Former Dodgers Draftee Announces Retirement from Baseball

Former Dodgers pitcher Josh Lindblom on Thursday announced his retirement from professional baseball after seven big-league seasons and five in the KBO.

Josh Lindblom was drafted by the Dodgers in the second round of the 2008 draft, nine picks after the Marlins took Brad Hand and 11 picks before the Rockies took Charlie Blackmon. Lindblom debuted with L.A. on June 1, 2011, two weeks before his 24th birthday, and pitched in 75 games for Los Angeles before being sent to Philadelphia at the 2012 trade deadline in the trade that brought Shane Victorino to the Dodgers.

Lindblom pitched well for the Dodgers, but he was never able to replicate that success in the big leagues. The Phillies traded him to the Rangers, who later traded him to the A's, who lost him on waivers to the Pirates, who eventually released him. At that point, Lindblom headed to Korea for the first of two stints in the KBO. He pitched okay for the Lotte Giants in parts of three seasons, struggled in a brief stint back with Pittsburgh in 2017, then headed back to Korea for two seasons with the Doosan Bears.

Lindblom had a resurgence with the Bears, going 35-7 with a sub-3.00 ERA and winning the 2019 KBO Most Valuable Player Award. After that 2019 season, he signed a three-year, $9.15 million contract with the Brewers to come back home to the United States.

Lindblom struggled with Milwaukee, posting a 6.39 ERA in 62 innings across parts of two seasons, and he spent the entirety of the 2022 season in Triple-A. That was enough for the hard-throwing righty, who announced on Thursday that his playing career is over.

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— Josh Lindblom-린드블럼 (@JoshLindblom52) January 12, 2023

Lindblom is 35 years old and might have been able to catch on with another team on a minor-league deal, but he chooses to walk away with fond feelings for the game. His retirement message ends with, "As for what's next: I might be done, but I'm not finished." Could a coaching role be in his future? He seems like the kind of guy who might enjoy that, but we'll see.