Rojas' journey from teen closer to bullpen coach taken at PNC Park (Courtesy of StepOutside.org)

Euclides Rojas. - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS

Euclides Rojas walked into the tunnel at PNC Park after watching the Pirates take batting practice, set his equipment bag down near a dimly lit stairway and pointed out towards the sunlight.

"Being young is an advantage for them," Rojas, the Pirates' bullpen coach, said, referring to his relievers. "I wish I was young again."

Rojas, 51, is about to complete his eighth season in his current role, and this may have been his most challenging assignment yet. His bullpen arms are electrifying but inexperienced. The oldest member of the group, Richard Rodriguez, 28, had only 5 2/3 career big-league innings prior to this season and didn't make the opening day roster.

Prior to the acquisition of Keone Kela, the only reliever with playoff experience was George Kontos, who was released by the team in May. Even the All-Star closer, Felipe Vazquez, had spent less than one season in a high-leverage role. It was among the worst bullpens, statistically, in the National League for the first two months of the season.

However, a man who is uniquely qualified to tutor young pitchers has helped the Pirates' young bullpen ascend to among the league's best. Rojas began pitching professionally in Cuba at 16 years old and became a closer only one year later. He pitched the national team to championship wins across the globe and was once Cuba's all-time saves leader, all under the watchful eye of a ruthless dictator.

"He’s talked to me about handling pressure a lot," Vazquez, 27, told DKPittsburghSports.com. "It’s something I struggled with earlier this season and he told me, ‘Do you know what it’s like pitching for Team Cuba when Fidel Castro is the owner?’ He’s been a closer, so he knows exactly what I go through. I mean, can you imagine doing that?"

Rojas doesn't reveal details of his past unless his players pry. Most of the Pirates' relievers aren't aware of what Rojas accomplished before he was the bullpen coach for the Red Sox during their World Series run in 2004.

"Really?" Edgar Santana responded when told of Rojas' pitching career. "I had no idea. I'll have to talk to him about that." Others know only the basic details of Rojas' arrival in the United States. How he and his wife, Marta, escaped Castro's Cuba on a 15-foot raft with their then-infant son and 10 others, or that they were detained at Guantanamo Bay until they could find a sponsor in the U.S.

Those are stories Rojas prefers to not share, out of respect for all those who didn't survive their escape to freedom, both before and after his family's exodus. His baseball journey, though, is one that evoked pleasant memories — how a few coaches and a former teammate helped shepherd him from a nervous teenager to among the world's best.

"Now that was fun," he recalled.

Rojas, one of seven children raised by his mother, Paula Onelia Rodriguez, in Havana, Cuba's capital city, began playing organized ball at 9 years old. His first youth coach, Ihosvany Gallego, who still owns the Cuban National Series record for ERA in a season, insisted on saving his arm by not allowing him to pitch until he was around 15 years old.

Rojas played second base and shortstop, but he always wanted to pitch. Finally, Gallego agreed to let him throw and taught Rojas a curveball, splitter, slider and sinker.

Rojas represented his school, county and state until finally, in 1983, at 16 years old, he was chosen to join Industriales, his professional hometown team in the country's National Series — the premier baseball league in Cuba. He spent his first season as a starter, until Waldo Velo, his pitching coach, explained to his pupil the job of a closer. All Rojas wanted was to pitch. He didn't care about the inning or the situation. So, at only 17 years old, he was asked to close games in front of 55,000 fans at Estadio Latinoamerico, the ballpark where his father worked and where he fell in love with the sport as a child. 

It was in that moment that he recalled the teachings of Gallego and Velo, while his veteran catcher, Pedro Medina, urged him to not get lost in the moment.

"If I said the first couple times I wasn’t nervous, I’d be lying," Rojas recalled. "Of course I was nervous. Pedro told me to attack the hitters and throw every pitch with conviction. I learned at that age that execution of the pitch is more important than selection of the pitch. Every time I throw the pitch, I trust the catcher I have behind the plate and try to execute."

Rojas recorded the final out in 1986 when Industriales won its first National Series title in 15 years. He entered to protect a one-run lead, but his inherited runner at second base scored on a base hit to right field, and he pitched three more innings until his offense came through.

He was chosen for the national team a year later, serving as its first closer, a job he held for eight years, until his family left the country in August 1994. Rojas made 342 career relief appearances and had 90 saves — Cuba never lost an international tournament in that time. In 1988, it played a U.S. team in Parma, Italy for the World Cup title that included future big leaguers Robin VenturaTino MartinezChris Carpenter and Charles Nagy.

Rojas entered in the sixth and kept the deficit at one run until his teammates tied it in the ninth, then earned the win when Cuba scored in the bottom of the 10th. He never experienced the wrath of the government or country following a tournament loss, yet he and his teammates all heard stories of past teams returning home to discover they no longer had a spot on the national team.

"I focused, concentrated and played baseball," Rojas said. "Did the best to reach my potential and do the best for my team. I really didn’t care about the government. I didn’t like it. I still don’t like it. I was born there. I’m an American citizen, but I was born in Cuba. I have to embrace it. I never liked it. I was lucky I had brothers older than me who were able to leave before Castro got to power. They always told me everything. My parents were always shy about it, but they wanted to take care of their sons. My brothers told me the truth and they opened my eyes since the beginning."

Upon receiving a sponsor, Rojas pursued a professional career in the United States but retired as a player after less than two seasons — at only 29 years old. John Boles, the Marlins' former farm-system director, hired Rojas to work with the club's rookie ball affiliate in the Gulf Coast League, and Rojas spent four seasons there until he was promoted to pitching coach at High-A, where he coached A.J. Burnett and Brad Penny.

Rojas was hired by the Pirates as a roving minor league instructor in 2002 and left the next season to become the Red Sox's bullpen coach for two years. He then rejoined the Pirates as Latin American field coordinator, where he met Ray Searage.

"You cannot put a price tag on his experience," Searage said. "He is so valuable. He is straight forward. He lets them know the way it is and what they need to improve on. We share thoughts. He finishes my sentences, I finish his sentences."

Entering this season, the Pirates had led the majors in saves (332) and bullpen ERA (3.30) since Rojas was hired prior to the 2011 season. Despite youth, the group has the lowest ERA in the National League from the All-Star break until rosters expanded on Sept. 1, and Vazquez ranks third in saves (35) after blowing four in May.

Rojas lists Gallego and Velo as his coaching influences, and he credits his degree from Havana University for equipping him with the tools to make a successful transition to coaching. Like his teachers, Searage is nurturing but stern. He's also honest and forthcoming. Rojas will pull a young reliever aside to offer advice. He'll walk through the clubhouse before pitchers' pregame stretch to check how each feels physically and often does the same after games, at home or on the road.

"It’s more of a feeling that he gives you," Steven Brault said. "He has your back. He’ll take you aside and have a quiet conversation about things you need to fix. He’s a constant communication guy. He’s always checking how you’re doing every day. He can get a little intense, not in the same way he used to I’m sure. He’s more of a let’s enjoy this, relax and you guys focus on it being a new day."

That message was delivered to him throughout his own career. After all, the slightest mistake could infuriate fans across Cuba and put an end to his lifelong dream. Clint Hurdle described Rojas' experience as "vast," adding that it isn't replicated by anyone in the industry.

"It’s always a challenge, but it’s a lot of fun," Rojas said. "It keeps me busy."

Loading...
Loading...