Carlos Beltran Mulling Retirement After Final Season with Yankees

While 38-year old Yankees veteran Carlos Beltran is entering the final year of his three-year deal with the New York Yankees, the future Hall of Famer told the New York Post that he might ‘hang em’ up’ and call it a career come next October.

"“I don’t think there is any big decision I have to make — other than to play one more year or go home,” he told Zach Braziller of the Post. “In my case, I am very happy with my career. … If I feel like I produce well to the point where I can make a good impact on a team, then I can play one more year. Or if I feel like I have [had] enough, I’ll go home."

In 2015, the eight-time All-Star logged 133 games in his second season while donning the pinstripes, slashing .276/.337/.471 with an .808 OPS, 19 home runs and 67 RBI. His red-hot second half was one of the larger contributions in keeping the Yankees afloat and securing them playoff baseball for the first time since 2012, especially after they lost Mark Teixeira to season-ending injury.

During his Yankees debut in 2014, Beltran struggled to a slash line of .233/.301/.402 with a .703 OPS in large part due to his injured elbow.

Over the course of his 17-year career, Beltran is a career .280 hitter with 392 home runs and 1,443 RBI in 2,306 games played with the Kansas City Royals, Houston Astros, New York Mets, San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals and New York Yankees.

But perhaps even more impressive is his post-season slash line of .332/.441/.674 with a major league leading 1.115 OPS, 16 home runs and 40 RBI in 52 career playoff games. In five career trips to the post-season, Beltran finally made it to the World Series with the Cardinals in 2013, where they managed to win it all.

If 2016 is indeed Carlos Beltran’s final season, it’ll be an honor to watch him go out as a member of the New York Yankees.