Belmont Legend Matt Beaty Announces Retirement from Playing Professional Baseball

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Former Belmont University baseball All-American Matt Beaty ('15) has announced his retirement from playing professionally.
Beaty, who spent five seasons in Major League Baseball including part of the 2020 World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, helped raise the bar for what it means to be a Belmont student-athlete.

His dedication and accomplishments served as a prelude to current Belmont professional standouts such as Maya Johnson and Ben Sheppard.
At Belmont, Beaty started his collegiate career by earning a spot on the All-Atlantic Sun Freshman Team while helping the Bruins to its second NCAA Regional Appearance in program history in 2012.

Holding a .352 batting average as a junior in 2014, Beaty capped off his collegiate career with All-OVC First Team honors as a senior in 2015.  
His .382 batting average with 12 home runs and 76 RBIs in 2015 also earned him a spot on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Louisville Slugger All-America teams, collecting American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-South Region honors in the process.

Beaty currently holds top 10 spots in hits, doubles, triples, home runs, at-bats, RBI, on-base percentage, and walks in the Belmont Baseball career record book. 

After being selected by the Dodgers in the 12th round of the 2015 MLB Draft, Beaty became an MiLB.com Organization All-Star and earned the Texas League Player of the Year as a member of the Tulsa Drillers.  

Following his move to the Triple-A level with the Oklahoma City Dodgers, Beaty became the first Belmont player to play in a Major League Baseball game since Dwight Bernard in 1978 when he made his Major League debut on April 30, 2019.

Beaty finished his rookie season with a .265 batting average, adding nine home runs and 46 RBIs to help the Dodgers to the National League West Division Title.  

Beaty made the 25-man postseason roster in 2019, seeing action in all but one game in the National League Division Series, hitting .375 against the eventual World Series champion Washington Nationals.

He and the Dodgers claimed the ultimate prize the following year, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in six games to win the 2020 World Series.

Beaty played three seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, before completing his time in the big leagues with the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, and Kansas City Royals.

The Dresden, Tennessee native played in 305 Major League Baseball games. He was originally selected out of high school by the Royals in 2011.
Beaty is currently assisting the Royals' rookie ball team in Surprise, Arizona.

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