Minervino Alejandro "Minnie" Rojas Landin (November 26, 1933 – March 23, 2002) was a Cuban professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) as a right-handed

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

for the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

from to after many seasons pitching in the

Mexican League The Mexican Baseball League (, or LMB, ) is a professional baseball league in Mexico. It is the oldest running professional sports league in the country. The league has 20 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games ...

, the

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

, and

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leagues. Rojas performed well in a relief role with the Angels as a 32-year-old rookie in 1966. He was named the AL Fireman of the Year in after leading the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

(AL) with 27 saves, a franchise record that stood for 18 years. His effectiveness was reduced by injuries in , and he missed the second half of the season with

tendinitis Tendinopathy is a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow ( tenn ...

and other arm issues. In , Rojas pitched briefly in the minor leagues and the Mexican League in an attempt to regain his form, but lingering arm issues led him to retire from baseball without ever returning to the majors. In 1970, Rojas and his family were involved in a serious automobile accident that killed two of his three children and left him partially paralyzed for the rest of his life. The California Angels organization and players held fundraisers to help their former teammate, including organizing a testimonial game for "Minnie Rojas Day" in 1971.

Baseball career

Minor leagues / Mexican League

Rojas was born in Remedios, Villa Clara,

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

. He showed promise as a baseball player in his youth, and after a year of

compulsory military service Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it contin ...

, he left his native country to play

baseball in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

.''The Windsor Star''
via Google News Archive Search In 1960, he signed a

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

contract with the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. The Giants did not promote him to the majors after 4 years in their minor league system, so Rojas signed a free agent contract with the independent Jalisco Charros of the

in 1964. In 1965, Rojas won 21 games as a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

for Jalisco, attracting the attention of the

. The Angels bought his contract for $2500 and sent him to their AAA affiliate, the

Seattle Rainiers The Seattle Rainiers, originally named the Seattle Indians and also known as the Seattle Angels, were a Minor League Baseball team in Seattle, Washington, that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1906 and 1919 to 1968. They were prev ...

, to begin the 1966 season. He was effective as both a starter and reliever against minor league competition, leading the Angels to call him up to the majors in late May.

California Angels

Rojas made his major league debut as a 32 year old rookie

on May 30, 1966, against the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

and earned the win. Rojas would only make one additional start in the major leagues Instead, he became a valuable member of the Angels'

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

at a time when the role of relief pitchers was evolving in the professional game. He appeared in 47 games and earned 10 saves as a 32-year-old

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

. Rojas' best major league season was , when he set an Angels franchise record with 27 saves that wasn't broken until

Donnie Moore Donnie Ray Moore (February 13, 1954 – July 18, 1989) was an American relief pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the Chicago Cubs (1975, 1977–1979), St. Louis Cardinals (1980), Milwaukee Brewers (1981), Atlanta Braves (1982� ...

collected 31 saves in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

. Rojas also won 12 games in relief that year and was a major reason that the Angels were surprising contenders for the

American League pennant Every Major League Baseball (MLB) season, one American League (AL) team wins the pennant, signifying that they are the league's champion and have the right to play in the World Series against the champion of the National League (NL). The pennant ...

until mid-September. He was named the American League's

Fireman of the Year ''The Sporting News'' Reliever of the Year Award was an annual award presented to the best relief pitcher in each league in Major League Baseball (MLB). It was established in by ''The Sporting News'' (TSN) as the Fireman of the Year Award. At ...

and was 24th in the voting for

American League MVP The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. The award has been presented by the Baseball Writers' ...

. Rojas' effectiveness was reduced by injuries in , and he missed the second half of the season. During the 1968 season, Rojas developed calcium deposits and

tendonitis Tendinopathy is a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow ( tenn ...

in his elbow, probably due to overwork during the many seasons leading up to his major league debut. He was placed on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season, it was known as the disabl ...

in late July and was eventually shut down for the 1968 season without throwing another pitch. Rojas attempted to resume his career in 1969 and threw 18 innings in the minor leagues and the Mexican League, but lingering arm issues continued, and he retired from baseball at the age of 35.

Scouting report

Rojas' pitching repertoire consisted mainly of

breaking ball In baseball, a breaking ball is a pitch that does not travel straight as it approaches the batter; it will have sideways or downward motion on it, sometimes both (see slider). A breaking ball is not a specific pitch by that name, but is any ...

changeup A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball. The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball, but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced spee ...

s, and a sinking

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch (baseball), pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. Its distinctive feature is its high speed. "Power pitchers," such as former major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, relied on the ...

. "He's got three pitches", one opposing batter commented, "slow, slower, and 'come and get it'." Despite his lack of a high-velocity pitch, Rojas was effective during his short MLB career due to excellent

command Command may refer to: Computing * Command (computing), a statement in a computer language * command (Unix), a Unix command * COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS * Command key, a modifier key on A ...

and pitch movement. He posted a 23–16 record with a 3.00

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

and 43 saves in 157 appearances, allowing only 45 unintentional walks in 261 innings over parts of three seasons.

Accident

In 1970, Rojas and his family were involved in a serious automobile accident that killed two of his three children and left him partially paralyzed for the rest of his life. Around midnight on March 31, 1970, the Rojas family's

station wagon A station wagon (American English, US, also wagon) or estate car (British English, UK, also estate) is an automotive Car body style, body-style variant of a Sedan (automobile), sedan with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo ...

was involved in a serious

hit and run In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the criminal act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions. Additional obligation In many jurisdictions, there ma ...

auto accident near

Key Largo Key Largo () is an island in the upper Florida Keys archipelago and is the largest section of the keys, at long. It is one of the northernmost of the Florida Keys in Monroe County, and the northernmost of the keys connected by U.S. Highway ...

on the

Overseas Highway The Overseas Highway is a highway carrying U.S. Route 1 (US 1) through the Florida Keys to Key West. Large parts of it were built on the former right-of-way of the Overseas Railroad, the Key West Extension of the Florida East Coast Ra ...

after a fishing trip in the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral island, coral cay archipelago off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami a ...

. Rojas' spinal cord was damaged, leaving him partially paralyzed, and his two young daughters, Lourdes and Barbara, were killed.''The Press-Courier''
via Google News Archive Search His wife, Maria, and his infant son survived. The Angels organization, led by team

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

and Rojas' friend

Jim Fregosi James Louis "Jim" Fregosi (April 4, 1942 – February 14, 2014) was an American professional baseball shortstop and manager, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to , primarily for the Los Angeles / California Angels. He also played ...

, started a fund to help Rojas and his surviving family. The team also held "Minnie Rojas Day" during a

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

exhibition game at

Anaheim Stadium Angel Stadium is a ballpark in Anaheim, California, United States. Since its opening in 1966, it has been the home venue of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), who relocated from Los Angeles to Anaheim following the 1965 seas ...

in March 1971 and donated the proceeds to the Rojas family. Through intense

physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

, Rojas eventually regained some use of his upper body, but he would not walk again''Herald-Journal''
via Google News Archive Search Rojas died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on March 23, 2002, at the age of 68.

References

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rojas, Minnie 1933 births 2002 deaths People from Remedios, Cuba Baseball players from Villa Clara Province California Angels players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Cuba 20th-century Cuban sportsmen Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States Hawaii Islanders players Artesia Giants players Tacoma Giants players El Paso Sun Kings players Fresno Giants players Seattle Angels players People with tetraplegia