http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?sl...ov=ap&type=lgns

Closing in on retirement, Salmon looks back at 15 years

September 28, 2006

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- Tim Salmon will sit in front of his locker at
the farthest corner of the Angels' clubhouse on Sunday, confident that
his decision to retire from baseball was one he made on his own terms.

"This is the end of the road," a stoic Salmon said during a news
conference before Thursday night's game against Oakland. "I want to
thank the organization for giving me an opportunity this spring to come
out and see if I still had it. I was able to recapture some of the joy
of playing the game again at a relatively healthy level.

"I wanted to make sure that when I left this game, I still had that
appreciation and joy for playing the greatest game in the world."

Salmon's numbers for his 15-year career are among the best of any
player who ever wore an Angels uniform. He is first on the franchise
list in home runs, walks, runs scored and sacrifice flies; second in
RBIs, hits, games played, at-bats, doubles and total bases.

Had it not been for operations on his left knee and left shoulder that
forced him to miss the entire 2005 season, he'd still be leading Garret
Anderson in virtually every major offensive department on the
franchise's career list.

"The way the last couple of years went with the injuries, that just
wasn't the way I wanted to remember the game and walk away from it --
with more frustration than joy," Salmon said. "I wanted to make sure I
could experience that again one more time. This year has really been
special. I guess the only better way you could have scripted it would
be to be doing this after the last day of the World Series. But we'll
always have 2002 and the world championship to remember."

That may have been Salmon's brightest moment for the Angels. In Game 2
against San Francisco in 2002, Salmon hit two home runs to lead the
Angels to an 11-10 victory, tying the series at a game apiece.

He batted .286 with 22 homers and 88 RBIs that season and was voted
comeback player of the year by his peers -- after a foot injury limited
him to 98 games and a .227 average in 2001.

In 2005, Salmon became the first player in club history with 30 homers,
100 RBIs and a .300 average in the same season. He entered Thursday
needing one more homer for 300.

Salmon has hit more home runs than any active player who has never made
it to an All-Star game. The all-time record in that department is 301,
by Rogers Hornsby.

"He's played his whole career here, and that says it all," Anderson
said. "It's a rarity nowadays, and you don't see that happening too
much anymore. To come up through the system and ultimately win a World
Series, then to coming back from the serious injury he had and be able
to finish his career to an extend where he was still competing at a
high level, I think that sums up a very good career. He's played
extremely well for us and showed up big at the right times."

Salmon, who made his big league debut on Aug. 21, 1992, at Yankee
Stadium in the cleanup spot, is also the only player in franchise
history to be rookie of the year.

"It's sad, but it's part of the game," Darin Erstad, a teammate for 11
years, said of Salmon's retirement. "Things like that are inevitable.
That train keeps moving, I guess, and when it's your time to jump off,
the train's going to keep on going. He's had a great run, and I
couldn't be any happier for him."



Updated on Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 7:56 pm EDT

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A'S NOTEBOOK
Thomas sorry to see Angels' Salmon retire
- Susan Slusser
Friday, September 29, 2006


(09-29) 04:00 PDT Anaheim -- Angels designated hitter Tim Salmon
officially announced his retirement on Thursday and the A's DH, Frank
Thomas, is sorry to see him go.

"He's younger than me, for one thing,'' Thomas said with a laugh. "I
think injuries were a major consideration, because he probably had a
few more years left in him. But he wanted to come back this year, and
he did.''

Thomas knows the feeling. He, too, came into the season as something of
an unknown after missing a year and a half with injuries.

Salmon managed to spend his entire career with one team, something
Thomas had planned to do with the White Sox.

"He's had a great career,'' Thomas said. "He was a dominant player for
many years, and he battled through a lot. He's a great guy and he's a
big-time gamer.''

Manager Ken Macha was with the Angels organization when Salmon was
coming up, and he, too, had many nice things to say about the A's
longtime opponent.

"I respect him immensely because of the way he respects the game,''
Macha said. "No nonsense, no showboating, he just grinds it out all the
time.''

Salmon entered the game in the first as a pinch runner and went 0-for-1
with two walks.