A standout
second baseman at the
University of Virginia, he signed a $40,000 contract with Milwaukee in but was compelled by the era's
Bonus Rule to spend his first two professional years on the Braves' major-league roster, appearing in only eight games and going
hitless in six total
plate appearances. Then, he lost two full seasons (1955–56) to service in the
United States Navy. When his pro career began in earnest in , Roach
hit .304 in 107 games in the
high minors. After his early-August recall by the
1957 Braves—en route to the world championship—he sat on the bench as a seldom-used
pinch hitter and backup
infielder. He appeared in only six regular-season games, and was idle during the
1957 World Series. In , Roach made the Braves' roster out of
spring training and an early-season injury to
centerfielder Bill Bruton opened a spot for Roach as the
right fielder in the Milwaukee lineup (with
Baseball Hall of Famer
Hank Aaron switching from right-field to Bruton's position). Roach started three games and collected seven hits in 15
at bats (.467), but when the roster had to be trimmed from 28 to 25 players in mid-May, Roach was optioned to
Triple-A Wichita, where he appeared in 20 games over a full month before getting recalled to the majors. Over the next two months he got into 39 games, largely as a backup to
Hall of Fame second baseman
Red Schoendienst, and was hitting .309 with 42 hits and three
home runs on August 3 when
Daryl Spencer of the
San Francisco Giants slid hard into Roach at second base, badly injuring Roach's left knee. After a half-season in Chicago, the Cubs traded Roach to the Phillies during spring training of . Although he spent both 1961 and 1962 in the majors, Roach lost his batting stroke, hitting only .147 and .190 respectively, then retired from baseball after the 1962 campaign. In all or parts of his eight MLB seasons, Roach played in 227 games and had 499
at-bats, 42 runs, 119 hits, 25 doubles, seven
home runs, 43 RBI, one
stolen base, 24 walks, .238
batting average, .275
on-base percentage, .331
slugging percentage, 165
total bases and nine
sacrifice hits. ==Personal life==