Rafael Antonio Roque (born January 1, 1972) is a former
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 who
pitched for three seasons, from 1998 to 2000, with the
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...
. Roque is currently the pitching coach for the DSL Mets2.
Early career
Roque began his professional baseball career in 1991 when he signed with the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
minor league system.
He did not pitch in the minor leagues until the following season, and spent six seasons in the Mets organization, winning no more than 6 games in a single season.
After becoming a minor league free agent, Roque signed with the Brewers organization for the 1998 season.
In his first year with the Brewers, he combined to win 10 games with the AA
El Paso Diablos
"El Paso Diablos" refers to two different professional baseball teams based in El Paso, Texas, in the United States. The most recent Diablos were a member of the South Division of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, wh ...
and the AAA
Louisville Redbirds
Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...
, recording a 5–2 record at Louisville.
[
]
Major League career
He was called up to the major leagues late in the 1998 season, and made his debut as a starter on August 1 against the Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...
, earning a no-decision in his first start. Over the course of the season, Roque had a 4–2 record with a 4.88 earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...
. Coincidentally, during his first Major League season, Roque gave up both Mark McGwire
Mark David McGwire (born October 1, 1963), nicknamed "Big Mac", is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2001 for the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Card ...
and Sammy Sosa
Samuel Peralta Sosa (; born November 12, 1968) is a Dominican-American former professional baseball right fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Cubs. After playing for the Texas Rangers and ...
's 64th home runs.
Roque was named the Brewers' Opening Day
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...
starter for the 1999 season. He did not earn a win in any of his first 8 starts, and pitched out of the bullpen for much of the remainder of the season. On July 5, 1999, Roque picked up the one and only save of his MLB career in impressive fashion. Roque pitched the final three innings of a 5-0 Brewers win over the Phillies. He allowed 3 hits and zero runs, striking out four hitters. He saved the game for starting pitcher Jim Abbott.
Roque spent much of the 2000 season in the minor leagues but did appear in four games with the Brewers over the course of the season.[ These were his last Major League appearances. His major league career ended with a 5–8 record and a 5.36 ERA.][
Roque spent 2001 in the ]Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
organization.[ He then played for the ]Tigres de México
The Tigres de Quintana Roo (English: Quintana Roo Tigers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico. The team is part of the Southern Division (). The team has won twelve championships to date: ...
of 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 ...
in 2002–03.[ After one last brief comeback in Mexico in 2005, his professional career was over.][
]
Coaching career
Roque was named as the pitching coach for the DSL Mets2 of the New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
organization for the 2018 season.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roque, Rafael
1972 births
Living people
Binghamton Mets players
Capital City Bombers players
Dominican Republic baseball coaches
Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico
Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States
Dominican Republic national baseball team people
El Paso Diablos players
Gulf Coast Mets players
Indianapolis Indians players
Kingsport Mets players
Louisville Redbirds players
Louisville RiverBats players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic
20th-century Dominican Republic sportsmen
Mexican League baseball pitchers
Milwaukee Brewers players
Minor league baseball coaches
Pawtucket Red Sox players
People from Cotuí
Sportspeople from Sánchez Ramírez Province
Pericos de Puebla players
St. Lucie Mets players
Sultanes de Monterrey players
Tigres de la Angelopolis players
Tigres del México players