Aside from being elected to the Hall of Fame, there may be no greater honor in Major League Baseball than to see your jersey removed by a team. Some teams do not differentiate between the two: The Cardinals, for example, only withdraw the numbers of their players who arrive in Cooperstown. Other novenas do not retire numbers as such, but instead induct players to the team’s Hall of Fame, which does not necessarily require having reached Cooperstown. It can simply be a way to pay tribute to essential parts of your team’s history.
But regardless of how one wants to define the concept of “retired numbers”, each franchise tries to preserve and honor its history. With that in mind, let’s take a look at that active player on each team with the highest chances of seeing his jersey retired one day. Let’s clarify: The player has to be active, but he does not have to be playing at this moment with the club that would withdraw his number. Some of these teams have a “rule” that they do not withdraw the number of anyone who is not in the Cooperstown Hall of Fame. In this case, if there is no obvious candidate to the Hall, when necessary we will choose the figure with the best chance of being immortalized by his team.
Blue Jays: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., No. 27
It looks like he’s going to compete for several MVP awards and could end up in the Hall of Fame. And if he ends up signing a contract extension with the Blue Jays at some point, he could become the historical face of the organization.
Orioles: Trey Mancini, No. 16
It’s tempting to walk away with all-star prospect Adley Rutschman, but Mancini wasn’t traded on the deadline and he looks like the kind of player this franchise will keep on board even as they take the inevitable turn to a still younger team. If he keeps hitting and the Orioles start to win, he will be seen as the man who came all the way with them … both on and off the field. Having beaten cancer makes him a sentimental favorite of the franchise.
Rays: Evan Longoria, No. 3
He’s still the best player in Rays history and that doesn’t seem to be close to changing. The only other player the Rays have removed the number from is Wade Boggs. When Longoria retires, it will be time to pay such tribute. Dominican Wander Franco could easily be the answer here in a few years.
Red Sox: Xander Bogaerts, No. 2
Mookie Betts, in fact, is the 13th best player in Red Sox history in terms of WAR, but the way he ended his time in Boston – and all the years he will spend in Los Angeles – could eliminate him here. Bogaerts or the Dominican Rafael Devers are our selections.
Yankees: Aaron Judge, No. 99
He’s going to have to sign an extension with the team and is sure to win a World Series at some point, but he’s the first person you think of when it comes to this stage – the post Derek Jeter era – of the Yankees.
** Cleveland: José Ramírez, No. 11 **
The Dominican will have to stay several more years in the team, which is always difficult when we talk about Cleveland. But they are going to adopt a new name and perhaps a new era. In any case: Ramírez is the last of the boys left there.
Royals: Salvador Pérez, No. 13
He has been there since before they were a great team, he was in the best years and he is still there. And maybe they’ll be a great novena again before he retires.
Tigers: Miguel Cabrera, No. 24
This is presuming, of course, that he will retire one day. The Venezuelan has at least two more years left in Detroit. Because of that, the answer here might as well be Justin Verlander.
Twins: Byron Buxton, No. 25
This is presuming that they get an extension and stay healthy – no guarantees in both cases, obviously – but one of the disappointing aspects of the Twins’ past decade is that there really is no other possibility here.
White Sox: José Abreu, No. 79
If the White Sox win a World Series with the Cuban veteran after MVP, he will become a South Chicago legend… if he isn’t already.
Angels: Mike Trout, No. 27
Maybe they’ll even take your number off while you’re still playing, right?
Astros: José Altuve, No. 27
The Venezuelan was loved from the beginning, he was loved during the hardest part, he continues to be adored and will be loved forever in Houston.
Athletics: Matt Olson, No. 28
This will likely require the Athletics to finally win a World Series, but Olson has taken over as the Athletics’ best Matt (beating Chapman).
Mariners: Julio Rodríguez, No. 85 in the minors
There really is no better candidate than the Dominican, if one does not go with Jarred Kelenic, but the hope is that the Mariners will have several options in the next two decades.
Rangers: Josh Jung, No. 18 in the minors
Yes, there is no other obvious option here, so we are left with your best prospect. Maybe if they had signed an extension with Joey Gallo …
Braves: Freddie Freeman, No. 5
Actually, there are several candidates here and while the Venezuelan Ronald Acuña Jr. is the one with the most talent, Freeman has already been MVP and has a decade with the club. But will he retire with them?
Marlins: Giancarlo Stanton, No. 27
He remains the club’s leader in several categories, and it turns out that when he retires, his years with the Marlins will overshadow his years with the Yankees.
Mets: Jacob deGrom, No. 48
It doesn’t matter what happens for the rest of your career. But either way, we’re going to make sure he has a lot of race ahead of him.
Nationals: Stephen Strasburg, No. 37
This is not easy. Obviously, the injury problems are substantial and there are several names to choose from, from Max Scherzer to Juan José Soto to Ryan Zimmerman. But how not to go with the once great prospect who ended up becoming a World Series MVP?
Phillies: Bryce Harper, No. 3
The next 10 years of your contract should give you enough time to get all the statistics you need.
Brewers: Christian Yelich, No. 22
Obviously, he’s going to have to get back to his MVP level, but a big hit or two in October could go a long way.
Cardinals: Albert Pujols, No. 5
There are two players who, with certainty, will see their numbers retired by the Cardinals: Dominican Pujols and Puerto Rican Molina. And Adam Wainwright could keep them company too.
Cubs: Anthony Rizzo, No. 44
There will be no Hall of Fame members from that 2016 team, at least it doesn’t seem that way. But the face of that club and of this era will almost certainly be Rizzo.
Pirates: Andrew McCutchen, No. 22
Injuries following his departure from Pittsburgh have affected his legacy, but there was a time when you thought a statue would one day be made for him outside of PNC Park.
Reds: Joey Votto, No. 19
Votto could play into his 50s and somehow find a way to make himself loved more each year.
D-backs: Paul Goldschmidt, No. 44
The D-backs have basically had two great eras in their history: Johnson / Schilling / Gonzalez and Goldschmidt.
Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw, No. 22
Even on a team with as many stars as the Dodgers, this is one of the easiest picks on this list.
Giants: Buster Posey, No. 28
There was a time when Bumgarner was the pick here and San Francisco will probably end up removing the jerseys of the two. But Posey’s resurgence after a year out, for these fantastic Giants, puts him ahead. And he could win another World Series ring.
Parents: Fernando Tatis Jr., No. 23
Even more than Manny Machado, Tatis Jr. will always represent the Padres’ turn.
Rockies: Nolan Arenado, No. 28
The love given to Arenado by the fans in the All-Star Game was genuine and won’t go away for long.
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