Having your worst start ever while pitching in the New York Mets’ minor-league system can totally defeat a player. How do we know this? Because veteran Aaron Laffey just proved it.

Laffey had a disastrous start Wednesday for the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate. Over three innings, Laffey allowed 14 total runs — 12 were earned. That was too many runs for Laffey. Shortly after the start, the 33-year-old decided to hang up his cleats. He retired after that performance, according to the New York Post.

Who is Aaron Laffey?

You might remember Laffey from his time as a starter with the Cleveland Indians. From 2007 to 2010, Laffey posted a 4.41 ERA over 79 games with the club. He was mostly utilized as a starter, but moved into a bullpen role during his final years with the team.

His 4.41 ERA may seem high, but it was about league-average at the time. He wasn’t a standout player, but he was useful for a few years.

Then what happened?

After pitching around the league for a few seasons, Laffey found himself in the minors trying to make it back to the big leagues. He spent some time in the independent leagues the past two seasons. His final major-league appearance came with the Colorago Rockies in 2015. He posted a 4.44 career ERA over eight seasons in the majors.

Career is over

Laffey made two other appearances with Las Vegas in 2018. Neither went well. In 13 innings with the team, Laffey has an 18.00 ERA.

While his performance lately hasn’t been good, Laffey did have a run of effectiveness early in his career. He was a league-average pitcher at the highest level for a couple seasons. That’s not an easy thing to accomplish.

– – – – – – –

Chris Cwik is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik

More from Yahoo Sports:
• Charles Robinson: Kap’s legal team looks to turn tables on Trump
• This might be the craziest blooper in MLB history
• Dan Wetzel: Cavs have totally wasted the LeBron era
• Chris Mannix: Are the Warriors taking the fun out of the NBA?