Longtime member of the Detroit Tigers and former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Curtis Granderson announced his retirement on Friday. He spent 16 years in the Majors, with the bulk of that time coming with the Tigers (six seasons).
The Tigers selected Granderson in the third round of the 2002 MLB Draft and he went on to make his debut with the club two years later. After appearing in just nine games in 2004, Granderson played in 47 games the following season, then took on an everyday role in 2006.
He became an All-Star for the Tigers in 2009, though was included in a three-team, seven-player trade that involved the Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Yankees at that year’s Winter Meetings. Granderson went on to spend four seasons with the Yankees.
That was followed by signing a four-year contract with the Mets, and in the final season of that deal Granderson was traded to the Dodgers.
It’s been an incredible journey! Thanks for the ride of a lifetime, @MLB @MLB_PLAYERS pic.twitter.com/0AgOgSjWSC
— Curtis Granderson (@cgrand3) January 31, 2020
Upon joining the Dodgers in August, the veteran outfielder went on to appear in 36 games. His arrival caused a bit of a stir as the Dodgers demoted Joc Pederson to Triple-A Oklahoma City in order to place Granderson on their active roster.
He slugged two home runs in his first three games with L.A., with one of this making MLB history. Granderson became the first player to ever hit two grand slams in a four-game span for different teams, and he was the first do so while batting leadoff and cleanup in the same season.
Even as Granderson struggled through his time with the Dodgers, he continued to make an impact off the field. He had three unique cleats designs for Players Weekend in 2017 and raffled them to benefit the Grand Kids Foundation, which strives to aid positive youth development via education, physical fitness and nutrition.
Shortly after Granderson donated to Houston Food Bank for Hurricane Harvey relief.
His playing career saw him spend the 2018 season with the Toronto Blue Jays and Milwaukee Brewers, and concluded last season with the Miami Marlins.
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