Pittsburgh Pirates News: Steve Pearce Officially Retires

Former Pittsburgh Pirates draftee and prospect Steve Peace made quite a career for himself after leaving the franchise.  He has officially announced his retirement.

In 2005 former Pittsburgh Pirates General Manager Dave Littlefield used the team’s eighth-round draft pick on a college hitter Steve Pearce.  Pearce had already been drafted twice, once out of high school and once before from college.  He was viewed as a bat-first player with questions surrounding where he would play defensively.

Pearce quickly slugged his way through the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system and made his Major League debut in 2007 at the age of 24.  He was a September callup in 2007, giving him just 23 games to make an impact.  That he did, batting .294 with a .344 on-base percentage giving himself a good chance to make the club the following year.

As the 2008 season approached, Steve Pearce found himself ranked as a top 100 prospect for the first time in his career, being ranked by both Baseball Prospectus and Baseball America. The future seemed bright for Steve Pearce and the Pittsburgh Pirates.  However, things did not work out for Pearce in the Steel City.

Pearce ended up playing in just parts of four more season with the Pittsburgh Pirates, spending some time between the big league club and the minors.  Throughout his career as a Pirate, Pearce ended up with a batting average of .232 and an OPS under .750.  Finally, the Bucs let go of Pearce entering the 2012 season.

Pearce floated around between a bunch of different teams including the Blue Jays, Orioles, Yankees, Rays, and the Red Sox.  Pearce actually won a World Series with the Sox in 2018 and was a key contributor to the World Series championship.  He played in just 29 games in 2019, his age 37 season, but batted under .200.  Pearce told Rob Bradford of WEEI Radio that he will be officially retiring:

"“You know what? It has been a good run. I have 10 years in there. Right now I am officially retired,” said Pearce, who turned 37 years old Monday."

Steve Pearce never worked out as a Pittsburgh Pirate.  He tore his way through the minors and had a strong debut, but ended being sent up and down a few times during his five-year Pittsburgh Pirates career.  Pearce ended up having a lot more success after leaving the Bucs which was unfortunate after being a top ranked prospect, however that was just the way things went during those tough years.  Instead, like many players, Pearce went on to win a World Series win elsewhere.  Farewell Steve Pearce and have a good retirement.