Amid Year 2 slump, Rogers fights to stay upbeat

Reigning NL Rookie of the Year runner-up strikes out five over 3 2/3 innings

July 26th, 2022
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CINCINNATI -- No one is tougher on Trevor Rogers than himself.

Rogers takes pride in his mental toughness, but his inner voice continues to test him during a trying sophomore season. His growing pains reached a fever pitch on Monday night, when he surrendered six runs in 3 2/3 innings in the Marlins’ 11-2 loss to the Reds at Great American Ball Park.

Seated at his locker inside the visitors' clubhouse postgame, the 24-year-old southpaw needed a few extra minutes to collect himself before discussing his latest start. Right-hander Jordan Holloway, who was teammates with Rogers with Class A Jupiter in 2019, could be seen giving him a reassuring hug.

“It definitely wasn't my plan of how the second half of the season would go,” Rogers said. “This is really frustrating. It just seems like every five days, I'm not giving this team an opportunity to win, and that's probably the most frustrating part. Just constantly putting in the work, and it's not from a lack of effort, not from a lack of work, and it's still not going my way. It's super frustrating right now. I wish I had more, but it's just really frustrating."

A sophomore slump, as they call it, is nothing new. It’s almost a rite of passage. Rogers need look no further than the opposing dugout, where 2021 National League Rookie of the Year Jonathan India has struggled in ‘22.

Rogers, who finished as the runner-up for NL ROY, squared off with India for the first three times of their young careers on Monday night. The South Florida native got the best of Rogers in all three matchups. 

India jumped on Rogers’ first pitch of the game -- a 93.5 mph four-seamer on the outside corner -- for a double to left field. He followed that up with a leadoff single to center in the third on a 2-2 pitch -- a 95.4 mph four-seamer in nearly an identical spot. In the fourth, Rogers walked India on five pitches with a runner at second and two outs.

"He’s an unbelievable pitcher,” said India, who has been limited to just 43 games due to injuries. “Throws hard, good slider, good changeup. I just saw him really well today and had good at-bats against him. I was on my game today."

While Rogers made the long walk back to the dugout after Brandon Drury took a center-cut changeup deep for a three-run homer to chase him in the fourth, India fell a triple shy of the cycle.

Monday’s series opener exacerbated season-long trends for Rogers:

• 2022: 4-10, 5.85 ERA, 1.60 WHIP, 8.5 K/9, 4.2 BB/9
• 2021: 7-8, 2.64 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 10.6 K/9, 3.1 BB/9

• 2022: 12 homers in 87 2/3 innings
• 2021: Six homers in 133 innings

• 2022: Four times unable to complete four innings
• Just once unable to complete four innings

• 2022 (entering Monday): .314 average and .562 slugging vs. fastball
• 2021: .222 average and .344 slugging vs. fastball

Rogers’ 2021-22 ERA increase (3.21) is the highest among pitchers who have started 15 or more games in both seasons. He said it comes down to executing pitches on a consistent basis. While his velocity has been nearly the same, location (in particular his walk rate) has been the issue.

Miami has been letting Rogers work through his struggles, including his mechanics, at the big league level. At the same time, the club must balance trying to win ballgames and not harming his confidence.

“It's hard,” manager Don Mattingly said. “Everybody wants to have success, and you want to help the club, and you feel like you're letting the club down. It's tough on you. I think we have to try to stay upbeat with him, but this is the big leagues, and you've got to get results at some point. It's the boat we're in.”

Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. and right-hander Pablo López, who experienced the same growing pains earlier in his career, have provided support. Like López, Rogers can overthink things and beat up on himself.

“I think pressure's probably not the right word,” Rogers said. “I'd call it expectation for me, because I've proven to everybody that I belong here. But again, back of your head [is] like, 'Well, maybe you weren't as good.'

“You have to deal with that constantly, and constantly tell myself, ‘OK, you're getting your butt handed to you, but you are good enough.' It is frustrating because of what happened last year; but that was last year and this year is this year, and I'm not doing that at all right now. I look at it as is, ‘I know I can do it, and I've just got to get back to that point.’”

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Christina De Nicola covers the Marlins for MLB.com.