The Year Of The Card--Jose Rosado, 1999

A promising young lefthanded pitcher. No way that can go wrong. Right?

The Royals had plenty of problems during the Lost Years of 1995-2012, but probably the biggest one was an almost complete inability to develop pitching. Pretty much from the arrival in the majors of Kevin Appier and Tom Gordon until…I don’t know, the emergence of Yordano Ventura and Danny Duffy, seemingly any young hurler who came up through the system was ineffective or almost immediately derailed by injuries. Zack Greinke is the notable exception here, and even he took a bit to get established.

One player who might have been another exception was a slight lefthander who burst on the scene, made two All-Star teams, and then suffered a career-ending injury at just 25 years of age. This is the story of Jose Rosado.

Jose Antonio Rosado was born on November 9, 1974, in Newark, New Jersey. His parents, Tony and Maria, had moved from their native Puerto Rico to New Jersey at different times in their childhoods, and eventually met and married. Jose was the middle child, with both an older and a younger sister. When Jose was three, his family moved back to Puerto Rico for his father’s job. Rosado graduated from Jose S. Alegria High School in Dorado (which was also the hometown of former Royal Onix Concepcion), then headed to Galveston (Texas) Junior College, where he caught the attention of scouts. The Royals selected him in the 12th round of the 1994 amateur draft.

Rosado wasted little time advancing through the minors. After a 6-2 mark and 1.25 ERA in Rookie League play in 1994, he went 10-7 with a 3.13 ERA for Class A Wilmington in 1995. In 1996, after 13 scoreless innings at Class AA Wichita, he was promoted to Class AAA Omaha. He was 6-2 with a 3.05 ERA for Omaha when he was called up for a spot start on June 12 against California. He acquitted himself well; after allowing two runs in the first, he turned in five scoreless innings. Although he was sent back to Omaha after the game, he was back for good in July, replacing an injured Mark Gubicza in the rotation. Rosado would later credit his trips back to Puerto Rico for winter ball with helping him develop. He played for Mayaguez in both the 1994-95 and 1995-96 seasons, with Royals bullpen coach Guy Hansen serving as pitching coach for the team in both campaigns.

“Playing in Puerto Rico and getting experience over there has really helped me a lot, a lot, a lot.”--Rosado, quoted by La Velle E. Neal III, The Kansas City Star, September 21, 1996

“Down there you can’t get away with lousy pitches to (Edgar) Martinez or (Roberto) Alomar or (Carlos) Baerga. You find out what the heck your stuff can do against good hitters. And people say, ‘Well, it's just winter ball.’ But these guys are focused. They're not goofing off because it's winter ball. This may be a wild statement. But if he didn't pitch down there, he'd probably just be ready for Double A ball right now.”--Hansen, quoted by Dick Kaegel, The Kansas City Star, August 11, 1996

In a nice twist for the New Jersey native, Rosado earned his first major-league win in Yankee Stadium on July 25, holding the Yankees to six hits in eight innings in a 7-0 victory. His parents had flown up from Puerto Rico, and several friends and other family were in the stands for the win. The other notable moment of Rosado’s rookie year came on September 16, when Paul Molitor tripled off him for career hit 3,000. Rosado ended the season with a 8-6 record and 3.21 ERA in 16 starts, solid numbers for a rookie on a 75-86 team. He finished fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting.

With Appier still in the fold, Rosado slotted in as the second starter for the Royals in 1997. A 7-4 record and 3.29 ERA at the end of June earned him an All-Star selection; he was the only Royal named to the roster. Rosado even picked up the win in the All-Star Game, although probably not like he would have wanted. Entering the game in relief to begin the seventh inning, he promptly surrendered a game-tying home run to Atlanta’s Javy Lopez. He also allowed a single and walked a batter, but struck out the Cardinals’ Royce Clayton to escape the jam. The AL scored two runs in the bottom of the inning and held on for a 3-1 win.

Rosado finished 1997 with a 9-12 mark and 4.69 ERA. Those are not impressive numbers on the surface, but remember, this was the steroid era. And he was pitching for a 67-94 team at age 22. A 100 ERA+ shows that he was league average, although a 1.1 bWAR number seems a little subpar; perhaps Rosado’s lack of strikeouts (129 in 203 ⅓ innings) hurts him. Fangraphs credits him with 2.5 WAR for the season, which seems a little more reasonable to me. Regardless, it was a solid season, despite a bit of a second-half slump.

That slump was due to a knee injury Rosado had sustained as a high school player. Although it hadn’t bothered him much in the minors or his 1996 season, it apparently flared up midway through 1997.

