Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann to retire after 15-year career

Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Atlanta Braves veteran catcher Brian McCann said Wednesday he is retiring from Major League Baseball after 15 seasons.

McCann revealed his retirement plans after the Braves' 13-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the series-deciding Game 5 of their NL Division Series. The 35-year-old catcher said he made the decision about a month and a half ago.

"This is it for me," McCann told reporters in the locker room. "I'm going to go home and be a dad and play with those kids. ... I had a long career. Fifteen years is a long time catching every day. And I got to do it in my hometown."

The Georgia native started his MLB career with the Braves, spending his first nine seasons in Atlanta. He was named an All-Star seven times with the Braves before moving on to the New York Yankees in 2014.

McCann, a six-time Silver Slugger Award winner, won the World Series in 2017 after being traded to the Houston Astros. He re-signed with Atlanta as a free agent last November to play under manager Brian Snitker, who also served as his manager at Double-A Mississippi when the organization first called him up to the majors in 2005.

"Yeah, he knew," McCann said of Snitker knowing about his retirement. "I've known him for a long, long time. He was my Double-A manager. Being able to do this with him as my manager is something I'll always remember."

McCann finished with a career .262 batting average, 282 home runs and 1,018 RBIs. He had a .249 average with 12 homers and 45 RBIs in 85 games this season.