Steve Pearce’s MLB Career Was A Study In Perseverance

Steve Pearce didn’t hold a press conference or post a splashy video on social media to announce his retirement.

The veteran first baseman/outfielder told Boston radio station WEEI in a matter-of-fact way Monday night that his playing days were over. Pearce was a guest on the station prior to the re-airing of Game 1 of the 2018 World Series between the Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Pearce became a free agent following an injury-plagued 2019 season with the Red Sox. He generated little interest on the open market and, at 37, concluded his career was over.

Pearce, of course, had his brush with fame in 2018 when he was named the Most Valuable Player of the World Series, which the Red Sox won in five games.

Beyond that, Pearce had a seemingly unremarkable 13-year career. His finished with a batting average of just .254 along with 91 home runs.

Yet it wouldn’t be fair to allow Pearce to fade into retirement without acknowledging that he was a study in perseverance.

Pearce was the Pittsburgh Pirates’ eight-round draft pick in 2005 from the University of South Carolina. He reached the major leagues just two years later.

Though he played parts of five seasons with the Pirates, he never gained a foothold in the big leagues in Pittsburgh. The most plate appearances he received in a year was 186 in 2009 and he hit just .232 with nine home runs in 185 games.

The Pirates dropped him from the 40-man roster following the 2011 season and he became a free agent. That began quite an odyssey for the right-handed hitter.

Pearce went to spring training with the Minnesota Twins in 2012 but was released late in camp. The New York Yankees signed him and sent him to Triple-A.

The Yankees then sold Pearce’s contract to the Baltimore Orioles on June 2 and he joined the major league club. Nearly two months later, on July 28, the Houston Astros claimed him off waivers.

On Aug. 27, Pearce headed back to the Yankees as the Astros sold his contract to New York. On the next-to-last day of the season, the Orioles claimed him off the waiver wire.

Pearce spent the next three seasons with the Orioles from 2013-15 then became a free agent. He signed with the hometown Tampa Bay Rays – Pearce is from Lakeland, Fla. —- for the 2016.

Yet Pearce found his way back to Baltimore one more time when the Rays traded him to the Orioles on Aug. 1.

Prior to the 2017 season, Pearce signed the only multi-year contract of his career when he received a two-year, $12.5-million deal from the Toronto Blue Jays in free agency.

However, he never made it through the term of that contract as the Blue Jays traded him to the Red Sox on June 28, 2018.

It turned out to perfect timing for Pearce. He was a productive role player, primarily against left-handed pitching, then drove in three runs in each of the last two games of the World Series.

Pearce scuffled last season, hitting .180 in 29 games while sidelined by calf, back and knee injuries.

In his career, Pearce played for seven teams, including all five in the American League East. He was released three times, sold twice and was twice selected off the waiver wire.

Yet Pearce wound up making $29 million while becoming a forever hero in New England. And he also has a customized Chevrolet pickup truck, the prize for being the World Series MVP, that he can drive to Tampa this fall to watch his beloved Tom Brady quarterback the Buccaneers.

That’s a heckuva accomplishment for someone who was shown the door so many times while trying to establish himself in the major leagues.