Elvis Andrus signs ceremonial 1-day contract to officially retire with Texas Rangers

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Elvis Andrus signed a ceremonial one-day contract Friday to officially retire with the Texas Rangers, the team he played for in the first 12 of his 15 seasons in the majors.

Andrus made his big-league debut as a 20-year-old shortstop in 2009 and was a steady presence up the middle when the Rangers went to back-to-back World Series in 2010-11. He was also part of AL West-winning teams in 2015-16.

“Today is a day of joy in my life,” said Andrus, who turned 36 last month. “I think this is perfect.”

The two-time All-Star was seated between longtime teammate Michael Young and Ron Washington, his manager during his first six seasons with the club. Washington is now the manager of the Los Angeles Angels, who are playing Texas this weekend.

“This is the place where he made his greatest impact, where the community loves him, our fan base loves him,” said Young, now a special assistant to Rangers general manager Chris Young.

The oldest of Andrus’ three children, 7-year-old Elvis Jr., threw out the ceremonial first pitch to Young.

“He could handle a bat and could handle the glove and he could run the bases,” Washington said. “Very, very special player.”

Andrus had 2,091 hits while batting .269 with 102 homers, 775 RBIs, and 347 stolen bases in 2,059 career games with Texas (2009-20), the Oakland Athletics (2021-22), and the Chicago White Sox (2022-23). He went to spring training this year with the Arizona Diamondbacks on a minor league contract but was released before the start of the season.

Texas acquired Andrus from Atlanta in July 2007 in a six-player trade that sent Mark Teixeira to the Braves.

Andrus is the Rangers’ career leader with 305 stolen bases, ranks second in games (1,652), at-bats (6,366), and triples (48). He is third in runs (893) and hits (1,743).