Richard Bleier, a left-handed reliever who spent four seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, announced his retirement via Instagram on Tuesday.
Among those congratulating him on his retirement in the comments was former Orioles teammate Adam Jones.
Bleier’s last Major League appearance came in 2023 with the Boston Red Sox, and he also spent part of last season with the Washington Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate.
In addition to his MLB career, Bleier represented Team Israel twice in the World Baseball Classic, most recently in 2023.
He joined the Orioles just before spring training in 2017 after being traded by the New York Yankees for cash considerations. By that time, he had already played professionally for nearly a decade, having been drafted in the sixth round of the 2008 MLB draft by the Texas Rangers.
Richard Bleier played college baseball at Florida Gulf Coast University, the same school that produced reigning National League Cy Young winner Chris Sale.
He began his 2017 season in Triple-A but was called up to the Baltimore Orioles, where he became an effective reliever. In 57 games that season, he posted a 1.99 ERA, with 26 strikeouts and 13 walks in 63.1 innings. He earned a reputation for inducing ground balls and getting hitters to swing and miss.
Bleier continued his strong performance in 2018 before a season-ending lat tear. In 31 games, he maintained a 1.99 ERA, striking out 15 and walking four in 32.2 innings.
In 2019, he returned but struggled, with his ERA rising to 5.37 in 53 games. He struck out 30 and walked eight in 55.1 innings, giving up 33 earned runs.
He began the 2020 season with the Orioles but pitched in just two games before being traded to the Miami Marlins. There, he played a key role in the Marlins’ playoff push, posting a 2.63 ERA in 19 appearances, with seven strikeouts and four walks in 13.2 innings.
Bleier stayed with the Marlins for the next two seasons, earning a career-high 68 appearances in 2021. He posted a 2.95 ERA and struck out a career-high 44 batters. In 2022, he had a 3.55 ERA in 55 games, with 32 strikeouts and 20 walks.
In 2023, he joined the Boston Red Sox after being traded from Miami, but injuries limited him to just 27 games, and he finished with a 5.27 ERA. The Red Sox released him after he cleared waivers.
For his career, Bleier finished with a 15-6 record and a 3.27 ERA, striking out 187 batters and walking 54.
