Rich Rowland

Richard Garnet Rowland (February 25, 1964 – August 25, 2026) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a backup catcher for the Detroit Tigers and the Boston Red Sox from 1990 to 1995. In addition to catching, he also played sparsely as a designated hitter, first baseman, third baseman, and pinch runner. Prior to playing professional baseball, Rowland attended Mendocino College in Ukiah, California, nearby to his home . He also had a longer career in minor league baseball on and off from 1988 to 1997, where he even served as a pitcher in three games.

Minor leagues Born in Cloverdale, California, Rowland played for minor league baseball for a total of nine seasons from 1988 to 1997; he did not play in the minor leagues in 1994. He played for the minor leagues during the same seasons that he also played in the Major Leagues. He debuted in the minor leagues on the Bristol Tigers (now the Bristol Pirates) in 1988 – a rookie-class Appalachian League team formerly owned by the Detroit Tigers. That season, he played 56 games for a .274 batting average in 186 at-bats as catcher. In 1989, he advanced to the Tigers' A-class Fayetteville Generals of the South Atlantic League, where he had a .272 batting average, 102 hits, and nine home runs. He also recorded two games pitched, pitching a total of two innings and allowing one run. Continuing through the Tigers' farm system, he advanced to the AA-class London Tigers of the Eastern League in 1990. He played for London for the first half of the season, where his statistics were impressive enough for a mid-season promotion to the AAA-class Toledo Mud Hens of the International League. For London, he batted .286 with 46 hits in 47 games with 161 at-bats. For Toledo, he batted .260 with 50 hits and 192 at-bats.

For his efforts, he was called up to the Detroit Tigers on September 7, 1990 and played seven games with them during the 1990 season. From 1991 to 1993, he played the majority of time with Toledo, while being called up on occasion to play for the Tigers as catcher. His statistic in the Major Leagues were unimpressive due to his limited time on the Tigers' roster, but his statistics with Toledo were far more impressive. When he was not called up to play for the Tigers, he was a consistently solid hitting full-time catcher with Toledo reaching 136 games in 1992. His minor league playing time in 1993 was shorter, as he played more time on the Tigers. That season with Toledo, he batted .268 but hit 21 home runs in 325 at-bats— a relatively high home run ratio of 15.48. His slugging percentage of .548 ranked fourth in the International League in 1993.

At the start of the 1994 season, Rowland was traded from the Detroit Tigers to the Boston Red Sox for John Flaherty and did not play in the minor leagues for Boston that year. In 1995, he played for Boston's AAA affiliate Pawtucket Red Sox, but he played little time for Pawtucket since he played more for Boston. With Pawtucket, he batted .258 in 34 games and 124 at-bats. At the end of the 1995 season, Rowland was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, where he played on their AAA affiliate Syracuse Chiefs of the International League in 1996. He played 96 games with 288 at-bats but only had a .226 batting average (his lowest minor league batting average). While on the Chiefs, he was never called up to play for the Blue Jays and was traded to the San Francisco Giants for the start of 1997. He never played for the Giants but instead played on their AAA affiliate Phoenix Firebirds of the Pacific Coast League during the 1997 season. His time on the Chiefs was short, and he only played in 19 games before retiring. He returned for the Tigers in 1991 as a backup catcher to Mickey Tettleton, who rarely missed a game. Because of that, Rowland saw very little playing time with two other backup catchers – Andy Allanson and Mark Salas – on the roster as well. That season, he played in only four games, accumulating only four at-bats, one hit, one run batted in, and a .250 batting average. Rowland saw similar playing time in 1992; he only played in six games, batting 14 times with three hits for a .214 batting average. Despite very little playing time, he was contracted for the league-minimum $120,000 that season but spent most of his time on assignment with minor league Toledo.

Personal life and death Rowland died on August 25, 2026, at the age of 62. His sons played professional baseball.