Ep. 39 | Jake Rogers, Detroit Tigers

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What You'll Learn in This Episode

Detroit Tigers catcher Jake Rogers joins Ross Hawley for an inside look at big-league catching: building a daily routine, preparing a pitching staff, leading a young team, and holding onto the love of the game that made the work worthwhile in the first place.

Jake's path has always been driven by a single plan: play baseball as long as he can. His advice for young players is equally straightforward: practice relentlessly, ask good questions, understand your decisions, and make sure you truly enjoy the work.

The highlights:

  • Why Jake arrives early to spring training and treats availability as a catcher's most important skill
  • How a week of rest, phased strength work, and recovery set up a 162-game season
  • What Detroit's young clubhouse has done to build a fun, hard-playing team
  • How catcher-manager A.J. Hinch uses direct, two-way conversations to develop players
  • Why youth coaches should replace yelling with teaching moments and conversations
  • A detailed look at Jake's game-day routine, from the crossword to scouting meetings and bullpen work
  • What it feels like to catch a starter who is locked in and why a catcher must stay present pitch by pitch
  • Why players who love baseball enough to practice and enjoy the process give themselves the best chance to advance

The Best Ability Is Availability

For Jake, offseason work starts with a short break to decompress, spend time with family, and let the body recover. Then he builds back through training phases with one priority in mind: be healthy enough to catch whenever the Tigers need him.

"The best ability is availability."

He heads to Lakeland before the official spring-training report date to settle in, use the facilities, catch bullpens, see live pitching, and re-establish the rhythm of being at the field every day. The goal is not a dramatic reinvention. It is to get stronger, prepare the body for the season's physical demands, and be ready to play.

Detroit's Youth Movement and Leading by Example

Rogers describes a young Tigers team that plays with energy, takes the extra base, and embraces the fun of competing together. At 29, he found himself among the older players in the clubhouse, helping younger teammates learn the unwritten details of a big-league routine: when to work, when to leave the cage, and how to manage the day.

He does not see himself as a loud leader. Instead, he tries to model the habits that help a team play hard and stay loose. The club's turnaround, he says, has come from youthful energy, veterans who helped younger players adjust, and a shared commitment to having fun while playing the game the right way.

A Catcher and a Catcher-Manager

Working with A.J. Hinch has pushed Jake's development because Hinch understands the position's small details: pitch calling, receiving, preparation, and the decisions that happen before every pitch. The relationship works because it is candid in both directions.

After a game, Hinch may explain what he did not like and ask Jake to explain his thinking. Jake can share the information he saw, then apply that conversation the next time he faces a similar situation. That process builds trust and produces better decisions.

"As long as you have a why going into what you did and why you did it, there's no reason why you can't have a two-way conversation."

What Youth Coaches Can Learn From the Big Leagues

At the Major League level, coaches rarely need to scream at players who already know they made a mistake. Instead, they notice the moment, write it down, and discuss it later when the player can learn from it.

Jake believes youth coaches can apply the same principle. Let players compete, let them enjoy the game, and turn mistakes into clear teaching moments at practice or after the game. The point is not to avoid accountability. It is to make accountability useful.

  • Give players room to play through mistakes.
  • Ask what they saw and why they made a decision.
  • Explain what could work better next time.
  • Practice the situation instead of reliving the error emotionally.

Inside a Catcher's Game Day

For a 7 p.m. game, Jake may arrive at the ballpark around 12:30 p.m. He eats, works a crossword over coffee, checks in with teammates, gets treatment and stretching if needed, then moves through his pregame hitting work.

The catcher-specific work intensifies later in the day. He meets with the starting pitcher, pitching coach, and staff to build a plan for the lineup. Each person brings preparation, then they discuss previous at-bats, pitch shapes, and the best approach for each hitter.

Before the game, he uses machine work and visual preparation to see the opposing starter's shapes, then heads to the bullpen for receiving, blocking, catch play, and the final pregame warm-up with his pitcher. It is a long day, but the routine reduces uncertainty and lets him focus when the game begins.

Stay Present When the Pitcher Is Rolling

Jake recalls catching Keider Montero's nine-inning, minimum-batters-faced start against Colorado. He was a late addition to the lineup, but once the game started, the only job was to keep processing each at-bat: what happened last time, what to throw next, and what not to throw.

The significance of an exceptional performance can arrive late. A catcher cannot get ahead of the moment; he has to stay locked into the plan, help the pitcher execute, and recognize the achievement after the final out.

Love the Game Enough to Do the Work

Jake's closing advice is deliberately simple. The game is hard, and reaching the highest level requires sustained practice. But practice only lasts when it is connected to genuine love for baseball.

He grew up playing catch with his brothers, hitting constantly, spending long hours in batting cages, and talking baseball with coaches. That curiosity and enjoyment mattered as much as talent.

"Do you truthfully have fun, and do you truthfully love it?"

For young players, love is shown through action: showing up, practicing, learning, competing, and finding joy in the daily work.

Episode Timestamps

Tap any timestamp to jump the player straight to that moment.

  • 3:39 - Catching Tarik Skubal and seeing a Cy Young season up close
  • 5:32 - Arriving early for spring training in Lakeland
  • 7:13 - Offseason training and preparing a catcher for 162 games
  • 12:33 - Connecting with Detroit fans and the power of a mustache
  • 16:03 - Detroit's young clubhouse and leading by example
  • 19:39 - Growing with A.J. Hinch as a catcher
  • 22:38 - How youth coaches can turn mistakes into teaching moments
  • 29:38 - Jake's complete game-day routine as a Major League catcher
  • 36:11 - Catching Keider Montero's minimum-batters-faced start
  • 40:04 - The hardest part of a Major League season: resetting every day
  • 45:46 - Advice for young players who want to reach the big leagues

Episode 39 features Jake Rogers, catcher for the Detroit Tigers, on the preparation, leadership, resilience, and love of the game required to play baseball at the highest level.