Chris Martin has officially retired

Texas Rangers pitcher Chris Martin officially announced his retirement today.

Martin, who turned 40 this past June, had a long and unusual career. Drafted in the 18th round of the 2004 draft out of Arlington High School by the Detroit Tigers, he passed on signing and enrolled at McLennan Community College. The following year, he was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 21st round as a draft-and-follow, but ended up needing surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder and thus didn’t sign then, either.

Martin signed with the Fort Worth Cats for 2007, but ongoing shoulder issues sidelined him again, and he never pitched for them. He spent the next three years working a variety of jobs…