Boston Red Sox pitcher James Paxton suffered a calf ailment that forced him to leave his start against the Houston Astros in the first inning on August 11. Paxton sustained a partial tear of his right calf and the injury would cost him the rest of the 2024 season. Now, the veteran hurler is calling it a career.
Paxton is planning on retiring after the season, according to Baseball Isn’t Boring host Rob Bradford on X. It’s a disappointing ending to an 11-year career in the majors.
The 35-year-old lefty broke in with the Seattle Mariners in 2013. He spent the first six seasons of his career in Seattle and, after a couple years in New York with the Yankees, he returned to the Mariners for a seventh season in 2021.
Paxton spent 2023 with the Red Sox and then signed a one-year, $7 million deal to join the Los Angeles Dodgers for the 2024 season. The contract initially included $11 million in guaranteed money but a health concern led to the Dodgers reworking the deal, which featured performance bonuses based on the number of starts Paxton made this season.
The veteran provided important pitching depth for LA. He made 18 starts and went 8-2 with a 4.43 ERA, 1.455 WHIP and 6.4 K/9 in 89.1 innings for the Dodgers. While the numbers weren’t stellar, Paxton proved to be a useful arm in the back end of the rotation.
Red Sox’s veteran lefty James Paxton will retire after 11 seasons
Yet, despite being decimated by injuries to starting pitchers Clayton Kershaw, Tyler Glasnow, Walker Buehler, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Dustin May, the Dodgers surprisingly designated Paxton for assignment in late July.
The Red Sox saw the value in adding a dependable veteran lefty starter and acquired Paxton in a trade with the Dodgers for minor-league infielder Moises Bolivar. Paxton made three starts in his second stint with the Red Sox, going 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA, 1.364 WHIP and 7.4 K/9.
Related NewsArticle continues below
Unfortunately, just 0.2 of an inning into his third start for Boston, Paxton suffered the right calf tear. The Red Sox initially placed the pitcher on the 15-day injured list but ultimately transferred him to the 60-day IL, ending his season.
While every athlete envisions going out on top, that’s very rarely the case. Paxton will finish up his 11-year baseball career on the injured list. His best season came in 2017 with the Mariners when he went 12-5 with a 2.98 ERA, 1.103 WHIP and 10.3 K/9. He produced a career-best 3.6 bWAR in 24 starts that season.
Paxton won a career-high 15 games for the Yankees in 2019 and made his only postseason appearances that year. He got a no-decision against the Minnesota Twins in the ALDS and then pitched well in two starts against the Astros in the ALCS, going 1-0 with a 2.16 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 8.1 innings.
Paxton will finish his career with a 73-41 record. He went 8-6 in 22 starts for the Red Sox.
