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Two of the most decorated players in the 13-year history of the St. Louis River Walkers -- outfielder Andrew Benintendi and relief pitcher Jake Brentz -- announced their retirements in a joint press conference at Busch Stadium (1997).
Benintendi, 36, had been with the Walkers since the team's inception in 2018 and for many of those years had ranked among the best players in the Midwest Baseball League.
Primarily a left-fielder, Benintendi owned a career-batting average of .290 with 292 home runs and 1,026 RBIs.
His best season came in 2019 when he earned National League Most Valuable Player honors during a campaign where he batted .340 with 41 homers and 123 RBIs.
In all, he was part of four World Series teams, two of which 2018 and 2025 which won championships, made six All-Star teams, four Silver Sluggers, two Gold Gloves and was World Series MVP in 2018.
Benintendi had a hard time getting on the field in 2030, and struggled when he did batting just .222 with two RBIs.
The Walkers released Benintendi on June 3, but no team opted to pick him up.
* Brentz came to the River Walkers in 2023 after four seasons in Fort Wayne.
He served as the team's primary closer in 2027 and 2028, during which he put up a combined 55 saves.
The 36-year-old went 41-30 with 120 saves and a 2.02 ERA in his eight seasons in St. Louis.
He was a three-time relief pitcher of the year, a five-time All-Star, a member of St. Louis 2025 championship team and the closer for the team's of 2027 and 2028 which won the National League.
For the past two seasons, Brentz has served as set-up man for current St. Louis closer Ernesto Barbosa.
He was having a good 2030 season -- going 4-3 with seven saves and a 1.91 ERA in five games -- until suffering a torn ulnar collateral ligament on Sept. 17.
Brentz never pitched again, and opted to retire after the season.