Roe grew up in Southfield, Michigan, and acquired his nickname because he was a fan of the popular major leaguer Rocky Colavito.
[1] Roe played baseball at Eastern Michigan University, where he received his degree in business administration, and was a member of the winning 1970 NAIA national championship team.
He was promoted to the American League staff on June 7, 1982, hours after Lou DiMuro was struck and killed by a passing motorist on a busy street in Arlington, Texas following a game between the Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox.
Roe's first crew included Larry Barnett, Mike Reilly and Durwood Merrill.
Roe was the home plate umpire on June 27, 1987, when Mark McGwire had the first three-home run game of his career, and was the second base umpire on September 14 of the same year when Cal Ripken Jr. ended his record streak of 8,243 consecutive innings played.