Rangers postseason hero announces retirement after 16 professional seasons

The Rangers may have lost the 2015 ALDS to the Toronto Blue Jays in five games, but that doesn't take away from infielder Hasner Alberto's heroics in Game 2 of the series.

Just a rookie at the time, Alberto was only playing in the game because Hall-of-Famer Adrian Beltre strained his back in Game 1 of the series. Alberto made a costly error in the second inning of Game 2 that led to two runs for the Blue Jays, but he redeemed himself by delivering a game-winning single in the top of the 14th inning. Texas won 6-4 and took a 2-0 series lead.

Rangers postseason hero Hanser Alberto announces retirement after 16 professional seasons

Alberto, 33, announced his retirement via Instagram on Wednesday, ending his 16-year professional baseball career. He spent parts of eight seasons in the big leagues. Along with the Rangers, he played for the Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago White Sox.

The Rangers signed Alberto, a native of the Dominican Republic, to a minor league deal in 2009. He played in 41 regular-season games during his rookie campaign (2015), posting 0.3 bWAR and a .222/.238/.263 (35 OPS+) slash line with 12 runs and four RBI. During the 2015 ALDS, he played in three games and went 2-for-10 with one double and two RBI.

Alberto struggled with a -20 OPS+ in 35 games with the Rangers in 2016. After becoming a free agent following the 2017 season, he signed a minor league deal with the Rangers and returned to the majors in 2018, playing in just 13 games for Texas.

The New York Yankees claimed Alberto off waivers in the 2018-19 offseason. Then, in the same offseason, the Orioles claimed the infielder off waivers from the Yankees, and the San Francisco Giants claimed him off waivers from the Orioles. The Orioles reclaimed him from the Giants before the season began.

Alberto's 2019 season was far and away his best in the majors. He posted 3.4 bWAR and hit .305/.329/.422 (98 OPS+) with 12 homers, 21 doubles and 51 RBI in 550 plate appearances across 139 games.

Alberto posted 0.7 bWAR and an 88 OPS+ with the Orioles during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. He then joined the Royals on a minor league contract during the 2020-21 offseason. He played in 103 games with the Royals in 2021, then finished his MLB career by playing in 73 games with the Dodgers in 2022 and 30 games with the White Sox in 2023. He played winter ball in 2024 and played in the Mexican League in 2025.

Congrats on a successful baseball career, Alberto!