Long-Time San Francisco Giants Reliever Hangs up his Cleats

Former San Francisco Giants reliever George Kontos has decided to hang up his cleats.

According to NBC Sports Bay Area, the long-time Giants reliever George Kontos will retire and has chosen to become a familiar face on the broadcast crew:

The 35-year-old spent parts of six seasons with the Giants where he posted a 3.05 ERA across 309.2 frames. Of course, Kontos also carved out a role in the bullpen during the Giants 2012 and 2014 championship runs.

The Northwestern University product was originally drafted by the New York Yankees in the fifth round of the 2006 draft. He came to San Francisco in 2012 following a minor trade that shipped catcher Chris Stewart back to New York.

Kontos was known as a reliable and durable arm with the Orange and Black as he averaged 50 appearances per year while earning the nickname “Every day George.”

He was shipped to the Pittsburgh Pirates in August of 2017 on a waiver claim. He helped the Pirates down the stretch as he recorded a 2.57 ERA in 14.2 innings.

However, he struggled to remain on a major league roster following the 2017 season. After generating a 5.03 ERA in 19.2, the Pirates decided to part ways with Kontos.

The right-handed hurler than made stops with the Cleveland Indians and the New York Yankees to finish out the 2018 season. In a bit of cosmic symmetry, Kontos’ final major league appearance would be with the same team that drafted him all the way back in 2006.

Kontos did continue pitching with the Washington Nationals Triple-A affiliate in 2019. However, he struggled to the tune of a 6.07 ERA in 46 innings while pitching in the hitter-friendly confines of the Pacific Coast League.

A transition to the broadcast team seemed like a natural progression in Kontos’ career as he has often been one of the more open and engaging players during the Giants championship run.

Now, the fan-favorite returns to the city where he made a name for himself. The veteran hurler finishes off a nice eight-career that netted him $7.1 million in career earnings while receiving two championship rings.