One pitch is all it takes!
After their horrendous start to the 2015 season, the Minnesota Twins had stabilized a bit following Trevor Plouffe’s panache. But heading into a May 6 contest with the Oakland (RIP) Athletics, the squad was just 14-13. Things could still go either way on the ‘15 season.
But then Eddie Rosario dug in and changed all of that with his first major league hack.
A native of Guayama, Puerto Rico, Rosario came to the Twins organization via the fourth round of the 2010 MLB Draft. His development was a bit up-and-down: the raw talent showed immediately and he played for the Puerto Rico squad in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. He also received a 50-game suspension in 2014 for use of a banned substance.
Photo by Robbie Rogers/MLB via Getty Images
But when Eduardo Nunez & Oswaldo Arcia hit the IL in early May of ‘15, it opened a roster spot for the young prospect.
Entering the Target Field batter’s box against A’s lefty Scott Kazmir, Eddie led off the third inning in the 8th slot of Paul Molitor’s lineup. With a cadre of family members in the bleachers, the first sphere Kazmir sent his way did not return to the field of play…
I’ll never forget watching this moment on TV while living in Burnsville, MN. It is exceedingly rare that a first swing possesses such magic, but—as conveyed by Dick Bremer & Bert Blyleven in the booth—that was exactly what transpired here.
Rosario was no flash-in-the-pan. He’d stick with the big club for the ‘15 duration and put up this line: 122 G, 474 PA, 18 2B, 15 3B, 13 HR, 11 SB, 102 OPS+. In the field, his Cuddyer-like cannon would gun down as many runners as his scattershot brain would sometimes let on.
Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
After a 6-year Twins stint followed by some club-hopping, Eddie is—believe it or not—still kicking around. This year he appeared in 2 games with the Los Angeles Dodgers before being granted free agency in lieu of accepting an assignment. As the ‘21 Atlanta Braves discovered, Eddie remains a small-sample-size weapon in the biggest of moments.
Photo by Jeremy Chen/Getty Images
The Twins would throttle the A’s 11-0 that May 6, 2015 evening (6 scoreless innings from Kyle Gibson—somewhere TJ is smiling). By the time May closed, the Twins were a remarkable 20-7 within its boundaries—moving into 1st place in the AL Central!
(Late breaking news: Eddie Rosario is now in Atlanta again! You can’t keep Rosie down!)