Jacksonville native Daniel Murphy is retiring from Major League Baseball, wrapping up a 12-year career in the big leagues.
Murphy, who played at Englewood High School and Jacksonville University, told SportsNet New York on Friday that he was retiring.
Recommended Videos
“This is a beautiful game, and I really just feel humbled and blessed that it let me jump on the ride for a little bit,” Murphy told SNY. “It’s beautiful. It can teach you about so many things. And all I can say is, thank you.”
It marks the second offseason retirement for a former area pro baseball star. Washington’s Howie Kendrick, who played at West Nassau and St. Johns River State College, announced his retirement last December after 15 seasons and a World Series title in 2019.
Murphy, 35, spent his time in the bigs among four teams — the Mets, Nationals, Cubs and the Rockies — after being drafted in the 13th round out of JU in 2006.
Murphy played seven seasons for the Mets and will be remembered the most for his time there, including a torrid postseason in 2015. Murphy homered in six straight playoff games, setting a baseball record. His .529 average (9 for 17) in the NLCS against the Cubs earned him the MVP in that series.
But his best season came in 2016 with the Nationals where Murphy hit a career-highs in batting average (.347), home runs (25) and RBI (104). He finished as the runner-up in the MVP race that year to Chicago’s Kris Bryant.