Christian Rosa was signed last June by the St. Louis Cardinals out of an independent league and assigned to the Batavia Muckdogs.
It was a dream come true for the undrafted Puerto Rican native, and he was a contributor to the 2009 championship season.
In 32 games, Rosa batted .286 with four doubles, two homers, 12 RBI and four stolen bases.
As the June draft approached this year, Rosa was cut by the Cardinals to make room for new players. He said he was surprised to be let go.
"I never thought I was going to get released,” Rosa said. “Everybody was telling me that I was doing great."
Batavia manager Mark DeJohn says Rosa indeed did everything right. But the lack of a strong throwing arm resulted in his release.
“I absolutely loved having Christian on my team. We won a championship that honestly means more to me than any World Series or other league championship rings I have, and Christian was a big part of that,” DeJohn said. “To be a kid who was undrafted and coming out of an independent league, he was just outstanding in a lot of areas.
“He received the ball well, blocked it well, called a good game, did a good job with the bat and ran well for a catcher. It’s just that his arm is well below average, and that’s heartbreaking because Christian is the type of kid you really get attached to.”
