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The crazy part about Miguel Rojas‘ journey to getting a tribute post for his retirement isn’t that I’d call you nuts if you told me it would happen when he debuted as a rookie for the Dodgers back in 2014. No, the crazy thing is if you told me that as late as the morning of November 1, 2025, I’d still be calling you nuts. And yet here we are after Miggy Ro delivered one of the most clutch homers in baseball history (+35% cWPA) in the top of the 9th and added a dramatic key defensive play (+17% cWPA) in the bottom of the 9th to what would be the winning effort in Game 7 of the 2025 World Series that capped off back-to-back championships for the Dodgers.
Because his debut was back in 2014, and because he debuted with the Dodgers, it’s easy to forget he was initially signed by the Reds back in 2006 as an international free agent. Rojas made his way up to AAA in his seven years with the team, though it was mostly thanks to his defensive prowess, as he didn’t hit much. In fact, he only ended up with the Dodgers in 2013 after they signed him from minor-league free agency at 24. The team assigned him to AA and he continued his career trajectory to that point, hitting .233/.303/.307.610 and mostly playing short with some second base sprinkled in. In 2014, with the second base spot wide open, he was an non-roster invitee in Spring Training. While he didn’t get a spot on Opening Day, he was assigned to AAA and finally hit some at the launching pad that is Albuquerque (.302/.353/.434/.787), also showcasing his versatility by making starts at shortstop, second, and even third.
That was enough to get him a call-up on June 6, and the aforementioned limited experience at third seemed to make sure he earned a permanent place in my brain just 12 days later on June 18 when he and Adrian Gonzalez combined on a great defensive play to save Clayton Kershaw‘s no-hitter (after Hanley Ramirez botched his perfect game).
Quite frankly, though, that looked like it would be about it for his Dodgers career. In 162 plate appearances, he hit just .181/.242/.221/.464 for the season, then got traded to the Marlins with Dee Gordon and Dan Haren for Andrew Heaney, Chris Hatcher, Austin Barnes, and Enrique Hernandez (boy, that ended up being a more consequential trade than anticipated, huh).
Rojas seemed like a throw-in at the time, and I really didn’t think much of it, but in eight seasons with the Marlins he ended up hitting quite a bit better (.265/.318/.366/.684). That improvement to below average in the box was all he needed to amass 2920 plate appearances, including becoming a regular over the final six seasons there.
After the 2022 season, he was traded back to the Dodgers on January 11, 2023 in exchange for Jacob Amaya to be the team’s utility infielder. Miggy ended up getting a lot more run than probably intended over the next four seasons, and part of that was due to major injuries, but part of that was also he was arguably getting a bit better with age instead of fading. Rojas slashed .260/.313/.375/.688 in 1329 plate appearances during his second stint with the Dodgers, being an especially effective weapon when he was used against lefties.
In addition to the aforementioned World Series heroics, he also recorded his 1000th hit this year against the Rockies.
@dodgernate Miguel Rojas’s first hit and 1000th hit were at the same place ? #mlb #baseball #dodgers ♬ BAILE INoLVIDABLE – Bad Bunny
Meanwhile, FOX ruined his final hit by using Ump Cam during the live game, but I digress.
The final hit of Miguel Rojas' career was ruined by Ump Cam, lmfao. pic.twitter.com/cJqmsFrGvW
— Chad Moriyama (@ChadMoriyama) October 20, 2026
While this season didn’t end with the three-peat everybody desired, the message Rojas concluded with spoke to the kind of impact he’s had in the clubhouse and vice versa.
“They changed my life,” Rojas later said, his eyes still pink from his speech to his teammates. “I truly and honestly say that from the bottom of my heart. The last couple years here for me, it’s been the most amazing time of my life in baseball, and I grew so much with this group. I grew as a man, as a father, as a player, as a leader, as a teammate. And I just wanted to say thank you to every person here in this organization for giving me the opportunity to be myself and to kind of help change the culture of this club.”
But not everything about Miggy’s retirement needs to be waterworks, as he seemed to hint that a role within the organization as a coach or in the front office will be in his future.
“I talked to the guys, it was really emotional after the game. I told them that I’m going to be loyal, I want to stay here. I want to wear this uniform or this logo in a different capacity and continue to make the organization better,” Rojas said.
That’s actually something to look forward to considering Mookie Betts has credited him with his successful and unprecedented move from being a multi-time Gold Glove right fielder to a Gold Glove finalist shortstop despite making the move while in his 30s.
So Miggy Ro figures to be a positive addition to the organization in whatever role he takes on, and despite this being a goodbye in one way, it at least is also the start of another chapter for him that’ll hopefully be just as successful and help him add more rings to his collection.
