Topic: Brian Rogers

Brian Alan Rogers (born July 17, 1982 in Dallas, Texas) is a relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who is currently a free agent. He made his major league debut as a September call up on September 1, 2006, with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Rogers pitched for Georgia Southern University, and attracted notice from the Detroit Tigers, who drafted him in the 11th round in 2003. Detroit assigned him to the Low-A Oneonta Tigers in the New York - Penn League, where he went 3–2 with a 3.34 ERA in twelve starts. In 2004 Detroit promoted Rogers to the Single-A West Michigan Whitecaps, where he went 6–8 with a 4.55 ERA. Lack of run support contributed to several losses: at one point in April, Rogers was 0–1 despite three consecutive quality starts and a 2.38 ERA. For 2005, Detroit converted Rogers into a relief pitcher and promoted him to the High-A Lakeland Tigers, where he posted a 2.06 ERA in 52 appearances. Rogers and fellow middle-reliever Danny Zell were cited by manager Mel Rojas as integral to Lakeland's success that year, while pitching coach Britt Burns called Rogers "the most improved pitcher on this staff."

Detroit promoted Rogers to the Double-A Erie SeaWolves where he continued to work as a reliever, compiling a 3–2 record with an ERA of 2.39 by the end of July, when the Tigers traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates for first basemen Sean Casey.