Greg Roth, Good Shot - 8

Originally published June 11, 2013

Earlier that year, Greg Roth represented Canada as a member of the country's Olympic team in Seoul, South Korea. He had also traveled elsewhere. The topper, he told his hometown Lethbridge Herald, was winning his second-straight Canadian baseball player of the year award.

But there was another topper still hoped to reach, according to The Herald, one beyond his signing with the White Sox.

"I think I have a good shot at the majors," Roth told The Herald.

Roth ultimately played professionally for four seasons, making it as high as AAA. Roth, though, never got that other topper of making the majors.

Roth's professional career began with his signing with the White Sox as a free agent in late-1988. He'd been drafted before, in 1986 as a 19-year-old out of Cochise College, by the Yankees, but he didn't sign.

With the White Sox, Roth started in 1989 at single-A South Bend. In 117 games, he hit .274, with 10 home runs.

He moved to single-A Sarasota and AA Birmingham in 1990, splitting his time between them. But he also hit just .203 on the year, .210 at Sarasota and .196 at Birmingham. In August 1990, Roth went 1 for 4 in a game, knocking in a run.

For 1991, Roth saw 41 games at AA Birmingham and seven at AAA Vancouver. He also played on loan with the Orioles at AA Hagerstown. With the White Sox teams, he hit just .190. In 38 games at Hagerstown, though, he hit .345.

Roth returned to Hagerstown in 1991, but, in his 53 games, saw his average drop to just .146. He also got 18 games at AAA Rochester and one at Birmingham. But it was his final season as a pro.

• Lethbridge Herald, Nov. 2, 1988: Pincher Creek's Roth named player of year