10 MLB Players You Had No Idea Were Still on Active Rosters
Theres’s a lot of forgotten veterans floating around.
With 30 MLB clubs and 40-man rosters for each team, there are a whopping 1,200 active players across the league. Given that number, there’s bound to be dozens of guys you’ve never heard of but also a surprising number that you’ve heard of but have exited your mind in recent months and years.
A glance over current 40-man rosters as of Thursday, May 7th reveals quite a few that fit in the second category. Here are 10 guys that, unless you’re a baseball junkie or are a fan of their current employer, you likely had no clue were still on active rosters:
Josh Johnson (San Diego Padres, SP)
Johnson hasn’t pitched since 2013 when he had a disastrous injury-riddled and ineffective 16-start season with Toronto, his only with the club. He’s currently on the 15-day DL for the Padres and is hoping to make his first start in 2015 in nearly two years.
Willie Bloomquist (Seattle Mariners, SS)
With the late starts on the west coast and few very ABs in 2015, it’s not surprising that most have forgotten about Willie Bloomquist. He hasn’t recorded more than 200 ABs since 2012 and appears headed toward retirement in the next year or two.
Rickie Weeks (Seattle Mariners, OF)
After a fantastic 2010 season with Milwaukee in which he walloped 29 homers and recorded 175 hits in 160 games, Rickie Weeks has seen his production slowly tumble in becoming a forgotten DH and reserve outfielder in his first season with Seattle.
Gerald Laird (Arizona Diamondbacks, C)
Currently on the 60-day DL with Arizona, the veteran catcher hasn’t played in more than 65 games since 2010 and had a brutal 2014 season with the Braves, hitting just above the Mendoza line at .204. He went 0-for-2 at the plate with the Dbacks in 2015 before heading to the DL.
Chad Billingsley (Philadelphia Phillies, SP)
This list was made for guys like Chad Billingsley. Still only 30 years old, the former 200-inning, 16-win pitcher started his first game in two years on May 5th with the Phillies. It was the first non-Dodgers start of his career.
Jonathan Broxton (Milwaukee Brewers, RP)
Jonathan Broxton owns a career ERA of 3.11 and had a quietly fantastic 2014 season with the Brewers and Reds, in which he appeared in 62 games and recorded 49 strikeouts with a 2.30 ERA. He’s one of many forgotten veterans sitting on very poor teams.
Grady Sizemore (Philadelphia Phillies, OF)
Raise your hand if you knew that Grady Sizemore played in 112 ballgames last year…anyone? He recorded 300-plus ABs for the first time since 2009 and semi-revived a frustrating career.
LaTroy Hawkins (Colorado Rockies, RP)
Yes, LaTroy Hawkins is STILL pitching. In his second season with the Rockies, he’s the only active member of the 1,000-games-pitched club and April 29th marked his 20th Anniversary in the game.
Colby Rasmus (Houston Astros, OF)
It might be a bit of a stretch to say fans have no clue Rasmus is still in the bigs therefore his inclusion speaks more to how much he’s fallen from electrifying Cardinals and Blue Jays prospect to an average outfielder for a team that, until 2015, has been an afterthought for much of the last decade.
Ubaldo Jimenez (Baltimore Orioles, SP)
Like Rasmus, this is going out on a limb, but it’s fairly accurate. He’s posted a couple very good seasons since his absurd 2010 campaign with Colorado but hasn’t been able to put together back-to-back productive years since then, leading many to forget he’s still in the Baltimore rotation.
