Saturday BP: Drew Robinson retires

Content warning: this article features graphic details and references regarding suicide.

Hello and happy Saturday.

Drew Robinson announced his retirement on Friday. Robinson was an outstanding member of the San Francisco Giants organization, who is a story of hope and courage, and is doing wonderful things for mental health advocacy.

The AAA Sacramento outfielder attempted suicide in 2020, early into the pandemic. A day after his suicide attempt, he decided he wanted to live, and called an ambulance. He lost an eye as the result of the self-inflicted gunshot, but his health is otherwise OK. He decided to return to baseball, and be an advocate for mental health and suicide awareness along the way.

The Giants welcomed him back with open arms, and while his numbers this season didn’t result in him knocking on the MLB door, they were pretty remarkable when you consider that he only had one eye: he hit .128/.240/.267, and had 13 walks and 3 home runs in 100 plate appearances, with some impressive catches as well. Damn impressive to me.

Robinson announced the news on Twitter:

Robinson will be retiring after the series the River Cats are currently in, which runs through Tuesday. I think it’s safe to say that Robinson — who has mostly been a bench player as the Giants have stockpiled depth — will get a start or two before the series ends.

The outfielder also announced that the Giants have offered him a position — which he accepted — in the front office as a mental health advocate. So he’ll be sticking around the sport, sticking around the organization, and continuing to make a difference.

Well done, Drew.

Old, random MCC article for you to read

Trading Nate Schierholtz (April 27, 2011 — Grant Brisbee)

Giants links

• Grant Brisbee talks about the 5 big questions facing the Giants in the second half of the season (There R Giants)
• Susan Slusser on Buster Posey catching a bullpen, but not yet being ready to return (SF Chronicle)
• Kerry Crowley identifies some big trade targets (Mercury News)
• Alex Pavlovic on Duane Kuiper’s keys for the Giants to stay atop the NL West (NBC Sports Bay Area)
• Brian Murphy on why he’s nervous about the Giants (KNBR)

What time do the Giants play today?

The Giants play the St. Louis Cardinals tonight at 4:15 p.m. PT.

I hope you all have a lovely Saturday.