HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers on Wednesday signed pitcher D.J. Johnson, a right-handed pitcher with Major League experience. Johnson joined the team today.

The 34-year-old right-hander appeared in 39 games at the MLB level with Colorado in 2018 and ’19, and Cleveland and Tampa Bay in 2021. Johnson has a 1-2 record with a 4.54 ERA in the big leagues with 38 strikeouts in 35.2 innings. He last played in the Majors in 2021 when the Rays placed him on the injured list with a right shoulder sprain.

The Portland, Oregon native played at Western Oregon University as a position player and signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent in 2010. After a stint in the Frontier League, Johnson worked his way through the Arizona, Minnesota, LA Angels and Colorado farm systems before making his Major League debut on September 9, 2017 with the Rockies. Johnson has also spent time playing in the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan.

In addition, the Rockers have released infielder Colin Moran and right-handed pitcher Neil Ramirez.

Moran, the former North Carolina All-American and All-ACC infielder, joined the Rockers on May 3 and was productive over his 51-game tenure, hitting .289 with eight homers, 15 doubles and 24 RBI. However, injuries slowed down the 31-year-old former Major Leaguer. He had not played since July 28 when he slammed three hits, including a pair of doubles, to lead the Rockers to a 10-5 win at Southern Maryland.

Ramirez, another former MLB pitcher, had a 5-4 record with High Point in 2024 with a 4.82 ERA. The 35-year-old Virginia Beach native spent parts of six seasons in the Majors, compiling a 4-8 record and a 4.46 ERA in 185 career appearances.

The Rockers host game two of a three-game series with the Gastonia Baseball Club on Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. at Truist Point.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers on Saturday re-signed shortstop Ryan Grotjohn. The Rockers opening day starting shortstop in 2023 and 2024 had spent the last six weeks playing in Mexico with Olmecas de Tabasco.

Grotjohn last played for the Rockers on July 3. He was riding a five-game hitting streak at the time and was leading the Rockers with a .316 batting average.

In 19 games with Tabasco, Grotjohn hit .226 with one homer and a pair of RBI. Tabasco’s season ended on August 1.

In his career with the Rockers, Grotjohn is a .303 hitter with 22 home runs and 89 RBI.

High Point is in the midst of the Atlantic League pennant race to secure a playoff berth for the fourth time in five seasons. The Rockers are currently in second place in the South Division with an 18-10 second half record. Charleston, whom the Rockers host tonight and tomorrow, have a one-game lead at 19-9 but the remainder of this series could result in a change in division leadership. Gastonia is currently in third place in the South Division at 16-13.

The Rockers host Charleston at 6:35 p.m. on Saturday night with the series finale slated for a 4:05 p.m. start on Sunday, August 11.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers continue to evolve as they battle for the Atlantic League’s South Division title for the second half of the season. The Rockers are in second place in the South, 1.5 games behind the Charleston Dirty Birds. The Rockers are contending for an ALPB playoff berth which they can earn by winning the South Division second half title or by earning a wild card berth.

Manager Jamie Keefe has made a number of roster moves in recent days to help the Rockers as they enter the final month of the regular season.

Two faces familiar to Rockers fans returned this week in infielders Michael Martinez and Quincy Nieporte. Martinez was late in his return to the Rockers this year due to a delay in obtaining a visa from his native Dominican Republic. Martinez first joined the Rockers in 2021 and is in High Point for a fourth season. The 41-year-old is a .276 career hitter for the Rockers and came to High Point after a seven-year Major League career in which he appeared in the 2016 World Series with Cleveland.

Nieporte played for the Rockers briefly at the end of the 2021 season before having his contract purchased by the Detroit Tigers. The Florida State alum was the MVP of the Eastern League in 2022 while playing at Erie, Pa. where he hit .270 while leading the league with 31 home runs and 91 RBI. He has twice been named to a season-ending All-Star team. He was the Frontier League MVP in 2021.

Also joining the Rockers on Tuesday is RHP Justin Lewis, a former pitcher at the University of Kentucky who pitched at Class AAA Reno in the Arizona Diamondbacks system in 2022. At Kentucky from 2016-18, Lewis was a Freshman All-American in 2016 and was named SEC Pitcher of the Week in 2018. He was selected to the SEC Academic Honor Roll in 2017 and 2018 and his 2.08 ERA in 2016 is the second-lowest in Wildcat history.

Another new face to the Rockers rotation is lefty Derrick Adams who joined the team on August 7 and will make his first start tonight. Adams is an Atlantic League veteran, having won 13 games over two seasons with the Charleston Dirty Birds. Adams was 7-9 during the 2022 season and posted a 6-9 mark in 2023. He last pitched in the Caribbean World Series for Puerto Rico earlier this year after spending the regular season with Caguas.

The Rockers put two starting pitchers on the Injured List on Tuesday in Stephen Ridings (blister) and Neil Ramirez (shoulder).

Departing the Rockers is broadcaster Sam Sinder. The Indiana University undergrad spent much of the 2024 season in the Rockers broadcast booth along with Brendan Howe. Sinder will return to his home in New York City and then head to Bloomington, Ind. for the start of his junior year in the coming weeks.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – Truist Point will host the fifth annual Battle of the Badges charity softball game between the High Point Police Department and the High Point Fire Department on Saturday, September 7. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m. with the gates opening at 3:00. The charity game will be followed by the High Point Rockers hosting the Lexington Legends at 6:35 p.m..

