Could a career end on such a night? Miguel Rojas closed his 13‑year saga as the Dodgers fell to Milwaukee, announcing retirement after Thursday’s elimination.
The announcement wasn’t shocking. He had hinted last fall about hanging up his cleats after 2026, even flirting with another year, but the odds leaned toward retirement. After four seasons in L.A., he’s set to slide into a player‑development role the club arranged when he re‑signed on a $5.5 million deal last December.
Rojas spent his MLB tenure with only the Dodgers and Marlins, though his pro roots began in Cincinnati after signing out of Venezuela in 2006. He rose through seven seasons in the Reds’ farm system, reached Triple‑A, then earned minor‑league free agency before joining Los Angeles in 2013 and debuting a year later.
A stellar .463 OPS in 85 games as a 25‑year‑old rookie earned him a spot in a seven‑player trade that sent Dee Strange‑Gordon, Andrew Heaney, Dan Haren and future teammate Kiké Hernández to Miami. Few imagined a decade‑plus career, yet he evolved from a glove‑only utility man into a reliable everyday shortstop with the Fish.
Rojas never became a power hitter, but he nudged his average to league‑level and became the Marlins’ clubhouse anchor. In my view, his leadership defined that era, and a .304 line in the shortened 2020 campaign helped Miami clinch its first postseason berth since 2003.
During eight seasons in South Florida he posted a .265/.318/.366 slash line with 38 homers, ranking in the top ten for games and plate appearances. He posted 23 runs above average at shortstop and led NL shortstops in fielding percentage and DRS, finishing fourth in OAA in 2022.
That 2022 campaign marked his final year in Miami before the Fish dealt him back to L.A. He promptly inked a one‑year extension and repeated the pattern for the next four seasons, anchoring the Dodgers’ shortstop spot in ’23 before shifting to a utility role.
Returning to Los Angeles put him on baseball’s biggest stage yearly. A dip in ’23 gave way to league‑average production from 2024‑26, and he captured his first World Series ring in 2024 when the Dodgers downed the Yankees in five games, starting Game 2 despite a modest postseason impact.
He entered 2025 expecting a similar bench role, logging a few late‑game appearances early in the playoffs. The Dodgers met the Blue Jays in a classic World Series, and Rojas sat on the bench for the first five games, surfacing only in extra innings of a marathon Game 3.
In Game 6, skipper Dave Roberts shuffled the lineup, inserting Rojas at second and moving Tommy Edman to center as Andy Pages struggled. Though he went 0‑3, the manager kept him on the board for Game 7, setting up one of baseball’s biggest swings.
Toronto seized an early lead, holding a 4‑3 edge into the ninth. Jeff Hoffman struck out Hernández to bring the Jays within two outs of the title, then Rojas launched a full‑count slider into left‑field seats, electrifying the Rogers Centre crowd. The Dodgers eventually won on a Will Smith homer in the 11th, cementing Rojas’s moment as the most iconic Game 7 World Series blast since Bill Mazeroski’s 1960 walk‑off.
Rojas returned to L.A. dreaming of a three‑peat, only to see Milwaukee sweep the series after a dramatic comeback from 4‑0 down. He was in the lineup but was pinch‑hit for before his at‑bat, and his final plate appearance came in Game 3, where he went 1‑1 with a walk.
Surpassing 12 years and 1,400 games, he retires with a .260/.313/.363 line, 61 homers and 386 RBIs, having topped 1,000 hits in April. Nearly 10,000 defensive innings across the infield earned him 15 WAR per FanGraphs and about 20 WAR on Baseball‑Reference, with career earnings just over $40 million. Will his future in managing live up to the impact he made on the field?
Though the glove was Rojas’ calling card, his career will be best remembered for one iconic swing. There’s a good chance he’ll make a name for himself in his post-playing days as well. Rojas told Bob Nightengale of USA Today in August that he hopes to have a managerial career someday. Congratulations to Rojas on a strong career (and on a notable off-field achievement earlier this month) and best of luck in his future endeavors.