LAKELAND, Fla. – Jon Rosoff got the call to Detroit.
Just not that call.
Rosoff, an catcher for Double-A Erie in the Detroit Tigers‘ organization, was asked if he wanted to join the big-league club.
At this point, most prospects would be jumping up and down, screaming: “I’m going to Detroit! I’m going to Detroit!”
But this opportunity came with a twist. Rosoff was not called up as a player. He was asked to become a temporary member of the Tigers’ coaching staff last September.
“It was towards the end of the season,” Rosoff said. “And I got a call from Kenny Graham (then the Tigers’ interim vice president of player development) and he was like, ‘Hey, I got a proposition for you. Do you want to come to Detroit for a weekend?’ I’m like, ‘Give me a second.’”
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At the time, the Tigers’ coaching staff was stretched thin because of COVID-19. Bench coach George Lombard had tested positive for the virus. Pitching coach Chris Fetter, quality control coach Josh Paul and bullpen catcher Jeremy Carroll were in quarantine due to contact tracing.
The Tigers desperately needed a bullpen catcher.
So they asked Rosoff.
“My family was actually there because they had just come up to watch me play,” Rosoff said. “I’m like, ‘I gotta go to Detroit.’ And they’re like, ‘What are you doing, why didn’t you just say yes?’ So I called right back, and I said, “I’ll be there whenever you need me.’”
The fact that the Tigers asked him says everything about Rosoff, a West Point graduate who exudes everything you associate with that prestigious university — leadership, poise, class, determination, maturity and toughness. The Tigers wanted to ask somebody who could handle it. Somebody who wouldn’t freak out or be overwhelmed, and Rosoff was perfect. The motto of the U.S. Military Academy is “Duty, Honor, Country.” It is embedded in its coat of arms and instilled in Rosoff — he is, quite frankly, the best of us.
When he walked into the clubhouse in Detroit, he was wearing a suit.
“Obviously, it’s not a call-up call but it was pretty cool,” he said. “I mean, to go to Detroit and see the pro guys, see what everybody does, how they go about their business. And there is a level of professionalism from the staff to the players, yet there is that brotherhood mentality on the team. It was really, really fun to watch and really cool to see.”
Technically, he was part of the coaching staff, which gives him a bizarre distinction now: Rosoff is the only former member of the Tigers’ coaching staff taking part in the minicamp in TigerTown.
“It’s great to get back on the baseball field,” Rosoff said. “To get into it again, get the cleats in the dirt. Just fun to get out there.”
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Pointing towards West Point
Coming out of high school, Rosoff had a life-altering decision to make.
Should he play baseball at Davidson and get a normal college experience?
Or go to West Point and have a decidedly different experience?
“I came down to West Point and Davidson College,” Rosoff said. “Was it a hard decision? Honestly, it was like, ‘Why not?’ I figured, if I hated it, I can always leave.”
Rosoff stayed, of course, becoming a cornerstone of the baseball program, starting 205 games over a four-year career and hitting .316. He was named to the 2018 Johnny Bench Award watch list and was the 2018 Patriot League Player of the Year.
Still, baseball was only one part of his West Point experience.
“It was different,” he said. “Obviously, you have the military aspect. You still have the academic aspect and baseball. Baseball was my escape. Everything was extremely regimented. You wake up at 6 or 6:30. You go to class. You get 25 minutes for lunch and then you have an afternoon class. As soon as class is over, you go down to the field, 15 minutes dressed and ready for practice.”
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Ruckin’ to the Olympics
Rosoff was not drafted, and the Tigers signed him to a free-agent contract, even though his future was uncertain.
Typically, West Point graduates have a military service requirement.
“When I got down here, one of the strength coaches asked me if I was in the World Class Athlete program,” Rosoff said. “I’m like, ‘I have no idea what that is.’ It’s kind of funny. If that strength coach never brought it up, I would never have known.”
Rosoff applied for the program.
But first, he had to go through an infantry officer leadership course at Fort Benning in Georgia.
“It was honestly a blast,” Rosoff said. “You’re doing the whole infantry thing, right? You’re going through the really sucky parts, obviously. You’re ruckin’ 75-100 pounds, going 15-20 miles. Not getting sleep for a couple days. But you’re shooting stuff, blowing stuff up.”
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve done interviews with baseball players where infantry training interrupts a pro career,” I said. “This is so cliché.”
He laughed
“I was able to get into the World Class Athlete program,” Rosoff said. “It’s an Army unit. So basically, my Army job was to make the Olympic baseball team.”
He was an alternate on the Olympic baseball team that played in Tokyo.
“I was close to making it,” he said.
A special purpose
Rosoff, 27, has played in 134 games over the last three years (with the 2020 season canceled due to COVID-019) in the Tigers’ system, hitting .234.
Rosoff is listed at 5 feet 9 and 175 pounds. But he has a rocket for an arm and has climbed to Triple-A Toledo, where he played 10 games in 2021.
“At each level, you kind of get the butterflies in the stomach when the manager is like, ‘Hey, you’re moving on,’ even if it’s only for a little bit of time,” Rosoff said. “An opportunity is an opportunity. You can’t take anything for granted. You got to go out and just enjoy it. Toledo was awesome.”
And so is this young man.
He is approachable and likable with a quiet strength.
“What does our country mean to you now?” I asked him.
“Everybody has their own views about our country,” he said. “What is perfect about this country is the imperfections, that’s what makes it so special. But after going through West Point, after being in the military, being in the service, some of my buddies have deployed, there’s a deeper meaning to it.
“Being part of that ‘Long Gray Line’ and understanding who’s come before and the sacrifices people have made. Understanding that I’m fortunate enough to be out here, I’m incredibly lucky. To be able to go out and play, not just playing for myself and my family, but it’s really playing for everybody that didn’t get that chance to play. People have encouraged me to keep doing this and to push as far as I can, those are the people that make it incredibly special and make it worth it.”
It’s clear why the Tigers asked Rosoff to join the coaching staff, if only temporarily.
This young man is special. No matter what he does.
Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.