On June 8, 2009, Matt Carpenter played his final game for TCU, and he figured the final out concluded his career as a baseball player.

He had not hired an agent. He had not talked to a scout. He had earned his degree. He was 24. He was set to pursue a career coaching college baseball.

It’s June 2025, and Carpenter recently announced his retirement after his 14-year career in the major leagues. He lives in Fort Worth with his wife and their two young children.

“I was a major league player for 14 years,” he said this week in a phone interview. “That number still just doesn’t feel real.”

According to the Princeton Review, the average MLB career lasts 2.7 years . Other studies have shown the career runs 5.6 years. By either metric, Carpenter crushed the average.

As Carpenter looks ahe

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