Twins' Alex Kirilloff announces retirement at age 26, citing injury 'number'

Alex Kirilloff has announced his retirement after four seasons with the Minnesota Twins.

The 26-year-old Kirilloff batted .248 with 27 home runs and 116 RBI in 249 games with the Twins.

Injuries had a major impact on the career of the No. 15 overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft. Kirilloff missed the entire 2017 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, and when he reached the majors, he never played more than 88 games in one season, a reason he cited in his retirement announcement.

Kirilloff, a highly touted prospect from Pennsylvania, was on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 Prospects list in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2021. He made his MLB debut in 2021 with eight home runs and a .722 OPS in 59 games with the Twins, but his rookie season ended prematurely when he required surgery to repair torn ligaments in his right wrist.

The same wrist would cause his second MLB season to be cut short after 45 games due to further surgery.

Kirilloff's best season would come in 2023, when he played 88 games and posted a .288 batting average with 11 home runs and 41 RBI. A shoulder injury left him out of action for a month and later that year he had to have bursa surgery on the same shoulder.

Kirilloff started the 2024 season with the Twins but was placed on the injured list in June because of a back problem. He was scheduled to return in August, but a rehab assignment was cut short after one game and he didn't play the rest of the season.