Ryan Theriot Retires

A news item that appears to be creating a bit of buzz on Twitter this morning:

Ryan Theriot is officially retired. Last played in majors in 2012 after 8 MLB seasons. Leaves with .281 batting average in 899 games.

— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) January 6, 2014

Here's the only question I have regarding Theriot's career: Can a player who didn't play at all in 2013 actually "retire"? Or is this something that was pretty much a foregone conclusion a year ago, when all 30 teams passed on even giving him a NRI to spring training?

Theriot has two World Series rings, but the summation of his baseball time, I think, can be found in these famous lines from Shakespeare's Macbeth:

it is a tale 
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

I'm sure you have more, but I don't. Feel free to weigh in on The Riot in the comments.