Farewell to Jason Kipnis, a Cleveland fan favorite

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GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Jason Kipnis walked to the plate at Progressive Field with the saxophone melody from “Thief” by Ookay echoing through the building. Nothing was different … except he had a different city name across his chest.

This was supposed to be his goodbye. Kipnis’ nine-year career with Cleveland was abruptly cut short in 2019 when he broke his hamate bone in September and walked off the field without an ovation from fans for his time spent in Northeast Ohio.

Kipnis was with the Chicago Cubs and a return to Progressive Field should’ve meant that he could receive those cheers he would’ve otherwise had the year before.

Instead, the COVID-19 pandemic was surging through the country, causing baseball to be played in empty ballparks, unless you count the cardboard cutout spectators in the stands.

Here he was again, hoping to have a special moment with fans who affectionately knew him as “Dirtbag” -- a nickname given to him because his hustle often led to countless stains on his uniform -- and yet he was left empty-handed.

In typical Kipnis fashion, he embraced the moment, made a joke of it and tipped his helmet to the empty seats. He was always the first to make a joke about himself and never sugarcoated anything.

Now, he’s trying for one last farewell.

In a tweet on Monday, Kipnis officially announced his retirement from his decade-long Major League career. The first nine of those seasons came in Cleveland and included two All-Star selections, one Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award, 123 homers and 1,121 games.

He went on to play for his hometown Cubs in 2020 before he was limited to the Minor Leagues in ’21.

“To Cleveland, thank you for being you,” Kipnis wrote. “I was lucky to be drafted by you. I always wanted my play to echo the city’s attitude every time I took the field. There were ups and downs of my career, sure, but one thing I never wanted you to question was how hard I played for the name on the front. I tried to make you proud every game.

“You guys gave me the chance to live out my dream and I’ll never forget some of the amazing moments we shared together!”

As part of his goodbye, let’s reflect on a few of those moments:

2016 World Series, Game 7: What could’ve been
Kipnis had plenty of special moments in his Cleveland career, but it’s easy for everyone to immediately think of that brief moment when he appeared to be the Game 7 hero.

It was the bottom of the ninth, the game was tied and Kipnis sent a shot off Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman down the right-field line -- contact that gave the false hope that Kipnis just hit a walk-off homer to end Cleveland’s World Series drought.

Instead, it was simply a foul ball into the stands.

Sept. 19, 2018: Walk-off grand slam
Is there a more dramatic way to celebrate your 1,000th career hit?

It was the scene that every little kid pictures in the backyard: Bottom of the ninth, trailing by one, full count and the bases loaded. Kipnis launched his 1,000th hit deep into the right-field seats, sending Progressive Field into a frenzy and lifting Cleveland over the White Sox.

2016 World Series, Game 7: A Lofton impression
We all remember the jaw-dropping sprint that speedy Kenny Lofton made from second base on a passed ball in Game 6 of the 1995 American League Championship Series.

More than two decades later, Kipnis followed in Lofton’s footsteps when a pitch in the dirt bounced off Cubs catcher David Ross and rolled over toward the first-base dugout.

Kipnis raced from second base and turned toward home without hesitation, diving into the plate safely to cut Chicago’s lead to two runs in the fifth inning.

July 25, 2011: Making the most of hit No. 1
Something about milestone hits caused Kipnis to bring the dramatics.

His first career hit came in the bottom of the ninth of a tie game against the Angels with two outs and the bases loaded. He sent a single through the right side of the infield that scored Carlos Santana for the game-winning run.

His teammates rushed out of the dugout to pile on him at first base to celebrate the moment.