Former LA Angel Jose Rojas signs in KBO

Former Los Angeles Angels utility player Jose Rojas signed a deal with the Doosan Bears of the KBO. Rojas spent parts of two seasons with the Angels, slashing .188/.245/.339 with six home runs and 16 RBI.

Rojas' deal is for one year and $1 million dollars. Rojas probably wasn't going to get a job in the majors for 2023 so he found a different professional league to play in.

Rojas was in the Angels minor league system for six seasons. While he was a great hitter there, his game never translated to the big league level.

Former Angel Jose Rojas finds a new home in the KBO.

Last season Rojas played in 61 games for the Angels and struggled. He slashed .208/.277/.399 with six home runs and 15 RBI. Six home runs in 168 at bats actually isn't too bad, but he just wasn't hitting much other than the home runs.

Rojas had always been a great hitter in the minors, slashing .286/.347/.503 with 92 home runs and 365 RBI across six seasons in the Angels system. He hit as many as 31 home runs in a season with an OPS as high as .938. Those numbers were in 2019 in AAA.

Rojas appeared in 22 games with the Angels this season but had just seven hits in 56 at-bats with no walks and 19 strikeouts. The strikeouts plagued Rojas in each of his stints with the Ange.s He was claimed by the Giants off of waivers in early September but would never appear in a big league game for them.

The 29-year-old is versatile, showing an ability to play every infield position except shortstop, as well as both corner outfield positions. He's shown solid power in the minor leagues but just hasn't hit in the bigs.

Maybe after a year abroad Rojas can come back to the U.S. and put it all together offensively.