Henry Roa

Henry A. Roa Miranda frequently listed as Jenry or Jenrry

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 8", Weight 195 lb.

• Born December 26, 1969 in León, León Nicaragua

Olympics-Reference page

Biographical Information

Henry Roa spent over a decade on the Nicaraguan national team, frequently starring on the international stage. An Olympic performer, he never played professionally in the minor leagues. His brother Yáder Roa played and coached in Nicaragua.

Roa hit .349/.420/.558 with 11 runs in 12 games as a 21-year-old third baseman in the 1991 Intercontinental Cup. He tied Wei-Cheng Chen for 4th in the event with 15 hits. He was 1 for 5 with a walk and a run from the #2 slot in the marathon 14-inning 4-3 Bronze Medal game win over Taiwan. He was also with Nicaragua in the 1991 Pan American Games.

In 1993, Roa had 150 hits in the Nicaraguan Amateur League, second all-time behind David Green (through 2008). His 31 doubles that year tied the record and stood until 2014, when Jilton Calderón passed him.

In the 1993 Intercontinental Cup, Roa batted .364/.378/.568 with 12 RBI in 11 games. His .348 mark in the 1993 Central American and Caribbean Games tied Nemesio Porras for the team lead in average. When Nicaragua won the 1994 Central American Games, he had a big game against El Salvador, which had upset them four years prior; he went 3 for 4 with two homers and 7 RBI, taking both Oscar González and Jaime Guevara deep. During the 1994 Baseball World Cup, Henry hit .351/.385/.568. He was 0 for 3 with a walk in the Bronze Medal game loss to Japan.

Roa "slumped" to .273/.292/.500 in the 1995 Intercontinental Cup, moving to DH from his usual third base. He was with Nicaragua when they won the Silver Medal at the 1995 Pan American Games. In the 1996 Olympics, the León native produced at a .382/.432/.500 rate with 9 runs in 9 games and a .923 fielding percentage at third. He led Nicaragua in OPS.

The 27-year-old veteran batted .375/.423/.417 in the 1997 Intercontinental Cup, leading Nicaragua in average and OBP. He played for Nicaragua in the 1997 Central American Games; they won the Silver Medal. In the 1998 Baseball World Cup, he was better yet, with a batting line of .442/.478/.558 with 12 runs and 13 RBI in 10 games. He was 3 for 5 in their Bronze Medal game win over Italy. He tied teammate Edgard López and Robelquis Videaux for the tournament lead with 19 hits. He didn't make the All-Star team as the legendary duo of Omar Linares (3B) and Orestes Kindelan (DH) was picked at his two positions. He helped Nicaragua win a Silver Medal at the 1998 Central American and Caribbean Games.

He was just 1 for 8 in the 1999 Pan American Games. In the 2001 Baseball World Cup, Henry hit .462/.500/.538; he finished second in average in the Cup behind Luis Ulacia, beating out a slew of future and former major leaguers such as Orlando Hudson, Chin-Feng Chen, Tadahito Iguchi, Ralph Milliard, Aaron Guiel, Jason Bay and Justin Morneau. He was left off the All-Star team as Chuan-Chia Wang was picked at DH.

Roa played for Nicaragua when they won Gold at the 2001 Central American Games and was their DH in the 2002 Central American and Caribbean Games. He had one of his worst international performances in the 2003 Baseball World Cup, when he batted a mortal .270/.289/.324 for Nicaragua; at least he played error-free ball at third base.

He was back to the limelight by the 2005 Baseball World Cup, when the old-timer banged out a .467/.487/.543 line with 12 RBI in 10 games. He was second in average for the second time in a World Cup, trailing Michel Enriquez. His 16 hits were second to Enriquez and he was 6th in RBI. He lost out All-Star honors to Canada's Joey Votto, a future big league star. He helped Nicaragua win Gold at the 2006 Central American Games and was named the All-Star DH.

The fading veteran was 2 for 20 with two doubles and two walks in the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games. He only batted .222/.263/.278 in the 2006 COPABE qualifiers for the 2008 Olympics. He was 1 for 8 with a run and a RBI in the 2007 Pan American Games as his club won a Bronze, yet another Medal for his long international career.

Roa retired from Nicaraguan league play at the end of 2007.

From 1991-2006, Roa was third among players in hits in Intercontinental Cup play (46, behind Jose Estrada and Omar Linares). From 1988-2005, his 70 hits in Baseball World Cup play were 4th behind three Cubans - Kindelan, Antonio Pacheco and Linares.

Through 2007, Roa ranked third all-time in the Nicaraguan Amateur League with a .339 average and third with 269 doubles. He was 5th with 1,586 hits. His 112 homers placed him 21st.