Former Cardinals two-time Gold Glover announces retirement

On Sunday afternoon, second baseman Kolten Wong announced his retirement from professional baseball. Wong, 34, played for 11 years in Major League Baseball.

Kolten Wong's career accolades include two Gold Gloves, a third-place finish in the 2014 National League Rookie of the Year voting, and a National League Pennant with the 2013 Cardinals. While Wong's career numbers won't go down in the history books, he was extremely consistent, and he was one of the best defensive second basemen in his era.

Wong announced his retirement while at his alma mater, the University of Hawaii. Brian McInnins of Spectrum News first reported this information.

“Pretty much right now, I’m done,” said Wong. “I’ve kind of come to the conclusion that I’m probably going to be hanging them up. It’s just one of those things where, the game how it’s going now, there’s no sense of chasing (it). … I’m a dad now, yes, I’m enjoying that. I’m trying to be the best big league dad that I can be. So I’m going to stick to that.”

Wong was drafted 22nd overall by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011 out of the University of Hawaii. He finished his career with a .256/.330/.390 slash line, 973 hits, 86 home runs, and 120 stolen bases.

In Wong's eight seasons with the Cardinals, he hit .261 with a .717 OPS. Wong was known mostly for his defense, but he had decent pop for a player of his size, and his speed was above average, too. He often posted above-average sprint speeds, and his 17 defensive runs saved in 2019 led all Cardinals second basemen since his rookie year in 2013.

Wong started his career off on the wrong foot, literally. In the 2013 World Series, Wong came in to pinch run while the Cardinals were down 4-2 in the ninth inning against the Boston Red Sox. Wong was picked off first base by Koji Uehara, and the game ended.

Wong's breakout year came in 2017, the second year of a five-year, $25.5 million contract. "Wonger" slashed .285/.376/.412 that year with 34 extra base hits in only 108 games. He finished the year with a 109 OPS+. He won a Gold Glove in both 2019 and 2020, and his 2019 season with the Cardinals was the best of his career according to bWAR (5.4).

After his time with the Cardinals, Kolten Wong signed a multi-year deal with the division rival Milwaukee Brewers. Wong experienced a bit of a career resurgence in 2021 and 2022 with the Brewers, but he fell mightily in 2023 with the Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Dodgers. 2023 was his last year in professional baseball.

Wong's retirement comes on the heels of another Cardinals' retirement: Matt Carpenter. Carpenter announced his retirement last week, and the two infielders spent many years together in St. Louis. Seeing both Matt Carpenter and Kolten Wong announce their retirements in the same week closes the book on the organization's run of success from 2013 through 2019.

While Kolten Wong isn't a guarantee for a Red Jacket down the road, he'll certainly be in the running. He was a member of a very successful era of Cardinal baseball.