(February 6, 2019) — The York Revolution has announced its first three player signings for the 2019 season. The club has re-signed 2018 team MVP and Atlantic League All-Star Melky Mesa, while bringing on right-handed pitchers Jeffrey Rosa and Fabian Roman. The signings were unveiled live by manager Mark Mason on Tuesday evening’s airing of “Revs Hot Stove Weekly presented by Shipley Energy” on SportsRadio 1350 WOYK.
Mesa returns after batting .337 with 20 home runs and 89 RBI in 100 games for the Revs in 2018. His average ranked third-highest in the league, just one point shy of the top spot, while also tying the third-highest mark in team history. His 20 home runs placed third on the league leaderboard, while his RBI total ranked second, just two off the league high. Mesa also finished third in runs scored (85) and total bases (221) and tops in extra-base hits (48) and slugging percentage (.577). His slugging established the second-highest clip in a single-season in franchise history.
Mesa’s performance during his first season in the Atlantic League earned him a spot on the league’s post-season All-Star team. That honor came after he had already been selected as the Revs’ 2018 team Player of the Year. His batting average was the highest by a Revs hitter in five seasons, and he became the first batter in franchise history to lead the league in extra-base hits.
“He’s a great team player and a great hitter,” said Mason. “We’d like to use him more as an everyday defensive left fielder this year as well. Everybody knows he can hit. It would have been interesting to see what kind of numbers he’d have put up had he been healthy right from the beginning. For me, he’s undoubtedly the best hitter in the league. We’re expecting him to pick up where he left off last year and also play some good defense for us, which we know he can do.”
The 32-year-old Mesa enters his 14th professional season. He gained Major League experience, appearing in three games for the New York Yankees in 2012 and five more in 2013, combining to go 6-for-15 with a pair of doubles. Over his minor league career, Mesa has totaled 139 home runs, 529 RBI, and 127 stolen bases.
The Dominican Republic native originally signed with New York in 2003 and ascended through the Yankees farm system. He was a South Atlantic League All-Star in 2009 after belting 20 home runs for Charleston and was the Florida State League Player of the Year in 2010, when he clubbed 19 long balls while hitting .260 with Tampa. He combined to bat .264 with a career-high 23 home runs between Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2012 and was an Eastern League All-Star, earning his first big league call-up. He has spent parts of five seasons at the Triple-A level in the Yankees, Kansas City Royals, and Toronto Blue Jays organizations.
Rosa makes his Atlantic League debut in his fifth pro season in 2019. The 23-year-old originally signed with the Washington Nationals, where he spent two seasons as a starter, before pitching the past two seasons as a reliever at the Rookie level of the Tampa Bay Rays organization. The Higuey, DR, native holds a career ERA of 4.98, and has allowed just 115 hits in 132.0 innings while striking out 140 batters.
“We were contacted by some scouts that had seen him pitch,” commented Mason. “He has a lot of upside with a really good fastball. There is a lot of buzz about him and his velocity, so we were interested to bring him in and see what he can do.”
Roman comes to the Atlantic League for the first time, entering his fifth pro season. The 27-year-old Jersey City, NJ, native was a 16th round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2013 out of Lubbock Christian (TX) University and spent his first two professional seasons in the Reds system. After spending 2016 in the American Association, Roman signed with the Seattle Mariners in 2017. Roman is 5-5 in his career over 59 appearances, all in relief.
“He has high potential as well,” stated Mason. “He has good off-speed pitches as his out pitches. He can give multiple innings. We’re looking to use him in the middle of the game. He hasn’t pitched at high levels yet, but he has a lot of potential, and we look forward to bringing him in and seeing how he performs.”
The Revs will unveil more signings each week on “Revs Hot Stove Weekly” presented by Shipley Energy on WOYK. The next airing will be on Monday, February 11, at 6 p.m., and can also be heard online at
woyk1350.com and on The New WOYK app.
