Former Shawnee star Doolittle Calls It A Career
Sean Doolittle recently announced his retirement. Doolittle not only enjoyed a great career, but was also known for his charitable efforts.
The 2004 graduate of Shawnee wrote on Instagram, “After 11 incredible seasons of playing the sport I love, I can say with gratitude and a full heart, that I am retiring from baseball.”
Doolittle led Shawnee to the 2003 Group 3 state title as a junior.
During Shawnee’s 5-3 state championship win over Kearny in 10 innings, Doolittle pitched a complete game, striking out 23 in one of the great performances in South Jersey baseball history.
Doolittle was drafted in the 39th round by the Atlanta Braves following his senior year at Shawnee in 2004.
He attended the University of Virginia, where he was both a pitcher and a first baseman. In 2007 he was a supplemental first round pick, chosen 41st overall by the Oakland A’s.
The idea was for him to be a first baseman.
In 2008, his first full minor league season with Oakland, Doolittle hit .286 with 22 home runs and 91 RBI while playing in Single-A and Double-A.
He then would suffer knee and then elbow injuries and returned to pitching in 2011.
He made his Major League debut with the A’s in 2012.
A lefthander, Doolittle was a two-time All-Star–once with the A’s in 2014 and again with the Washington Nationals in 2018.
In 2014 he had a 2.73 ERA and posted 22 saves. During the 2018 season he had a 1.60 ERA and 25 saves.
He was a key member of the Nationals’ 2019 World Series championship team, recording a career-high 29 saves.
Doolittle pitched in three games during the 2019 World Series against Houston. He recorded one save and had a 0.00 ERA in three innings of work.
His last full season was 2021 when Doolittle appeared in 56 games, 45 for the Nationals and then 11 after being traded to the Seattle Mariners.
He returned to Washington in 2022 but was limited to just six games due to an elbow injury that required surgery. In that season he had a 0.00 ERA.
For his career, Doolittle posted a 3.20 ERA and recorded 112 saves and 522 strikeouts in 450? career innings.
Doolittle, 37, now has to enter the second phase of his career.
He made the difficult transition from minor league hitter to eventual two-time All-Star pitcher.
It was an outstanding career from one of the all-time greats to take the mound in South Jersey.
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Author: Marc Narducci
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