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Revolution announces first three player signings, including 2018 team MVP Melky Mesa

YORK — Atlantic League All-Star and 2018 team MVP Melky Mesa is one of the first three players signed by the York Revolution for the upcoming season, the ...
mesa

YORK — Atlantic League All-Star and 2018 team MVP Melky Mesa is one of the first three players signed by the York Revolution for the upcoming season, the team announced Wednesday.

Right-handed pitchers Jeffrey Rosa and Fabian Roman have also joined the Revolution, manager Mark Mason announced.

Mesa, an outfielder, hit .337 with 20 home runs and 89 RBI in 100 games with York last season. He finished third in the Atlantic League in batting, and his average was the third-highest mark in team history. He was also third in the league in homers and second in RBI. He also ranked third in the league in runs scored (85) and total bases (221) while leading the league in extra-base hits (48) and slugging percentage (.577).

“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.”

Mesa, 32, is entering his 14th professional season. He played a total of eight games in the Major Leagues — all with the New York Yankees in the 2012 and 2013 seasons. He went 6-for-15 with two doubles in the big leagues.

Over his minor league career, Mesa has totaled 139 home runs, 529 RBI, and 127 stolen bases.

Mesa, a native of the Dominican Republic, was originally signed by the Yankees in 2003. In addition to his time in the Yankees’ minor-league system, he also has been part of Kansas City Royals and Toronto Blue Jays organizations.

Revolution announces first three player signings, including 2018 team MVP Melky Mesa

Rosa, 23, will make his Atlantic League debut with the Revs in his fifth professional season. Originally signed by the Washington Nationals, Rosa 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 Dominican Republic 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,” said 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.”

Revolution announces first three player signings, including 2018 team MVP Melky Mesa

Roman is also coming to the Atlantic League for the first time in his fifth year as a pro. The 27-year-old Jersey City, NJ, native was a 16th round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2013 out of Lubbock Christian (Tex.) 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.”

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