Francisco de la Rosa

Francisco de la Rosa Jimenez

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 185 lb.

• Debut September 7, 1991
• Final Game October 3, 1991
• Born March 3, 1966 in La Romana, La Romana, D.R.
• Died January 6, 2011 in Baltimore, MD, USA

BR page

Biographical Information

A native of La Romana, in the Dominican Republic, Francisco de la Rosa was signed by legendary scout Epy Guerrero for the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He developed as a ballplayer around the San Pedro de Macoris area, a tremendous hotbed of future major league talent at the time. He spent one season with the GCL Blue Jays at age 19, going 0-1 in 16 games in 1985, then was released.

He made his big league debut with the Baltimore Orioles in 1991, after scout Carlos Bernhardt gave him a second chance following his release by the Jays. He only pitched two major league games, giving up 2 runs in 4 innings. He pitched in the Orioles' minor league system from 1988 to 1991, with some good results. As a starter in 1990, he went 9-5, 2.05 between Double A Hagerstown and Triple A Rochester, then in 1991 he posted a 2.67 ERA in 38 games for Rochester, mainly as a reliever. After that season, he was traded to the New York Yankees for Alan Mills. He had another good season in Triple A in 1992, this time with the Columbus Clippers (6-1, 3.72 in 48 games) but did not make it back to the big leagues, and was released after the 1993 season when his ERA ballooned to 6.45.

He came back for a season with the Louisville Redbirds of the St. Louis Cardinals organization in 1995, going 2-5 mainly as a starter. In 1996, he played for the Thunder Bay Whiskey Jacks of the independent Northern League, but put up a 7.20 ERA.

He pitched for many years for Estrellas Orientales of the Dominican League as both a closer and a middle reliever. After his retirement as a player, he lived in the New York City area for a number of years. While trying to find work with various independent teams, he moved to Philadelphia, PA, and later settled next to his brother Gustavo in Baltimore, MD, where he died in 2011.

Related Sites

• Obituary (in Spanish)