Jake Rogers’ season keeps careening from one stop to the next, and now he’s been pushed out of Boston, too.
On Tuesday, the Red Sox designated Rogers for assignment to clear space for Adley Rutschman, who is coming off the IL. It’s the latest move in a stretch that has already taken Rogers through three organizations in just a few weeks.
Rogers and Rutschman arrived in Boston together from the Orioles at the trade deadline, with the Red Sox sending back a large package that included Carlos Narváez and top 100 prospect Anthony Eyanson. Before that, Rogers had spent just four days in Baltimore after being DFA’ed and then traded by the Tigers for Orioles minor league pitcher Zane Barnhart.
Boston’s decision is an odd one on the surface, especially with Connor Wong still holding a minor league option and Rutschman carrying a lengthy injury history. But the move is made, and Rogers now figures to draw interest elsewhere. Catching depth is always useful, and plenty of teams would take it if it showed up on their doorstep.
Still, the journey has been rough to watch for Tigers fans.
Rogers did at least make a quick impression in Boston. In three games with the Red Sox, he became something of a folk hero by delivering a game-tying sacrifice fly in his second plate appearance with the club. The next day, he went 2-for-3 with two doubles, then followed that up by going 1-for-3 in his next game.
For anyone hoping Detroit might bring him back, that door is effectively closed. Even if the Tigers had room on the 40-man roster, a claim would require them to put Rogers on the active roster because he was DFA’ed by Boston and does not have minor league options. Detroit also doesn’t have a reason to carry three catchers, especially with Eduardo Valencia staying hot at the plate since taking over the backup job.
This kind of shuffle isn’t exactly rare for a veteran player who sits in that in-between space: experienced, but not quite enough to stick. That’s the lane Rogers is in, and teams can move on from players like that without much hesitation.
Even so, it’s not the ending Tigers fans wanted for a former fan favorite and clubhouse leader. Detroit made the right call when it moved on, but the hope now is simple: that Rogers lands somewhere with a real plan to keep him.
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