“I don't want people to think I was using the knee as an excuse for the second half of the season, but it wasn't the same. It was weak. My strike zone was different, and I had trouble getting ahead of the hitters.”--Rosado, quoted by Dick Kaegel, The Kansas City Star, February 18, 1998

An offseason surgery fixed the problem, but Rosado was still hobbled a bit when spring training started. A poor exhibition season meant that he started the regular season in the bullpen, and it wasn’t until May that he rejoined the rotation. Although manager Tony Muser had talked about making that move, Rosado hadn’t been especially effective as a reliever (a 4.76 ERA in 22 ⅔ innings), and the Royals were considering demoting him to Omaha. But Hipolito Pichardo suffered a thumb injury, and Rosado got a reprieve. 

Rosado went 8-10 the rest of the way, although the Royals had a 13-12 mark in his starts and also scored two runs or fewer in eight of his losses. He ended the year at 8-11 overall, with the same 4.69 ERA he had in 1997. Again, consider the run environment he pitched in, and the fact he was pitching for a 72-89 team. Overall, it was basically a repeat performance from 1997: 1.6 bWAR and 2.2 fWAR.

As the 1999 season began, Rosado was now firmly established in the rotation. By the end of April, he appeared to be the ace. His 1-1 mark was deceiving, but his 1.72 ERA was not. The Royals had scored nine total runs in his first four starts. 

But the offense awakened as the calendar turned to May. Rosado didn’t necessarily need the help, with a 3.38 ERA in six starts, but he only picked up two wins for the month. He lost out on a chance at a victory on May 3, when a Bernie Williams ground ball hit him on the shoulder in the fourth inning of a game where the Royals ultimately beat the Yankees, 9-3. Rosado left the game with a 3-0 lead. But he didn’t miss any time, recovering well enough to beat the Twins five days later. As a team, the Royals, widely expected to finish last in the AL Central, ended May with a 23-26 mark. They were in second place, although already 10 games behind Cleveland.

Rosado’s first real clunker of a start came in his first June outing, as Cincinnati roughed him up for six runs in 4 ⅓ innings. For the first time in 1999, his ERA was above 3.00. It didn’t stay there for long. Three straight solid outings and one decent one had that mark down to 2.83 by the end of June. However, the team, wracked by injuries and an ineffective bullpen, went 9-18 for the month.

Rosado started July with two good starts, although he didn’t get a decision in either one. However, he was selected for the All-Star Game again, serving as Kansas City’s lone representative. He pitched a little better this time around, facing the minimum three batters in the sixth inning of the American League’s 4-1 win. Matt Williams led off with a single, but Rosado struck out Jeff Bagwell and got Mike Lieberthal to ground into a double play.

But when the season resumed, Rosado turned in his worst start of the year, as Milwaukee scored nine runs on 12 hits in less than five innings. He rebounded with two good starts, including his first win in over a month on July 28. The Royals finished the month with a 43-61 mark and also traded free-agent-to-be Appier, making Rosado the team’s top starter.

Unfortunately, August was Rosado’s roughest month in 1999. He went 1-4 with a 4.63 ERA. He did once again miss out on a possible win, this time on August 7, when a rain delay ended his evening after just three innings. He left the game with a 3-1 lead over Minnesota, but the Royals’ bullpen ultimately coughed up the game, their 24th blown save of the year.

Rosado was then stuck with five straight losses, a streak that stretched into September. Of course, the Royals scored 10 runs in those five games. Rosado finally got a win on September 7, pitching KC past the Yankees. After another loss, he was able to end the year on a high note, picking up two wins in his last two starts. For the year, he was 10-14 with a 3.85 ERA. The Royals finished 64-97, in fourth place in the AL Central (just a half-game ahead of the Twins). Rosado’s 10 wins tied with Jeff Suppan for the team lead, and his 4.0 bWAR was the best among the pitchers. Fittingly, he was named the team’s Pitcher of the Year.

With Rosado and Suppan, the Royals seemed to have a solid pair of starters to lead the rotation. The outfield trio of Carlos Beltran, Johnny Damon, and Jermaine Dye looked like future stars. Mike Sweeney had a breakout year in his first more-or-less full season as a first baseman, taking over the cold corner when Jeff King abruptly retired in May. Second baseman Carlos Febles looked like a sparkplug. Although the bullpen needed a lot of help, the future looked bright for a young Royals team.

Eligible for arbitration, Rosado signed a two-year contract with the Royals in December. The deal was worth $5.5 million total.

