Former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow announced on Wednesday that he is retiring from his second career as a professional baseball player after spending five years with the New York Mets system.

 Leaving baseball will give him more time to focus on his various charity efforts as he hinted in his tweet below.

Tebow Retires From Second Career

Entertainment Tonight reported that Tebow, 33, signed with the Mets in 2016, and across three minor-league seasons, he would go on to bat .223/.299/.338 with 18 home runs, 48 doubles, and five stolen bases in 287 games.

Mets President Sandy Alderson praised Tebow in a statement released by the team.

“It has been a pleasure to have Tim in our organization as he’s been a consummate professional during his four years with the Mets,” he said. “By reaching the Triple-A level in 2019, he far exceeded expectations when he first entered the system in 2016 and he should be very proud of his accomplishments.”

Related: Tim Tebow Pranks Luke Bryan’s Wife With Smashed Heisman Trophy

Tebow Grateful For Baseball Career

Tebow was also full of gratitude for his hugely successful baseball career.

“I want to thank the Mets, Mr. Alderson, the fans and all my teammates for the chance to be a part of such a great organization,” Tebow said.

“I loved every minute of the journey, but at this time I feel called in other directions,” he added. “I never want to be partially in on anything. I always want to be 100 percent in on whatever I choose. Thank you again for everyone’s support of this awesome journey in baseball, I’ll always cherish my time as a Met. #LGM.”

Before becoming a baseball player, Tebow was a football star who won the Heisman Trophy as quarterback for the University of Florida.

He went on to play in the NFL, making 16 starts in three seasons and helping the Denver Broncos reach the playoffs in 2011.

Related: Christian Sports Hero Tim Tebow Gives Homeless Person Shoes Off His Own Feet

Tebow’s Charity Work

Retiring from baseball will give the athlete time to focus all of his energy on the Tim Tebow Foundation, which aims “to bring Faith, Hope and Love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need.” 

Just last week, Tebow’s foundation hosted its annual Night To Shine which sponsors proms for special needs kids ages 14 to 22.

The event happens globally every year at hundreds of locations, bringing joy to countless young people. 

“In a year where so much was canceled, and yes we had to adapt a lot to make it safe, we couldn’t cancel night to shine, so that’s why we adapted it to shine through to still keep everyone safe but still value every single person, still crown them king or queen,” Tebow told KVOA.

Tim Tebow has long been one of the few unapologetically Christian athletes out there.

Now, he’ll be able to focus more of his time on his true calling. We’ll all be waiting to see if any big announcements come out of the Tebow house in the coming days or weeks.

Tim shares his joy and love from the bottom of his heart in this beautiful thank you post and video:

You can cancel a lot of things – 2020 was proof of that. But you can’t cancel God’s love, His heart for humanity, or the hope we have in Jesus. I believe that this hope and His love was spread all over the world this past week. And I believe thousands of lives were changed through this year’s Night to Shine.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping make my favorite night of the year special, meaningful, and purpose-filled. Thank you to the hundreds of host churches, thousands of volunteers, and to American Residential Services LLC our Global Partner, whose support helps make it possible.

While today we celebrate the lives impacted last week, we also look forward to 2022, knowing that we still have so many more people to reach – children of God, made in His image, and worthy of love.

Posted by Tim Tebow on Monday, February 15, 2021

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