Josh Rogers 'Yanked' from Cardinal Rotation

Josh Rogers was an 11th Round draft pick for the New York Yankees last month and originally turned down the 'Bronx Bombers' to come back and play for the Cards in 2015-2016 as a Junior starter. The Yankees apparently had different plans.

It was announced today by Jim Callis, of MLB.com that the Yankess and Josh have agreed, in principal, to pay Rogers an overslot bonus worth 4th Round money (approx $500,000) to get a longer look at him before deciding whether or not to sign him to a contract. Josh, your thoughts?

Rogers was 8-1 last year for the Cards with a 3.36 ERA in just over 92 inning pitched. Rogers gained some notoriety late in his freshman year picking up a few wins and pitching well enough to get a post season victory over Kentucky. This past season Rogers was, for lack of a better term, dominant as a #3 starter. Rogers utilized three pitches (fastball/slider/change) most of the year, but his location control is what caught the eyes of many at the next level.

The departure of Rogers hurts, as would any starter who won your team eight games, as well as a postseason contest over Michigan, but the return of McKay (Olerud Award winner) and some young talent out of the bullpen will have the rotation looking just fine in 2015. (FYI: Although a longshot at this point, Funkhouser still has not signed with the Dodgers, and a return to Louisville is not out of the question.)

Congratulations to Josh, who has been a big Louisville fan, hailing from New Albany, IN since well before putting on the uniform. We wish him the best of luck moving forward.