NEW YORK, Nov. 27 (UPI) -- Scott Brosius, the 1998 World Series Most Valuable Player who earned three championship rings with the New York Yankees, announced Tuesday he has decided to retire.
The veteran third baseman will end his careeer rather than play with another team.
Brosius' contract with the Yankees expired at the end of the season and it was unlikely that the team would make a serious effort to retain him. The Yankees have been preparing top prospect Drew Henson to take over at third base some time next season.
"I've enjoyed to the fullest my four years in New York and feel I've fit a whole career in four years," said Brosius, who is expected to continue his pursuit of a degree at Linfield College in his native Oregon. "Because of the way the Yankees treated us. I can truly look back and walk away with no regrets.
"I always wanted to walk away on my own terms and my desire to stay home with my family is now stronger than my desire to play."
Brosius is the third Yankee to announce his retirement this offseason, joining right fielder Paul O'Neill and utilityman Luis Sojo.
"Scott Brosius was a great Yankee and we have tremendous respect for his decision to retire in pinstripes," Yankees owner George Steinbrenner said. "I've described Paul O'Neill as a warrior and I feel much the same way about Scott."
The 35-year-old Brosius played his first seven seasons with the Oakland Athletics, batting .304 in 1996 before plummeting to a career-low .203 in 1997.
Looking to shed salary, the Athletics traded him to the Yankees for lefthander Kenny Rogers and cash on November 18, 1997. Taking full advantage of the fresh start, Brosius batted .300 in his first season with the Yankees, driving in 98 runs despite hitting at or near the bottom of the lineup.
Brosius batted .471 in the 1998 World Series against the San Diego Padres and was named MVP. It was the first of three straight World Series titles for the Yankees.
He never matched his production from that first season, hitting .247 in 1999, .230 in 2000 and .287 with 13 homers and 49 runs batted in 2001. But Brosius continued his postseason success, hitting a game-tying two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth in Game Five of the 2001 World Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
An All-Star in 1998 and a Gold Glove winner in 1999, Brosius is a .257 career hitter with 141 homers and 531 RBI.
