In a move that was unlike Chase Utley, he called for a news conference that didn’t come with details but previous reports suggested it was to announce his intentions of retiring at the conclusion of the season. Sure enough, Utley explained he would be walking away from the game.
Utley, now in his 16th and final Major League season, revealed that spending more time with his family factored heavily into his decision to retire.
The 39-year-old spent the better part of 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies before being traded to the Dodgers in 2015, when he immediately took on a leadership role among his younger teammates such as Kiké Hernandez and Corey Seager.
To no surprise, Utley is one of the most respected figures in the Dodgers organization, with the coaching staff and front office additionally holding him in high regard.
That notion extends to manager Dave Roberts, who hopes Utley remains with the Dodgers in some capacity after his playing days conclude, via SportsNet LA:
“I’m hoping that he’ll still want to be a part of this organization and help us on the player development side, the special-assistant kind of thing. Obviously, the family is priority, but I hope he can assist me as well.”
In addition to Roberts, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is also on board with Utley accepting a different role with the organization after he officially retires.
Last offseason, Friedman joked that he would “stalk” the Pasadena native until Utley agreed to stick around with the team in his post-playing days.
Before any talk of Utley doing so becomes a realistic possibility, he has his sights on winning another World Series championship. To successfully do so with the Dodgers, Utley’s hometown team growing up, would be a fitting end to a potential Hall-of-Fame career.
