Todd Helton to retire at the end of the season

Aug 30, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton (17) rounds the bases after his home run in the seventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Coors Field. The Rockies defeated the Reds 9-6. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /

After playing in the MLB with only one team, the Colorodo Rockies, Todd Helton is calling it a career at the end of the season. This has been on his mind for a time.

“I didn’t want to say I was going to return and then come back in,” Helton said before Sunday’s game against Arizona. “I talked to my wife and thought about my body and mentally how I felt going out there for every game. I’m 40. It’s time to go. It’s a young man’s game.”

I like the last line of that quote. When you play for a team for 17 years, you’re bound to set some records for that team, and that’s what Helton has done. Here’s a little more Helton:

“I wanted to go into the last homestand knowing it was the last,” Helton said. “It was brought up to me last week that I couldn’t look at it from my perspective. I had to look at it from the fans’ standpoint. I couldn’t be selfish about it.”

And finally, his final games:

His final game at Coors Field is slated for Sept. 25 against Boston, which swept the Rockies in the 2007 World Series. The final game of his career figures to be Sept. 29 at the Los Angeles Dodgers.

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