HISTORIC FIRST! ROCKERS HAVE FIRST PLAYER SIGNED TO MLB TEAM
Jesmuel Valentin to Join the Baltimore Orioles Franchise
HIGH POINT, N.C. – His time with the team did not last long, but Jesmuel Valentin already has a historic note in his High Point Rockers career. The 24-year-old infielder, who was signed by the Rockers earlier this week, has had his contract purchased by the Baltimore Orioles, making him the first High Point player ever to be signed by a Major League franchise.
“We knew that Jesmuel had the ability to get back to affiliated baseball,” said Rockers manager Jamie Keefe. “While we were hopeful to have him put on our uniform and play in front of our fans, we are pumped for him and look forward to watching him on TV in the near future.”
The son of former MLB All-Star Jose Valentin, Jesmuel will be assigned to Double-A Bowie in the Orioles organization. In his last stint at Double-A with the Reading Phillies, Valentin hit .276 in 89 games with five home runs and 38 runs batted in while sporting a .975 fielding percentage.
Valentin was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round of the 2012 MLB Draft. He was traded to the Phillies in 2014 and quickly began rising through the ranks of their system. After spending parts of three seasons (2016-18) at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, Valentin was called up to the Majors early in the 2018 season. Born in Puerto Rico, he made his MLB debut on April 29, 2018 and played in 46 total games.
Christian Heimall
Assistant General Manager, High Point Rockers Baseball