Los Angeles Angels' Kevin Pillar Celebrates Reaching 10 Years of MLB Service Time

It's been a long time since Kevin Pillar made his big league debut with the Toronto Blue Jays back in 2013.

He has since bounced around to nine different teams, getting traded twice along the way. He has had to skate by on non-guaranteed minor league contracts as he's reached his 30s. He's won playoff series and spent time with last-place bottom-feeders.

After all that, Pillar has finally reached 10 years of MLB service time.

Pillar, now with the Los Angeles Angels, celebrated the achievement Saturday. His locker was decorated with streamers and balloons, and the 35-year-old wore a suit to the ballpark to commemorate the occasion.

"I'm incredibly proud of this accomplishment," Pillar wrote in a statement. "It hasn't come easy but one thing that (stayed) throughout was the (belief) in myself and (that) anything is achievable through hard work. There (have been) many ups and downs, highlights and days quite frankly I felt completely lost and unsure if I could continue to play. But throughout it all my love for this game and my love to compete has never wavered."

MLB players who reach 10 years of service time – spending a minimum of 172 days on the active roster or injured list each calendar year – become eligible for a fully-vested pension. Earning tenure isn't particularly common, either, as fewer than 10% of players make it more than a decade in the big leagues.

Pillar is enjoying quite a resurgence at the plate in his age-35 season, batting .276 with an .830 OPS and 0.8 WAR. Ever since he was designated for assignment by the Chicago White Sox and found his way to Anaheim in April, Pillar is batting .299 with an .867 OPS.

For his career, Pillar has racked up 1,021 hits, 113 home runs, 453 RBI, 103 stolen bases and a 17.0 WAR while batting .258 with a .707 OPS. He is one of 18 players to reach 1,000 hits, 100 home runs, 100 stolen bases and 450 RBI since the start of the 2013 season.

Pillar played for the Blue Jays from 2013 to 2019, then spent time with the San Francisco Giants, Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, White Sox and Angels over the past six seasons.

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