Miguel Rojas retired from the big leagues almost two weeks ago when the Los Angeles Dodgers were swept out of the NLCS by the Milwaukee Brewers, but he'll be taking the field one more time before officially hanging up his cleats.
Rojas and the Miami Marlins announced via Instagram on Monday that the 37-year-old infielder will suit up for los Tiburones de la Guaira in their "Choque de Gigantes" (Clash of the Giants) series against Navegantes del Magallanes at loanDepot Park on Nov. 14 and 15.
"This will be my farewell," Rojas told El Extra Base in Spanish in September. "I want to do it publicly over here (in Miami). ... Tiburones were a fundamental part of my life and my career and if it wasn't for Tiburones, I wouldn't be the Major Leaguer that
I am today. I owe them so much."
It's a homecoming on two fronts for Rojas, who played with Tiburones in the Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP), the Venezuelan winter league, for 10 years from 2009-'19 and once more in the 2023-24 winter season. During that time, Rojas played the majority of his big league career with the Marlins, arriving in Miami in 2015 after being traded from the Dodgers before LA reacquired him ahead of the 2023 season.
"It's funny because it was one of the first moves I did when I got here was trading Miggy Ro away," Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said at the team's end of season press conference. "And to look at his career and have him have a chance to come back and be such a big part of those two championship teams, and for him to go out the way he did, leaving everything on the field.
"Can't say enough about the guy, the competitor, the teammate and we look forward to are hopeful that he's impacting us in the future as well."
That last part of Friedman's sentence might already have gotten a head start as Rojas was spotted at the Arizona Fall League on Monday working with several top prospects within the Dodgers organization. He's made no secret of his goal of being a manager someday, but that journey will start after Rojas gets one last farewell.
"I want to put on the uniform one more time," Rojas said. "On the 14th and 15th, I want to put on the number 19 to say goodbye to the fans in Miami. ... in a place that's like a home away from home."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dodgers legend Miguel Rojas to play one last game for Venezuelan team in Miami
