Almon Victor Roache (born September 17, 1991) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

. He was selected in the 1st round, 28th overall, by the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

in the

2012 Major League Baseball draft The 2012 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto ...

, but never played in the majors after 6 seasons in Minor League Baseball.

Early life and career

Roache was born in

Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti (), commonly shortened to Ypsi, is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Township and on the west, south, an ...

. He participated in Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities and attended Lincoln High School in Ypsilanti. He was drafted in the 25th round of the 2009 MLB Draft by the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

but did not sign and chose to play for the Georgia Southern Eagles baseball team. During the 2011 season, Roache hit 30 home runs, up from 8 home runs the previous season. It was the largest jump in NCAA baseball and against a trend of declining power production due to the introduction of new baseball bats in NCAA baseball. He was named to the first team of Baseball America's College All-America Team. After the 2011 season, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the Cotuit Kettleers of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousan ...

, was named a league all-star, and received the league's Outstanding Pro Prospect award. In December 2011, Roache was named a preseason All-America First Team by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. On February 25, 2012, Roache broke his left wrist making a diving play in right field and missed the remainder of the 2012 season. Prior to fracturing his wrist, Roache was hitting .412 with 5 RBI and two home runs.

Professional career

Milwaukee Brewers

The

selected Roache in the first round, with the 28th overall selection, in the 2012 MLB Draft. He made his professional debut on April 21, 2013 for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. He spent all of 2013 with Wisconsin where he batted .248 with 22 home runs and 74 RBIs in 119 games. He spent the 2014 season with the Brevard County Manatees. On May 4, 2014, Roache hit the first three home run game in Brevard County history against Clearwater. In 122 games for the Manatees, he slashed .226/.298/.400 with 18 home runs and 54 RBIs. In 2015, he played for both Brevard County and the Biloxi Shuckers, compiling a .253 batting average with 18 home runs and 71 RBIs in 130 games between both teams, and in 2016, he played with Biloxi where he batted .243 with four home runs and 15 RBIs in only 51 games due to injury. Roache began the 2017 season with Biloxi.

Los Angeles Dodgers

He was traded to the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League West, West division. Established in 1883 i ...

for a player to be named later on May 4. He was released by the Dodgers in August after spending most of the season with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. In 57 games between Biloxi and Rancho Cucamonga, he batted .186 with six home runs and 25 RBIs.

St Louis Cardinals

On February 2018, Roache signed a minor league deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. They assigned him to the Double-A Springfield Cardinals to start the season. He was released at the end of the season.

Chicago Dogs

On February 27, 2019, Roache signed with the Chicago Dogs of the independent

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

. He played in 97 games for the team, hitting .309/.397/.583 with 24 home runs, 79 RBI, and 5 stolen bases. On March 12, 2020, Roache re-signed with the Dogs. Appearing in 58 contests, Roache batted .221/.272/.460 with 16 home runs and 34 RBI. On February 2, 2021, Roache was released by Chicago. Roache retired from professional baseball in April 2021 and took a job at

Dick's Sporting Goods Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. (stylized as "DICK'S Sporting Goods") is an American sporting goods retail company, based in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. The company was established by Richard "Dick" Stack in 1948, and has approximately 854 stores ...

. He has since become a baseball instructor and coach.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roache, Victor 1991 births Living people African-American baseball players All-American college baseball players Baseball outfielders Baseball players from Michigan Biloxi Shuckers players Brevard County Manatees players Chicago Dogs players Cotuit Kettleers players Georgia Southern Eagles baseball players Memphis Redbirds players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Sportspeople from Ypsilanti, Michigan Springfield Cardinals players Wisconsin Timber Rattlers players 21st-century African-American sportspeople