visitor's clubhouse in Cincinnati's Great American Ballpark for the Pirates Thursday evening game against the Reds.
Blanton, who has made $40 million in his career, flared out with the Angels and was released by the team last year. He was then signed by the Oakland A's to a minor league deal in which he posted a 5.23 ERA with the Sacramento River Cats before announcing he'd put a cap on his career.
"It was a little refreshing," Blanton said of his brief stint in retirement. "It was good for me at the time. [It was] not ideal at the time, but I think in the long run I think it helped me. I don't think I'd be where I am right now if I didn't get away."
One day last year, Blanton, who was embracing time away from the game and spending it with his family instead, received the news that former Pirate Zach Duke had moved down the road from him.
"He said he needed somebody to throw with, and I said, 'You know what, I'll throw with you,'" Blanton said.
Blanton credits his rekindled career to that first game of catch he had with Duke.
"I started throwing with him, and it felt pretty good. I realized that, at one time, I was decent at this [game]. I was actually having fun going back out and throwing the ball around, so I said maybe I'll go out and give it another whirl and try to correct a few things mechanically and see what happens," Blanton added.
The entire interview with the Pirates' new reliever can be accessed below:
