Carlton Gives Up Comeback Effort

Steve Carlton, a four-time Cy Young Award winner who is second on baseball’s all-time strikeout list, today announced he is finished as a player after repeated comeback attempts.

The 44-year-old left-hander, who was released a year ago by Minnesota after allowing 18 earned runs in 10 innings, had surgery for removal of eight chips from his left shoulder last September.

“My arm hasn’t rehabilitated the way I had hoped,” Carlton said in a statement issued by the Philadelphia Phillies, with whom he recorded 241 of his 329 career wins. “I’m still experiencing some pain and I’ve decided I no longer would be active as a player.”