“I'm happy to get two more years with Kansas City. I'm a pitcher and things can happen, an arm injury or whatever. I just want to make sure my family is OK. I thought they could do a little more, considering it was me. But I said, 'yes.' They didn't put a gun to my head.”--Rosado, quoted by Dick Kaegel, The Kansas City Star, December 17, 1999

No one could have guessed how prescient that quote was, or that Rosado would only have five starts left in his career.

A strained left hamstring cost Rosado a good chunk of spring training. In fact, his availability for Opening Day was in doubt, and Suppan drew the nod for the first game. Rosado did pitch the third game of the season, picking up a win in Toronto. But soon, there was cause for concern. He was rocked in consecutive starts in New York and Minnesota. His first fastball in the Twins game was clocked at 79 mph. Eventually he got into the low 80s, but his velocity was still way down. The Royals had him skip a start, which seemed to help, as his velocity returned in his next start, a win over the Seattle Mariners. But five days later, he was on the disabled list with tendinitis in his shoulder.

“His symptoms are he doesn't have any specific pain but just a dead arm. He couldn't throw on the side yesterday. I mean, he could throw, but he couldn't get it going.”--Royals manager Tony Muser, quoted by Dick Kaegel, The Kansas City Star, May 5, 2000

Despite resting the shoulder, the pain remained. A second MRI found fraying in the rotator cuff and a labrum tear, and Rosado underwent surgery, with the hope he would be ready to go for spring training. He was, but the velocity and command weren’t quite there. He was still working his way back when he had to stop a simulated game after just 14 pitches on March 19. A cortisone shot didn’t help. Eventually, another MRI in mid-May found another tear in the labrum, resulting in another surgery and an end to his 2001 season. An offseason workout in Puerto Rico was encouraging enough that the Royals signed Rosado to a contract worth $3 million for 2002. But by the time Rosado reported to spring training that year, his velocity had gone away again. After some unimpressive spring outings, the Royals placed him on waivers. 

“I know he was working some things out with his pitching, but it just wasn't there. It wasn't a quick decision for us. We talked long and hard about it, and he was just too far behind the others we have in camp. We'd love for him to come back on a minor-league contract. But in terms of risk vs. reward, it was tough for us to justify that (contract) right now.”--Royals general manager Allard Baird, quoted by Jeffrey Flanagan, The Kansas City Star, March 12, 2002

No team claimed him, and Rosado did indeed sign a minor-league deal with Kansas City. But after a few months at extended spring training in Florida, he still hadn’t pitched, and he was finally released in mid-June. His playing career was over. He was 27 years old.

Could that have been avoided? Teams now are way more cautious with young arms. Rosado was allowed to throw almost 700 innings before he turned 25. That was after 300-plus innings in 2 ½ minor league seasons. Plus, he pitched in winter ball pretty much every offseason. For his part, Rosado insisted the workload had nothing to do with it.

“I feel like I'm here to pitch. It makes me proud when people say I've pitched a lot because that means I've pitched well. Does a so-so pitcher throw a lot? No. They take him out. I've always thought the more that you pitch, the more that you learn.”--Rosado, quoted by Bob Dutton, The Kansas City Star, September 21, 2000

But Rosado’s stats tell a different story. For his career, before the All-Star break, he held opposing hitters to a .691 OPS and posted a 3.59 ERA. After the break, those numbers were .757 and 4.96. Clearly, this was a pitcher who was getting worn down every year. Old-school baseball types will still complain about teams coddling pitchers, but cases like Rosado’s show that it is probably a much better idea to be careful with a promising young arm. 

Rosado was able to stay in baseball, at least. He worked in the Yankees’ minor leagues as a pitching coach from 2011-2020, then spent three seasons as pitching coach for the Hanwha Eagles of the Korean Baseball Organization. He also served as the pitching coach for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic in 2013, 2017, and 2023. Last December, he returned to the majors as the Mets’ bullpen coach. 

Jose Rosado’s best games of 1999:
April 23 vs. ANA: Held Angels to four hits and a walk with six strikeouts in 4-2 loss.
Sept. 29 vs. CLE: Pitched complete game four-hitter, striking out five in 5-2 win.
Aug. 22 at TB: Picked up eight strikeouts against one walk, allowing three hits in 2-1 loss.

About the card:
When I started this, I was surprised to discover that Topps did not have a Rosado card in their set for 1999. In fact, it looks like only seven Royals players had their own card, including the immortal Larry Sutton. Kind of odd, even for a bad team. Anyway, this is from the Fleer Traditions set and I think it’s a pretty good looking card. I could make a snarky comment about the blurb on the back–“top outing by a Royals pitcher during 1998” seems like a low bar–but that’s actually a really good start.