Mariners Outfielder Feels His MLB Career is Over, Joins Beer League Softball Team

↵↵“Bad guy? Sure. Can he hit? Sure. Let’s keep ‘im!”↵

↵↵Eric Byrnes was not so lucky. He could be – and by most accounts is – a great guy, but Byrnes seems to be unable to do the one thing that’s most important to playing at the Major League level: he can’t hit.↵

↵↵Byrnes was batting .094 for the Mariners this season before he was released on Sunday, just a few nights after botching a suicide squeeze in extra innings by pulling back on a bunt attempt, leaving Ichiro out to dry at home plate. Can’t hit and can’t sacrifice? Can’t play in the Majors.↵

↵↵So Byrnes took his bike and went home. Quite literally, actually as he rode his bicycle back to his nearby apartment after getting released. Now, writes MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert, Byrnes is looking forward to kicking back, relaxing, and playing some beer league softball:↵

↵↵⇥While his Major League days may be over, his playing days are not. The 34-year-old filled his first two days after his release on the golf course, and he was headed to play in a recreational softball league with his friends Wednesday evening.↵⇥↵⇥That’s right, the man the Arizona Diamondbacks are paying $11 million this year in the final year of a three-year deal is going to star for a team sponsored by Dutch Goose, a burger and beer pub in Menlo Park, Calif.↵⇥

↵⇥↵⇥“This is going to be a blast,” he said. “Playing with my buddies. I can’t wait for my first hit. I’m going to ask for the ball.”↵⇥

↵⇥↵⇥That’s because there haven’t been enough hits for Byrnes the past three seasons.↵⇥

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Burn! Or should that read, “Byrn.” But seriously, any of us would take $11 million bucks to go hang out on a softball field with a bunch of slobs. Byrnes likely isn’t done in baseball though, but first, he plans to be “Mr. Mom for a while” and help his wife with an organic clothing business they started. Oh, and copious amounts of surfing and playing golf, too. ↵↵Byrnes does have his eyes on a steady job in media, as well. He’s had his own TV show on FSN, hosted a show on Sirius/XM’s MLB Home Plate and appeared during the playoffs on FOX as well. Don’t be surprised if he ends up with a regular gig by season’s end. Let’s just hope they don’t ask him to demonstrate how to properly execute the suicide squeeze. ↵

↵↵(H/T Hardball Talk)↵

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