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Former top picks on track after injuries
Jones, Rogers persevere in pursuit of the big leagues
Mike Jones (left) and Mark Rogers were the Brewers' No. 1 picks in the 2001 and 2004 Drafts. (MiLB.com)
By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com
08/20/09 1:59 PM ET
MILWAUKEE -- It was about a year ago that Mike Jones nearly walked away from the game. The star-crossed Brewers pitching prospect -- "project" might be the better word, because he's long since fallen off the prospect lists -- had the money to do it. He was smart enough to protect his $2.075 million signing bonus, the prize for being the 12th pick in the 2001 Draft, through investments and real estate, leaving a nest egg for life after baseball. Retirement would mean no more surgeries. No more boos from his home fans, who were tired of seeing Jones hurt. No more pain and pitch counts and pressure to live up to first-round hype. No more tightly-controlled rehab starts. No more rehab. "I was closer to giving up than I like to admit today," Jones said. "When you're knee-deep in physical rehabilitation for the amount of time that I was, it gets old. Even when I was quote-unquote healthy, my body wasn't allowing me to do what I wanted it to do. That's extremely frustrating. "So, yes, there were several times when I was staring retirement, walking away from the game, right in the face." Now he's glad he stuck with it. Jones, who was charging through the Brewers' Minor League chain before the first injury scare in 2003, made a long-awaited start for Triple-A Nashville on Wednesday night. It came more than six years after his Double-A debut -- after major shoulder surgery in 2004, and then Tommy John surgery to repair a bum right elbow in 2007. Never mind that Jones was tagged for six runs and 10 hits in four innings, including a three-run first. It represented progress, and progress has -- literally -- been painfully slow over the years. "I'm proud of all the stuff I've overcome," Jones said. "I know this is Nashville and that I'm not done yet. But I'm happy that my work ethic has paid off, and I continue to surprise myself. I'm grinding it out, and I'm enjoying every second of it. It's good for my mental state." Rogers, too Jones is not the only one. Another former first-round pick dogged by injuries, right-hander Mark Rogers, the fifth overall pick in the 2004 Draft, is on track to pitch a full season after losing all of 2007 and 2008 to shoulder surgeries. Entering his start for Class A Brevard County on Thursday, Rogers had a 1.84 ERA in 20 starts for a team bound for the Florida State League playoffs. After that, Rogers will probably be one of the Brewers' selections for the prestigious Arizona Fall League. Those picks won't be official until Aug. 24, assistant GM Gord Ash said. Rogers has heard rumors, but no one from the organization has presented the assignment. "It would be an honor, and I would love to do it," Rogers said. "I feel great. The best thing this year is that I don't feel like I'm rehabbing any more. I'm maintaining. That's allowed me to focus much more on my pitching." That's something Rogers had been unable to do before this season. He was limited to 53 games by injuries in his first five seasons, and before this year, had not pitched in a game since June 2006. There's some irony in the fact that Rogers' shoulder began aching while he worked with coaches to alter his cross-body delivery, a change designed, of all things, to help him avoid injury. Rogers had his first shoulder surgery in January 2007, then another in June 2008. Still, the Brewers added Rogers to the 40-man roster last winter rather than risk losing him in the Rule 5 Draft. His velocity began to return in April, and when Ash saw Rogers pitch earlier this summer, he was firing 98-mph fastballs. "He has four pitches for the Major League level," said Fred Dabney, the fifth-year pitching coach at Brevard County. "He just needs to get more consistent with them. He could be quite a pitcher with the stuff he's been blessed with." General manager Doug Melvin, who invested a $2.2 million signing bonus in Rogers, missed seeing Rogers on his trip to Brevard County because the right-hander was resting a back strain. The GM, though, has seen the reports. "We're very encouraged by Rogers," Melvin said. "He's a young, power arm. But you have to avoid a guy getting caught up in velocity. I'd rather have him get caught up in throwing strikes and secondary pitches. He's got enough velocity to get people out. He's got great stuff, and he's in a good frame of mind now." There were moments of doubt, Rogers said, but not to the, "Is this really worth it," degree that Jones faced. The low point was last May. Rogers, rehabbing his first shoulder surgery, faced hitters for the first time and knew something wasn't right. He would undergo a second procedure on June 6. "It never got to the point where I worried about him," Dabney said. "But some days were better than others. Early on this year, I'm sure there were bullpens that he wasn't happy with how he felt. But slowly but surely, he's learning how things feel the day after he pitches. When you haven't been out there for two years, you have to get familiar again with how things are supposed to feel." Jones saw that comfort level grow, firsthand. The two, who have