Rays trade Enny Romero to Nationals for prospect Jeffrey Rosa

Last night the Tampa Bay Rays traded left-handed pitcher Enny Romero to the Washington Nationals for minor league right-hander Jeffrey Rosa. Romero can hit 96 MPH but has a 5.59 ERA in 76 major league innings. Rosa is the unknown here, so let’s take a look.

Jeffrey Rosa, RHP: Rosa was signed by the Nationals in 2015 out of the Dominican Republic. At age 20 he was much older than typical for a Latin American signing and he earned only a small $10,000 bonus, but the Nationals liked his athleticism and arm strength. Mechanical tweaks have boosted his fastball, reportedly at 95 to 100 MPH according to Ben Badler’s scouting report at Baseball America.

Rosa spent 2016 with the Gulf Coast League Nationals, posting a 4.91 ERA in 41 innings with a 34/20 K/BB and a 2.04 GO/AO. His fastball is heavy and he also has a promising slider, but his control is unreliable at present and he’s raw even for a 21-year-old. He throws hard, though, and gives Rays coaches and development folks another live arm to work with.