Catcher Rich Rowland, who spent six seasons in the major leagues with the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox, has died. Rowland's son, Robby, announced his father's death in a post to his Instagram account on Thursday, Aug. 27. No cause of death was provided. https://www.instagram.com/p/DciqR2WltQ9/?img_index=20 "RIP Pops," read the text overlay on Robby Rowland's post.
My best friend & my role model.. Words simply cannot express.. and if they could I wouldn’t know which ones to use..I just feel so dang blessed to have had the best frickin dad a kid could ask for! I love you, pops." Rowland was born Feb. 25, 1964, in Cloverdale, California, and grew up as a three-sport athlete.
At Cloverdale High School, he played baseball, basketball and football, starring as a quarterback while also pitching and playing shortstop. He later attended Ventura College before leaving baseball and working in Northern California’s timber industry. Rowland returned to baseball in 1987, when he played for the Cloverdale Merchants in a summer league.
Encouraged by coach Dan Stacy, Rowland enrolled at Mendocino College and hit .462 as a catcher. The Detroit Tigers selected him in the 17th round of the 1988 amateur draft. More news: Former Yankees Pitcher Famous for Surgery Success Dies Two years later, in September 1990, Rowland made his debut against the Milwaukee Brewers.
He collected his first major-league hit, a double, two days later. Rowland spent most of the next three seasons with Triple-A Toledo, where his production was considerably stronger than his limited major-league opportunities. In 1992, he hit 25 home runs and drove in 82 runs for the Mud Hens, earning International League All-Star honors and recognition as the Tigers’ minor-league player of the year.
More news: Former Yankees, A’s Pitcher Dies Detroit traded Rowland to Boston for catcher John Flaherty on April 1, 1994. He appeared in 46 games for the Red Sox that year and hit .229 with nine home runs and 20 RBIs — all career-highs. He was especially productive after returning from a foot injury, but the season ended with the players’ strike in August.
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