Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman recorded his 2,500th hit Tuesday, and spoke about what it meant to him.
Freeman has been playing in MLB since 2010, and he became the only active player to have reached that milestone in Tuesday’s win.
“Ten years ago, I probably thought about it, but as you get older, you come to appreciate moments like this,” Freeman said. “I think when you’re going over the course of a 162-game season, that you don’t really have much time to reflect on milestones or records. Something like 2,500 hits is really special, and it means a lot to me. It’s significant.”
The Dodgers also held a toast for Freeman to acknowledge his achievement in the clubhouse after the game, but made sure to emphasize this wasn’t a place for him to stop.
“Everybody said we’d better get 500 more,” Freeman said. “We’ll start getting to work on it tomorrow. Hopefully, I can get there, but I only have one more year left on my contract, so you never know, and I also have four kids now. We’ll see what happens.”
Freeman stated he wanted to play four more years in MLB ahead of the season, but stated the birth of his daughter earlier in the season may have changed his retirement plans.
“Obviously, getting 3,000 hits would be very, very cool,” Freeman said. “But ever since baby girl came into this world about a month ago, my perspective has changed a little bit on individual stats and how long I would want to play.”
How Has Freddie Freeman Performed This Season?
Freeman has been one of the Dodgers’ best performers so far this season, posting numbers consistent with the last two seasons. He has 10 homers through 64 games so far, and has driven in 36 runs.
He’s slashing .284/.366/.481 for a .847 OPS, which ranks fourth among qualified hitters on the Dodgers behind Shohei Ohtani, Max Muncy and Andy Pages.
The Dodgers will hope Freeman can continue performing up to this standard, as they’re currently chasing the first three-peat in franchise history.
Freeman’s next opportunity to work towards 3,000 hits comes against the Pirates on Wednesday, when the Dodgers face off against Jared Jones at 3:40 p.m. PT.
Do you think Freddie Freeman will retire before he hits 3,000 hits?
