Carr Decides to Hang Up His Baseball Retirement

Nine months after abandoning a promising professional baseball career at 19, former Westlake High pitcher Tim Carr has decided to come out of retirement.

Carr said Thursday he has informed the New York Mets he is ready to return and will report for his minor-league assignment.

Carr was a 35th-round draft pick of the Mets in 1996. He was throwing his fastball at 90 mph and was considered among the Mets’ most promising pitching prospects when he unexpectedly left extended spring training in May of last year and announced his retirement from baseball.

“I just feel I played so much baseball and got burned out,” he said. “Since I’ve been gone, I’ve missed it and want to do it again.”

Carr had been working and taking classes at Moorpark College.

Two months after leaving baseball, he said, “I haven’t missed it one bit.” But as the months passed, Carr’s attitude changed.

“In the last month or so, I just have this love for baseball,” he said. “I’m hoping I’ll be just like a kid again.”

Carr had a 3.86 earned-run average, six saves and 34 strikeouts in 39 2/3 innings for the Mets’ rookie team in the Florida Gulf Coast League in 1996. Last year, the right-hander threw 16 innings without giving up an earned run in extended spring training before he retired.