Kirk Rueter Retires From Baseball

[ThomasTomasz]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) -- Kirk Rueter retired Monday, ending a 13-year major league career during which he became the winningest left-handed pitcher in San Francisco Giants history.

Rueter finished with a 130-92 record and a 4.27 ERA. He won 105 games after joining the Giants near the end of the 1996 season, surpassing Mike McCormick last year as the winningest lefty in San Francisco history.

Rueter went 2-7 with a 5.95 ERA in 2005 and was designated for assignment on Aug. 14. No team signed him during the offseason.

"I'm officially done," Rueter said Monday during conference call from his Nashville, Ill., home. "I was 99 percent sure, and I made up my mind last week. I'm a full-time husband and a full-time father now."

The 35-year-old Rueter said he attempted to join the St. Louis Cardinals, his favorite team as a boy, because he lives close to St. Louis. When that didn't materialize, he decided to focus on his wife, Karla, and daughters, Hope and Halle.

"It was a great run," he said. "I love baseball. The Giants have been unbelievably good to me. I'm going to miss the fifth day, but I won't miss the road trips and being away from my family."

Rueter entered the majors with the Montreal Expos in 1993, and his 8-0 mark was the best to start a career since Hooks Wiltse of the New York Giants went 12-0 in 1904. Rueter posted seven consecutive winning seasons for San Francisco from 1997-2003.

Affectionately known as "Woody," Rueter was 13-6 with a 3.45 ERA for the NL West champion Giants in 1997. He finished a career-best 16-9 in 1998, and went 13-8 with a 3.23 ERA for the 2002 pennant winners, adding a victory over St. Louis in the NLCS.

"That win and going to the World Series were highlights," Rueter said. "I started Game 4 in San Francisco. As a kid, everyone dreams of that.

"And I remember pitching the first game of a two-game sweep that caught the Dodgers in 1997. The atmosphere was electric at Candlestick Park."

Rueter dismissed his somewhat acrimonious departure from the Giants last year as frustration over a losing season, explaining: "Everybody was going crazy ... down deep, I knew it was coming close to the end."

The Giants have no hard feelings, either. The club is planning a day in Rueter's honor this season, and general manager Brian Sabean thanked the pitcher for his contributions toward the club's 1997-2004 success.

"When he went out to pitch, everyone felt it was a win day," Sabean said. "The guys liked playing behind him. His record is evidence that he had more talent than he was given credit for."

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slu...v=ap&type=lgns

[ThomasTomasz]

Not surprising, as Rueter had no interest this offseason from anyone. Despite being a veteran left-hander with plenty of experience, he threw up slowball after slowball last year, and was pounded, throwing nearly a 6.00 ERA, and was cut from the Giants in the middle of the pennant race. Good luck in retirement, and sorry Rueter couldn't end his career on his own terms, with a decent season.

[SF Kid]

Jamie Moyer ought to be next. He's got very little left. I was surprised Seattle signed him to a one year contract. Talk about "slowball"...sheese.

[love_that_reefer]

Velocity has nothing to do with pitching. It helps but you can throw it 100 right down the pipe and its going to get crushed. Rueter had a pretty solid career with that "slowball". His inability to throw strikes consistently is why his career went down hill.

[DirtyKash]

Dang, that's really sad. I used to root for him big time when he broke in with the Expos. Sad to see Woody from Toy Story go.