May 18
RHP Kerry Wood announced his retirement Friday after the Cubs' game against the Chicago White Sox.
Wood has an 86-75 career record with a 3.67 ERA and 63 saves. He played 12 seasons with Chicago with stops with Cleveland and the New York Yankees. He finished with 1,582 strikeouts. This season, his second in his return stint with the Cubs, he has struggled with a 0-2 record and an 8.64 ERA while battling injuries. "It's just time," Wood said after the game. "It was time. We saw how things were going this year and just not being able to recover and bounce back and do my job, essentially. You know, do what I'm supposed to do, day in and day out. Just the grind of getting ready every day. To go through it, hours to get ready for fifteen pitches and go out there and not be successful."
May 18
Wood will retire Friday, ESPN Chicago reports.
Recommendation: Wood was the fourth overall pick in 1995's amateur draft and was named the National League's Rookie of the Year in 1998. That year he struck out an amazing 20 batters in a game against the Houston Astros as a 20-year-old. The now 34-year-old is a two-time All-Star, but had allowed eight runs in just 8.1 innings of relief so far in 2012. He was moved to the bullpen in 2007 after posting losing records in the three seasons prior, but Wood walks away from the game with a career 3.67 average and a 10.3 SO/9 ratio. Wood made 14 trips to the DL in his career, but he can retire with his head held high.
May 18
Kerry Wood, who electrified baseball with a 20-strikeout game as a rookie in 1998 and then became a reliever after his career was slowed by numerous injuries, is expected to retire after pitching one more game for the Chicago Cubs.
Advice: The 34-year-old Wood was in uniform Friday against the White Sox in the opener of their first interleague series of the season. The Cubs declined comment, though manager Dale Sveum said Wood was available to pitch if needed.
