From Out of Nowhere: Josh Roeder’s Miami Marlins 2018 Review

Throughout the 2018/2019 offseason, Marlin Maniac will devote one article each for every player who appeared in the Miami Marlins system for the 2018 season. Every. Single. Player. This is Part 96 of 286. Stay tuned.

Joshua Roeder is a 6′, 175 lb. right-handed pitcher from Plano, Texas. Born on December 2nd, 1992, the New York Yankees chose him in the 21st round of the 2015 MLB Amateur Entry Draft out of the University of Nebraska.

In three seasons as a Cornhusker, Roeder went 10-8 with a head-turning 2.36 ERA in 90 trips out of the bullpen. He also could boast a 0.99 WHIP and a 10.41 K/9 rate, striking out 128 in 110 2/3 innings. You can follow Roeder on Twitter @jroeder13.

Chosen 633rd overall off the board, Roeder joined a fraternity that has placed 16 percent of its members in the major leagues. The group is led by J.C. Romero (1997, Minnesota Twins, 7.8 career WAR), Brian Barnes (1988, Baltimore Orioles, 3.3 WAR), and Chad Fox (1992, Cincinnati Reds, 2.8 WAR).

Roeder spent most of his three seasons in the Yankees’ system with the short-season-A Staten Island Yankees, in the New York-Penn League. He peaked at the high-A level with them in 2017, with the Tampa Yankees in the Florida State League (FSL). The Yankees used Roeder almost exclusively in relief, starting him just once and bringing him out of the pen 53 times. The Miami Marlins had different plans.

The Yankees released Roeder just prior to the 2018 regular season. The Miami Marlins signed him through free agency on June 2nd, and sent him to the FSL’s Jupiter Hammerheads. That’s where Roeder would spend the balance of his season. He joined the rotation and made 15 starts, only appearing once in relief.

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Roeder pitched to a 6-6 record and a 3.63 ERA. He allowed 90 hits in 91 2/3 innings, but kept his WHIP to a palatable 1.200 by walking only 20. He also struck out 60 and held opponents to a .254/.301/.389 slashline, for a pretty-good .690 OPS.

In Roeder’s first start, on June 2nd, he struck out four Palm Beach Cardinals in six innings of shutout three-hit ball, earning the win as the Sharks finished with a 9-1 lead. In Roeder’s only relief appearance of the season, on July 23rd, he struck out five in six innings, allowing no earned runs in a 12-11, 11-inning win over the Fort Myers Miracle. In his best start of the season, on August 5th, he pitched seven scoreless two-hit innings and earned the 3-0 win over Palm Beach.

Roeder pitched well enough to make a step up to the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, in the double-A Southern League. Look for him in Crustacean Nation in 2019. With good results, he could possibly compete for a spot on the 40-man roster probably in 2020.

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