become close friends through parallel rehab schedules, started the season together in Florida. "He was attacking the hitters, and it was fun to watch that," Jones said. "What a difference. I know how it is when you're out there and you have no idea what is going to come out of your arm. I couldn't be more proud of him for staying the course." Likewise, when Rogers learned of Jones' promotion this week, he called to offer congratulations. "He's an easy guy to root for," Rogers said. With pitching, patience is virtue They're rooting for Jones and Rogers inside the Brewers' big league clubhouse. "Wouldn't it be awesome if those two guys, after all they have been through, got to the big leagues for this team," asked Milwaukee left-hander Manny Parra, who endured rehab from a shoulder injury during his own Minor League rise and has mentored Rogers. "That would say something about the work ethic of both," Parra said. "And it would really say something about the organization being patient with them." That part of the equation has not been easy. Despite this year's struggles, the Brewers consider themselves past the development stage and into contender status, a move that has made it much more difficult for Ash and Melvin to stay patient. They tried, for example, to wait out left-hander Jorge De La Rosa, who spun his wheels during three years with Milwaukee and now is a fixture in the Rockies rotation, with better numbers this year, Melvin has been pointing out this summer, than Phillies World Series hero Cole Hamels. The Brewers would love to have De La Rosa back today. With Dave Bush and Jeff Suppan on the disabled list and Parra having spent time in Triple-A, Milwaukee's starting pitching has been a mess since mid-June. "It takes time with pitchers," Melvin said. "That's the thing, I think, that people don't understand. It takes them time to develop. Look at Jorge De La Rosa, who's putting up some good numbers this year. We saw it, but once we started to compete, we didn't have the patience to wait. "Everybody talks about [San Francisco's] Matt Cain, say he has turned the corner and is having a big year. Well, he was drafted in 2002. Not everybody is Tim Lincecum [drafted by the Giants in 2005 and a Cy Young Award winner three years later]. Even as good an arm as [Tampa Bay's] David Price has, he has struggled a little bit. Pitching doesn't come easy. It takes time and patience, and everybody gets impatient with it and wants to rush it to the big leagues." Is the wait worth it? Flash back a year, and "impatient" was characterizing Jones' mindset lightly. He returned from Tommy John surgery in mid-May and in August the medical people told him he was fine. But he was being tattooed in Huntsville, giving up 18 walks and 19 runs in 22 innings during a five-game stretch through Aug. 13. He seriously considered calling it a career. It wasn't the first time, but this particular time, over coffee with Huntsville athletic trainer Dave Yeager, Jones was reminded of something he felt in his gut. "The problem came when I would look back at the work I had put in," Jones said. "It was like, the more I started thinking about retirement, the further away from it I got. I couldn't just give up. It would have been too difficult to walk away and then, two years later, look back and say, 'I put in all that time, and I have nothing to show for it.' So I couldn't quit." He was rewarded for his perseverance this week. Six years after Jones first debuted in Double-A, he was finally promoted to the next level. Jones' velocity, once in the 96-97 mph vicinity, now sits closer to 90. Perhaps the most troubling part of his pitching line Wednesday night was his strikeout total: zero. "The thought was, 'Put him at Triple-A and see what he can do,'" Melvin said. "He's a great example for any of the other guys who have had an arm problem. Stay with it." Jones and Rogers have both done that, and, despite their setbacks, are not exactly old geezers. Jones is 26, and won't turn 27 until after the start of next season. He will be a Minor League free agent again this winter, but a healthy finish in Nashville could convince the Brewers to offer him another deal for 2010. Jones, while recognizing the long leash the Brewers have afforded him over the years, said he would have to at least consider offers from organizations if they come. Rogers turns 24 in January. The Brewers burned one of his options this year, so he has two left before the team faces its next tough decision. If Rogers remains on track, he could begin next season at Double-A Huntsville and perhaps finish in Nashville. In that scenario, he could be a big league option by mid-2011. That's all guesswork. Rogers will more likely progress as quickly as his health allows. "It's upsetting to think about what both of those guys have gone through," said Brewers ace Yovani Gallardo, selected one round after Rogers in the '04 Draft. "I remember after I signed and went to Maryvale [Baseball Park, the Brewers' year-round training facility]. 'Jonesy' was already there rehabbing. "That was five years ago. That's pretty amazing to think about." Gallardo hopes to see Jones again sometime soon. Rogers, too. "Those guys work hard," Gallardo said. "That's obvious when you look at them moving up this year and having success."Adam McCalvy is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
