Chaz Roe

Chaz Daniel Roe

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 5", Weight 180 lb.
• High School Lafayette High School
• Debut July 1, 2013

• Born October 9, 1986 in Steubenville, OH USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Pitcher Chaz Roe was a first-round draft pick who took eight years to reach the majors.

He went 7-2 with a 0.63 ERA as a high school senior, fanning 89 and allowing only 29 hits in 56 innings. Baseball America picked him third-team All-American, joining Jeremy Bleich, Brett Jacobson, Brian Matusz and Ryan Tucker as the pitchers so honored. He was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 2005 amateur draft, the #32 overall pick and Colorado's second (after Troy Tulowitzki). The choice was compensation for the loss of Vinny Castilla to free agency. He was signed by scout Scott Corman and made his pro debut that summer with the Casper Rockies of the Pioneer League, where he went 5-2 with a 4.17 ERA in 12 starts. He tied for 9th in the league in wins and struck out 55 in 49 2/3 IP but also walked 36, tying Ryan Marion for second in the loop. Baseball America named him Colorado's 4th-best prospect.

He spent the 2006 season with the Asheville Tourists, going 7-4 with a 4.09 ERA in 19 starts. He tied for 8th in the South Atlantic League with 12 hit batsmen. The next year, he went 7-11 with a 4.33 ERA as a member of the Modesto Nuts rotation. In 170 1/3 innings, he had 73 walks and 131 strikeouts. He was tied for 5th in the California League in losses (even with Anthony Ortega), third in walks (after Javy Guerra and Jordan Pratt), 10th in ERA, first in lowest opponent average, second in innings (behind Brandon Hynick) and 6th in strikeouts. Among Rockies minor leaguers, he tied Ryan Mattheus and Simon Ferrer for the most defeats, was 4th in strikeouts and tied Sam Deduno for second in walks.

Chaz split 2008 between Modesto (2-1, 5.49) and the Tulsa Drillers (5-4, 4.27). In 2009, he had a 7-3, 3.15 record for Tulsa and was 5th in the [{Texas League]] in ERA (between Trevor Reckling and Tommy Mendoza). He made it to AAA with the 2010 Colorado Springs Sky Sox but bombed (9-13, 5.98, .325 opponent average). He was second in the 2010 PCL in losses (one behind Cesar Carrillo), was third in hits allowed (210, behind Matt Torra and Josh Geer), was second in earned runs allowed (115, trailing Lance Broadway) and was second in runs allowed (105, also behind Broadway). Among Rockies farmhands, he was second in losses and allowed the most hits, runs and earned runs.

Roe was then dealt to the Seattle Mariners for José López but was 0-7 with two saves, a 6.59 ERA and .319 opponent average for the 2011 Tacoma Rainiers. Seattle let him go at year's end. Then, in January 2012, he tested positive for amphetamine, giving him a 50-day suspension whenever he signed with a MLB club. He spent the summer in the independent leagues, going 3-2 with a save, 1.47 ERA and 69 K to 7 BB over 55 IP for the Laredo Lemurs. He was 6th in the American Association with 49 games pitched.

Chaz next signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks for 2013. After finally serving his suspension, he did well with the Mobile BayBears (0-1, Sv, UER in 2 1/3 IP) and the Reno Aces (4 Sv, 2 R in 9 IP). He was called up to the majors when Trevor Cahill went on the DL. He made his MLB debut in a 13-inning, 4-3 win over the New York Mets on July 1st. Replacing J.J. Putz in the 10th, he allowed a single to Omar Quintanilla but retired Andrew Brown, Eric Young Jr. and Daniel Murphy. In the 11th, he walked David Wright, fanned Marlon Byrd and got Josh Satin on a grounder. After an intentional walk to John Buck, he walked Anthony Recker on a full count to load the bases. Tony Sipp relieved to face Quintanilla and escaped the jam. He went 1-0, 4.03 in 21 games that season.

From 2014 to 2017, he shuffled every year between the minors and majors, his busiest season in the Show coming in 2015 when he made 36 appearances for the Baltimore Orioles. He played for four different teams during that stretch, also suiting up for the New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves and Tampa Bay Rays. He was used exclusively in relief, did not record a save and went a combined 6-2 in his 81 outings. He finally managed to land a steady job in the majors with the Rays in 2018, when he pitched 61 times, and went 1-3, 3.58 with his first career save. In 50 1/3 innings, he allowed just 35 hits, walked 16 batters and struck out 53. He was basically used as the right-handed equivalent of a LOOGY, making a lot of very short stints in which he faced mainly righthanded batters. In 2019, it was more of the same, with 71 outings totaling just 51 innings. He allowed a lot more baserunners, with 49 hits and 31 walks, while improving his strikeout rate to 65. He finished the year at 1-3, 4.06 with 1 save. He pitched in the postseason for the first time that year, making 3 appearances in the Rays' loss to the Houston Astros in the Division Series. He allowed 2 runs on 3 hits and 1 walk in 2 2/3 innings.

Roe possesses an slider that breaks more sharply than any other pitch in the majors. In 2019, it was measured to have 22.8 inches of horizontal movement (as a matter of comparison, home plate is just 17 inches wide). Batters who swing at the pitch miss it 30% of the time, and when they make contact, it is usually quite weak, as opposing batters hit just .211 against the pitch. It also explains his particular usage patters, as such an offering will be a lot more effective against right-handers, as it breaks away from them.

Related Sites

• Chaz Roe on mlb.com
• BR Minors page