Earlier this month, the Uni-President Lions of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League announced an agreement with catcher Wilin Rosario (h/t to the Taipei Times). The 32-year-old (33 in February) is best known in the United States for his five-year MLB run with the Rockies.
A right-handed hitter, Rosario broke into the majors as a September call-up in 2011. He assumed the primary role behind the dish in Colorado the following season, tallying 400+ plate appearances in each of the next three years. A bat-first backstop, Rosario provided above-average offensive numbers (even after accounting for Coors Field’s hitter-friendly nature), popping 20+ homers in each of his first two full campaigns.
By 2014, however, Rosario’s productivity at the plate tailed off, at which point his longstanding issues as a pitch framer and ball blocker became more notable. No other backstop was charged with more passed balls than Rosario (42) between 2012 and 2014. After a second consecutive subpar campaign with the bat as well, Colorado outrighted the Dominican Republic native off their 40-man roster.
Rosario hasn’t appeared in the big leagues since being cut loose by the Rox. He signed with the Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Baseball Organization in 2016, re-signing there for 2017 as well. After a two-year stint with a monstrous .330/.390/.625 line, Rosario made the jump to Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball in 2018. He struggled to a .242/.285/.374 mark there but returned to affiliated ball on a minor league deal with the Twins in advance of the 2019 campaign.
Despite a decent showing at the plate with Minnesota’s Triple-A affiliate, Rosario didn’t get a call to the majors that year. He didn’t play in 2020 but spent a bit of last season in the Mexican League. He’ll now make his first foray to playing in Taiwan, which will give him experience at the highest levels in each of MLB, the KBO, NPB, the Mexican League and the CPBL.
Slow baseball news. At first I thought this was some news on Eddie Rosario. No such luck.
Seems like all the lower tier talent is going to Asia.
Good for them. At least they know they will get paid this year. Who knows if and when there will be a MLB season at all. If there is it will probably be pro rated. I doubt they will get full pay for a shortened season.
Of course they won’t. Why would they? If the season is shortened it won’t be due to a disease epidemic like Covid caused in 2020. The reason the season would be shortened is because the players refuse to sign a contract that is required for them to be able to play. You don’t pay someone for missing work when the reason they missed work is they refused to sign a legally obligated document required for anyone to work at that job. Regardless of whether or not people side with the players or owners that would be paying people who refuse to do what’s nessecary for them to work. Not that I think the owners are being the most fair or anything but I certainly wouldn’t pay any of my employees if the only reason they didn’t show up to work was because they refused to sign the contract I offered them. If you don’t want to sign the contract but you still want to get paid you need to get another job.
I’m kinda surprised that all but the Minnesota Twins haven’t shown more interest in Rosario, even just to compete for a bench/platoon role. He seems to have done fairly well since leaving affiliated ball.
He’s not really a catcher.
Doesn’t hit well enough to play 1B or DH in the MLB.
Overseas seems like his best route to $$$
Best catcher in mlb 2k13
After Yadier Molina, Buster Posey, Joe Mauer, Russell Martin, Salvador Perez, Jonathan Lucroy, Matt Weiters, AJ Piezynski, Brian McCann, Carlos Santana and Jason Castro…. Then he was the 4th best.
Only a good signing if the Lions pitchers never throw balls in the dirt.