Cole

Hamels

The news comes as the Padres announced Hamels was placed on the voluntary retirement list. Hamels, 39, hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2020 as a member of the Braves. He underwent shoulder surgery in September of 2021 and signed a minor league deal with the Padres in February in hopes of making a comeback. However, things didn’t work out. Hamels, a four-time All-Star and World Series MVP in 2008, will hang it up with 163 career wins and a 3.43 ERA over 15 seasons, most of them coming with the Phillies. For a time, he was one of the best left-handed pitchers in the game.

Hamels is working his way back from a series of shoulder issues that have derailed his comeback efforts the last few years. The hope is that he’ll be a potential option for the Padres sometime around midseason, if he can avoid any setbacks. The 39-year-old southpaw signed a minor league contract last month with San Diego and is hoping to get back to the majors for the first time since the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.

Hamels, who signed a minor league deal with the Padres last week, is attempting a comeback after undergoing shoulder surgery in September of 2021. The 39-year-old will be brought along slowly, so he won’t be an option at the start of the season, but the Padres are hoping the former All-Star still has something left in the tank.

Hamels will be trying to pull off a pretty remarkable comeback at age 39 after essentially three lost seasons due to shoulder issues that required surgery. Before getting hurt, he was making a case for the Hall of Fame with a 163-122 record along with a strong 3.43 ERA in 2,698 innings. The Padres are expected to go with a six-man rotation initially, something that should suit Hamels if he makes the team. He’s no higher than seventh in line for the rotation right now, but if he impresses next month, it will be hard to pass him over. He’ll earn $2 million if he’s added to San Diego’s major league roster.

Hamels is coming off shoulder surgery and has pitched 3 1/3 innings in three seasons, so any sort of comeback at age 39 would be extremely impressive.

Hamels, 38, hasn’t pitched since the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. He would likely have to settle for a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. We’ll see.

Hamels had wanted to latch on with a team for this season after he underwent shoulder surgery last November, but Heyman says the lefty “has decided to take his time with his comeback plans and try next spring.” He’ll be 39 at that point and will have made just one start since 2020, so the interest in Hamels would probably be tepid.

Hamels target date is currently unknown, but it will likely not be until the late summer after undergoing left shoulder surgery in August. The 38-year-old has not pitched in a major league game since 2020 in his lone appearance for the Braves.

Hamels probably won’t be ready for live action until late summer after requiring left shoulder surgery this past August. He also turns 38 years old next month and hasn’t made an appearance in the majors since his one start with the Braves in 2020. It could be a long wait for him to find a landing spot as a free agent this offseason.

Hamels inked a one-year, $1 million contract with the Dodgers earlier this month before quickly having to shut things down after feeing discomfort in his arm during a simulated game. The southpaw turns 38 in December and was limited to just one start last season due to injury, but understandably he wants to go out on his own terms.