Jake Rogers turns 'crappy situation' into career moment with knuckleball

It was his sixth career appearance on the mound: Rogers has a 4.76 ERA with one walk and one strikeout across 5⅔ innings. He pitched in his first game June 12, 2021, against the Chicago White Sox, followed by four games in 2025 and one in 2026.

He missed the entire 2022 season with Tommy John surgery, which he underwent in September 2021 to reconstruct the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

"I've been searching for it for a while," said Rogers, who only pitches in lopsided games. "Obviously, I'm up there throwing like 60 miles per hour, so guys aren't really swinging and missing."

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That's where the knuckleball comes in.

Rogers didn't hesitate to throw his signature pitch to Ortiz after registering the first two strikes with a 71.9 mph fastball for a called strike and a 75.1 mph fastball for a foul ball.

He only uses the knuckleball in two-strike situations.

"When he got to two strikes, I looked at Ding and immediately told him, 'Knuckleball is coming,'" Rogers said. "I knew that I had a chance. Right when he swung, I said, 'Throw the ball to the dugout.'"

The pitch danced just enough.

Ortiz swung over the top of it for a strikeout.

"That one fluttered," Rogers said. "It wasn't my best, but it was good."

The knuckleball isn't just a gimmick.

Rogers has been throwing the rare pitch since he was 10 years old, learning it from his father, Dusty Rogers, before he developed more traditional breaking balls, such as the changeup, curveball and slider.

"Since I was 10, I was throwing it every day in catch play," Rogers said.

He still does.

It's been 21 years.

"To this day, my last two throws to bullpen catcher [Chris] Chinea will be two knuckleballs," Rogers said. "I throw it every day. It's something I love throwing."

Detroit Tigers catcher Jake Rogers pitches during the ninth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Comerica Park in Detroit on Tuesday, April 21, 2026.

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The video of Rogers' knuckleball to strike out Ortiz went viral on social media.

Famous knuckleball pitchers include Phil Niekro, Hoyt Wilhelm, Tim Wakefield, Charlie Hough and R.A. Dickey. So far in 2026, only two MLB pitchers have recorded a strikeout with a knuckleball: Rogers and Matt Waldron.

Dating back to 2021, when Rogers made his first pitching appearance, eight players have done it over six seasons: Rogers, Waldron, Adrián Morejón, Jonah Bride, Nick Nelson, Pierson Ohl, Jose Trevino and Mickey Jannis. Rogers, Bride and Trevino are normally position players.

"It blew up like crazy," said Rogers, who threw his first MLB knuckleball in 2025. "You don't really see many people throwing knuckleballs anymore. When you get a strikeout on it, it definitely should blow up a little bit."

It was an embarrassing loss for the Tigers.

But Rogers enjoyed the moment.

"It's a crappy situation, but I've learned to make the most of it," Rogers said. "It's every kid's dream to pitch – and let me tell you, that's a different kind of nervous."

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers' Jake Rogers throws knuckleball for first MLB strikeout