Tickets are on sale now for $10 and are available for purchase at www.HighPointRockers.com and at the Truist Point Box Office at 303 Gatewood Ave.

Following the softball game, the Rockers will take on the Legends at 6:35 p.m. Fans who purchased a ticket to the softball game will be able to redeem that ticket for a Rockers ticket. Those tickets will be valid on September 7 or September 8.

Proceeds from the Battle of the Badges will benefit the High Point Police Department’s Angels in Blue and the North Carolina Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

The last two Battle of the Badges events have raised nearly $25,000 for the two charities. The series stands at 2-2 with the Police winning twice and the Fire Department also claiming a pair of wins.

About Angels in Blue The mission of Angels in Blue is to bring High Point police officers and the community closer together by granting Christmas wishes for families experiencing hardships. Families are nominated by HPPD employees and interviewed by HPPD staff. If the family is selected for the program, officers and employees shop for gifts, food and other items. They also wrap and distribute the gifts. Much of the funding for Angels in Blue comes from HPPD employees through internal fundraising events.

 

About the NC Fallen Firefighters Foundation The North Carolina Fallen Firefighters Foundation is a 501(c)(3) dedicated to honoring the fallen firefighters of North Carolina. We assist the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal with line of duty death services and memorials for firefighters who have died in the line of duty. We operate the state’s Fallen Firefighter Memorial located in Nash Square in downtown Raleigh. We conduct an annual memorial service there to honor each year’s fallen heroes. We conduct peer counseling and critical incident stress debriefings (CISD). We receive no state funding and rely entirely on donations and the sale of our merchandise.

 

About High Point Baseball, Inc.

The High Point Rockers, operated by the non-profit High Point Baseball, play their home games at Truist Point, a state-of-the-art $36 million ballpark which serves as a catalyst to the rejuvenation of downtown High Point. The Rockers have reached the Atlantic League playoffs in three of four years after winning the South Division title in both halves of the 2023 season. The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an MLB Partner League, has 10 clubs from New York to North Carolina. For more, visit HighPointRockers.com.

 

About the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB)

Celebrating its third decade, the Atlantic League is Major League Baseball’s first Professional Partner League, a player gateway to the major leagues, and a leader in baseball innovation. Over its 25-year history, the ALPB has sent over 1,400 players to MLB organizations while drawing over 47 million fans to its family-friendly ballparks. Please visit www.AtlanticLeague.com

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The High Point Rockers dropped a 5-3 decision at Charleston on Friday night at GoMart Park. The Dirty Birds built a 5-1 lead over the first five innings then withstood a late High Point rally to hold on for the win.

The Dirty Birds took a 1-0 lead in the first off High Point starter Cam Bedrosian (L, 5-3) when Delino Deshields, Jr. drew a walk, moved to second on a walk to Joseph Rosa then scored on a single by Tillman Pugh. High Point knotted the game in the second when Trey Martin hit his first home run as a Rocker, his ninth round-tripper of the year after having been acquired from York.

Deshields drew another walk to lead off the third, moved to second on a wild pitch then scored on a double by Rosa. Charleston catcher Rusber Estrada hit a solo homer in the fourth to extend Charleston’s lead to 3-1.

The Dirty Birds tallied twice in the fifth to push ahead 5-1. Pugh singled, stole second, and scored on a double by Jared Carr. Carr moved around to score on a single by Ervin.

Charleston starter Kevin Smith (W, 3-4) kept the Rockers in check, allowing only one hit through the first three innings. Michael Martinez, a Rockers veteran who joined the team on Friday, doubled in the fourth but was erased caught stealing.

The Rockers mounted a comeback in the eighth against reliever Joan Martinez. Aidan Brewer reached on an error and Brian Parreira also reached on an error, putting runners at first and third. D.J. Burt bounced out to short, allowing Brewer to score but Martinez was able to strike out Ben Aklinski and Connor Owings to end the threat.

Charleston’s Ricardo Gomez, 47, came on in the ninth and walked Evan Edwards who moved to second on an infield out by Martinez. Brewer then singled to score Edwards to pull the Rockers to within a pair at 5-3 before Gomez retired Parreira on a fly ball to left for the final out.

Gomez extended his ALPB record for career appearances to 438 over his professional career that began in 1997.

The win moved Charleston into first place in the Atlantic League’s South Division at 15-8, a half-gae ahead of the Rockers who are 15-9 in the second half. Gastonia remains in third at 14-10.

High Point and Charleston will play the second game of the three-game series on Saturday night at 6:35 p.m. at GoMart Park.

(July 7, 2024) HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers have traded first baseman Zander Wiel to the York Revolution. In return, the Rockers have received right-handed reliever Will Carter. Carter joined the Rockers on Sunday.

Carter has appeared in 14 games for the Revolution this season, throwing 11.2 innings and posting a record of 0-0 with a 3.85 ERA.

Carter pitched collegiately at East Tennessee State and Alabama before being drafted by the New York Yankees in the 2015 MLB Draft.

He spent five seasons in the Yankees farm system, reaching Class AAA in 2019. Carter joined the Chicago White Sox in 2021 and pitched at AAA Charlotte during the 2022 season. He was 2-2 in 48 relief appearances for York in 2023 with five saves.

Wiel is High Point’s career leader with 74 home runs and 227 RBI. He was an Atlantic League Postseason All-Star in 2022 when he set the Rockers club record with 32 home runs.

Wiel is a former first baseman at Vanderbilt who helped the Commodores win the 2014 College World Series. He spent six seasons in the Minnesota Twins organization before joining the Rockers in 2022.