Kinsler announced his retirement Friday and will move into a front-office role with the Padres, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
The 37-year-old hangs up his cleats after spending 14 seasons in the majors, appearing for the Rangers, Tigers, Angels, Red Sox and Padres. He'll finish his career with 257 homers, eighth among players whose primary position was second base, while Kinsler winds up agonizingly close to the 2,000-hit milestone with 1,999 hits and a .269/.337/.440 slash line. He won a World Series with the Red Sox in 2018, adding that accomplishment to his four All-Star appearances and two Gold Gloves. The Padres have Jurickson Profar lined up to take over at second base.
Kinsler was placed on the 10-day injured list Friday with a disc herniation in his neck, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Kinsler last appeared in a game Monday and hasn't made a start since July 19 following the promotion of Luis Urias. The veteran infielder woke up with pain in his neck Wednesday and it's unclear how long he's expected to be sidelined. Greg Garcia and the newly promoted Ty France figure to split time at second base with Fernando Tatis (back) also on the shelf, forcing Urias to slide over to shortstop from the keystone.
Kinsler pitched one scoreless inning in a loss to Tampa Bay on Monday, hitting one batter and giving up a single and two walks. He also slugged a two-run home run in his only at-bat.
Kinsler was brought in for ninth-inning mop-up duty in the rout and held the Rays scoreless in spite of allowing four baserunners. He then stuck around for his turn at the plate in the bottom of the inning and knocked a two-run homer to left field, becoming the first pitcher in Padres history to hit a ninth-inning home run. With San Diego's youth movement in full swing, Kinsler has been glued to the bench of late -- his last start came against the Cubs on July 19.
Kinsler is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Cubs.
Kinsler had been occupying the short end of a platoon with Greg Garcia at second base lately, but the 36-year-old had started the past two games with lefties on the hill for the opposition. San Diego will face southpaw Jose Quintana on Saturday, but Kinsler appears set to surrender his limited role at the keystone to top middle-infield prospect Luis Urias, who was recalled from Triple-A El Paso and will immediately enter the lineup. If Urias quickly finds success and solidifies himself as the everyday second baseman the rest of the season, Kinsler could be in danger of losing his spot on the roster, as the Padres may not be able to justify keeping him around as a second utility man behind Garcia.
Kinsler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Braves.
Kinsler finds himself on the bench for the fourth time in the last five games while he is mired in a 2-for-18 slump. Greg Garcia receives another start at the keystone in the series finale.
Kinsler is not starting Saturday against the Braves.
Kinsler owns an awful .143/.196/.167 slash line over his last 15 games. Greg Garcia will start in his place at second base.
Kinsler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Dodgers.
Kinsler remains on the bench for the second straight game while Greg Garcia receives another start at the keystone. Kinsler has a .154/.190/.179 slash line with one extra-base hit in his last 14 games.
Kinsler is not starting Saturday against the Dodgers.
Kinsler is hitting .154/.190/.179 over his last 14 games. Greg Garcia will take over at second base in his absence.
Kinsler is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Giants.
Kinsler has an OPS of .389 over his last 11 games. Greg Garcia gets the nod at second base in his absence.
Kinsler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against St. Louis.
Kinsler started Friday's series opener but finds himself on the bench for the next two contests. Greg Garcia garners another start at second base Sunday.
Kinsler is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Cardinals.
Kinsler went 1-for-3 with a strikeout in the series opener but will take a seat Saturday. Greg Garcia will start at the keystone and bat ninth.
Kinsler is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Orioles.
Kinsler will sit for Wednesday's series finale after starting the past two games and going 3-for-10 with a double and a run scored. In his place, Greg Garcia is starting at the keystone and hitting seventh.
Kinsler will be on the bench Saturday against the Pirates.
Kinsler will sit for the third time in four games and the fourth time in six. He's gone hitless over his last four games but posted an OPS of 1.049 over the 13 games prior to that stretch. Greg Garcia will start at second base.
Kinsler is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Brewers.
Kinsler will sit for a second straight day and the third time in four games as Greg Garcia picks up another start at the keystone Wednesday. Since the start of June, Kinsler is slashing .200/.333/.209 with a homer, three stolen bases and a 31.8 percent strikeout rate.
Kinsler is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Brewers.
Kinsler hits the bench for the second time in three games. Greg Garcia starts at second base in his place.
Kinsler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game at Colorado.
Kinsler has started six of the last seven games at the keystone and is currently on a seven-game hit streak in which he has a 1.004 OPS. Greg Garcia will step in at second base and bat sixth for the Padres in his absence.
Kinsler went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBI in Saturday's 14-8 loss to the Rockies.
The veteran second baseman extended his hitting streak to seven games with his second straight three-hit effort at Coors Field. The surge has pushed Kinsler's slash line on the year to .230/.291/.408, numbers right in line with his performance over the last two seasons.
Kinsler is not in the lineup Thursday against the Rockies.
Kinsler is in the midst of a modest five-game hitting streak, during which he's gone 6-for-20 with a homer and two RBI. He'll take a seat for Thursday's series opener in Colorado as Greg Garcia picks up a start at the keystone in his stead.
Kinsler went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's loss to the Giants.
Kinsler's 408-foot blast to center field off Tony Watson in the eighth inning brought the Padres to within a run, but they were ultimately stifled in the comeback attempt. Though he is still hitting only .209 on the season, Kinsler has picked it up of late, batting .344 (11-for-32) over his last 10 games. It may not be enough to fend of top prospect Luis Urias, who appears primed to return to the majors before the end of the month.
Kinsler isn't in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Nationals.
Kinsler is in line for another off day after sitting out Wednesday against the Phillies. Greg Garcia will start at the keystone and hit ninth in Kinsler's absence.
Minor League Batting Stats | ||||||||||||||||
Year | Team | GP | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | CS | AVG | OBP | SLG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | A-Spokane | 51 | 188 | 32 | 52 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 20 | 34 | 11 | 3 | .277 | .352 | .410 |
2004 | A-Clinton | 59 | 224 | 52 | 90 | 30 | 1 | 11 | 52 | 25 | 36 | 16 | 5 | .402 | .465 | .692 |
2004 | AA-Frisco | 71 | 277 | 51 | 83 | 21 | 1 | 9 | 46 | 32 | 47 | 7 | 4 | .300 | .400 | .480 |
2005 | AAA-Oklahoma | 131 | 530 | 102 | 145 | 28 | 2 | 23 | 94 | 53 | 89 | 19 | 5 | .274 | .348 | .464 |
2006 | AAA-Oklahoma | 10 | 39 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | .256 | .293 | .487 |
2007 | AAA-Oklahoma | 3 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -- | 1 | 2 | 0 | .385 | .357 | .385 |
2009 | AA-Frisco | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .222 | .000 |
2010 | AA-Frisco Roughriders | 6 | 19 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | .263 | .348 | .368 |
2013 | AA-Frisco Roughriders | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .111 | .000 |