After previously announcing his desire to retire following the 2024 campaign, free-agent outfielder Kevin Pillar is now keeping an open mind about potentially playing a 13th season in Major League Baseball next year. 
Pillar, who turns 36 in January, was adamant about retiring following his 12th big-league season, which he split between the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels. But he&#8217;s had plenty of time to reflect this off-season. Now, he&#8217;s coming around on the idea of returning in 2025.
<blockquote>&#8220;I&#8217;ve just had some time to reflect, and I still enjoy doing it [playing professional baseball],&#8221; Pillar told MLB Network&#8217;s Hot Stove on Monday. &#8220;I&#8217;m pretty sure I still want to play. I&#8217;m still keeping myself in shape.&#8221;</blockquote>
The right-handed-hitting outfielder also revealed he underwent thumb surgery earlier this off-season.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
&#8220;I&#8217;ve just had some time to reflect&#8230;I still enjoy doing it. I&#8217;m pretty sure I still want to play.&#8221;
Kevin Pillar shares he is keeping the door open to play next season and will be in Dallas for the Winter Meetings. <a href="https://t.co/OwJVaMVAPK">pic.twitter.com/OwJVaMVAPK</a>
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBNetwork/status/1863635239253234163?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2024</a></blockquote>
Pillar said he plans to treat this winter differently than in years past, spending more time with his family as they prepare to move to Dallas &#8212; allowing him to attend next week&#8217;s Winter Meetings &#8212; rather than focusing on which teams might need a right-handed-hitting outfielder.
If his phone rings with an opportunity, he&#8217;ll explore it. If not, that&#8217;s fine, too. He&#8217;s already made peace with the thought of having already played his final big-league game.
<blockquote>&#8220;Obviously, in this game, it takes two to tango,&#8221; Pillar said of his MLB future. &#8220;I could want to play &#8217;til I&#8217;m blue in the face, but it&#8217;s going to take someone on the other side to want me to join their team.
&#8220;My off-season is just going to be a little bit different.&#8221;</blockquote>
Last season presented many challenges for Pillar, who played only 17 games with Chicago &#8212; which lost a record-breaking 121 games &#8212; before being released. He ultimately caught on in Los Angeles with his hometown club and wasn&#8217;t overly impressive at the plate, hitting seven home runs and 41 RBIs while slashing .236/.291/.378 in 83 games.
But more importantly, the West Hills, Calif., native received a huge boost away from the field and was able to play freely without any outside noise weighing him down. Instead of focusing on his on-field performance or impending retirement, he was reminded of his passion for the sport.
<blockquote>&#8220;The business side of baseball can be a lot sometimes,&#8221; Pillar said. &#8220;Getting released early in the year, playing for the White Sox &#8212; not really certain of what my future was going to be. I was just really thankful to be picked up by a hometown team in the Angels and I was able to find some success. For the first time ever, I was probably just playing for the love of the game, the joy of the game. I wasn&#8217;t worried about tomorrow or the next day, my future.&#8221;</blockquote>
Where Pillar&#8217;s career takes him next remains unclear. But after already playing for nine different franchises, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays, he may have a chance to add a 1oth jersey to his collection next season.
Seven of his 12 major league seasons were spent north of the border, making highlight-reel catches for Canada&#8217;s lone MLB franchise. He logged 695 career games, posting a .260/.297/.396 slash line with 55 home runs and 231 RBIs, swiping 69 stolen bases.
Pillar was also named an AL Gold Glove finalist in consecutive seasons in 2016 and &#8217;17.

After previously announcing his desire to retire following the 2024 campaign, free-agent outfielder Kevin Pillar is now keeping an open mind about potentially playing a 13th season in Major League Baseball next year. 

Pillar, who turns 36 in January, was adamant about retiring following his 12th big-league season, which he split between the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels. But he's had plenty of time to reflect this off-season. Now, he's coming around on the idea of returning in 2025.
<blockquote>"I've just had some time to reflect, and I still enjoy doing it [playing professional baseball]," Pillar told MLB Network's Hot Stove on Monday. "I'm pretty sure I still want to play. I'm still keeping myself in shape."</blockquote>
The right-handed-hitting outfielder also revealed he underwent thumb surgery earlier this off-season.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
"I've just had some time to reflect...I still enjoy doing it. I'm pretty sure I still want to play."
Kevin Pillar shares he is keeping the door open to play next season and will be in Dallas for the Winter Meetings. <a href="https://t.co/OwJVaMVAPK">pic.twitter.com/OwJVaMVAPK</a>

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBNetwork/status/1863635239253234163?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2024</a></blockquote>
Pillar said he plans to treat this winter differently than in years past, spending more time with his family as they prepare to move to Dallas -- allowing him to attend next week's Winter Meetings -- rather than focusing on which teams might need a right-handed-hitting outfielder.

If his phone rings with an opportunity, he'll explore it. If not, that's fine, too. He's already made peace with the thought of having already played his final big-league game.
<blockquote>"Obviously, in this game, it takes two to tango," Pillar said of his MLB future. "I could want to play 'til I'm blue in the face, but it's going to take someone on the other side to want me to join their team.

"My off-season is just going to be a little bit different."</blockquote>
Last season presented many challenges for Pillar, who played only 17 games with Chicago -- which lost a record-breaking 121 games -- before being released. He ultimately caught on in Los Angeles with his hometown club and wasn't overly impressive at the plate, hitting seven home runs and 41 RBIs while slashing .236/.291/.378 in 83 games.

But more importantly, the West Hills, Calif., native received a huge boost away from the field and was able to play freely without any outside noise weighing him down. Instead of focusing on his on-field performance or impending retirement, he was reminded of his passion for the sport.
<blockquote>"The business side of baseball can be a lot sometimes," Pillar said. "Getting released early in the year, playing for the White Sox -- not really certain of what my future was going to be. I was just really thankful to be picked up by a hometown team in the Angels and I was able to find some success. For the first time ever, I was probably just playing for the love of the game, the joy of the game. I wasn't worried about tomorrow or the next day, my future."</blockquote>
Where Pillar's career takes him next remains unclear. But after already playing for nine different franchises, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays, he may have a chance to add a 1oth jersey to his collection next season.

Seven of his 12 major league seasons were spent north of the border, making highlight-reel catches for Canada's lone MLB franchise. He logged 695 career games, posting a .260/.297/.396 slash line with 55 home runs and 231 RBIs, swiping 69 stolen bases.

Pillar was also named an AL Gold Glove finalist in consecutive seasons in 2016 and '17.

Kevin Pillar reconsidering retirement plans, keeping door open on 2025 return: ‘I’m pretty sure I still want to play’

Recent articles from Thomas Hall

Breaking News