“Really wanted a big league opportunity” - Orioles’ Kyle Gibson breaks silence on retirement decision after 13-year MLB career 

After 13 seasons in the big leagues, veteran right-hander Kyle Gibson has officially announced his retirement from professional baseball on Thursday. The 37-year-old finished his career, going 112-111 with a 4.60 ERA in 334 appearances (328 starts) with five teams.

Gibson, who started the year with the Baltimore Orioles before being released and signing a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays in May, opted out of it on June 20. With no opportunity in sight, he called time on his career.

Hours after announcing his retirement, Gibson appeared on the "Serving it Up!" podcast, where he unpacked things leading to his retirement. He reflected upon his time in Triple-A Durham for Tampa Bay, waiting for his time to come, but when it never did, he made the decision.

"Yeah, uh, you know, my time in Tampa was great," Gibson said (Timestamp: 37:12 onwards). "I was there with the Durham staff, and the goal for me going there was trying to get my stuff and how I felt physically to match up with the results.

"I felt really good — my stuff was kind of back to where I wanted it to be. The velocity was right where it needed to be, and then the stuff Tampa had me working on — pitch usage, location, and execution—really worked out well. It was a lot of fun," he added.

Despite doing well in the minors, not earning a call-up left him with a lot of thinking to do, as his family went on a vacation after opting out of his minor league contract. Gibson said two weeks later from his last start, an opportunity finally came, but by then he had already made up his mind.

"After that, I kind of sat and waited," Gibson said. "Didn’t really hear from too many people. I really wanted to have a big league opportunity, but that didn’t come until maybe two weeks after that last start. By then, I had plenty of time to talk with Elizabeth and talk with the family."

Kyle Gibson excited to turn to next chapter in his life

Retirement will allow Gibson to spend more time with his family. During the same conversation, he told the podcast that he's going with his kids to watch the Polaris race this weekend in Kansas City.

"We’re actually packing up today to go watch the kids’ Polaris race this weekend in Kansas City. So yeah, that’s kind of where I ended up a couple of weeks ago when it became clear I wasn’t going to get the opportunity I was looking for. It’s been exciting being home and turning the page to a new chapter."

Gibson added that he'll be using the next few days to thank the people who have watched, helped and enjoyed his career closely. He'll shortly come up with a proper farewell post as he bids goodbye to baseball for good.