The Colorado Rockies are still buried in the National League West, but the first half of the season has shown more forward movement than a D- suggests.
That’s the tension in Colorado right now. The record says one thing - 33-52 after Monday night’s 10-7 loss to the Miami Marlins at home - but the bigger picture points to a club in the middle of a real reset.
When the Rockies brought in new president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta last winter, it marked the start of a rebuild after a third straight 100-loss season. No one expected that to turn around quickly.
Still, some progress was always supposed to show up, and it has.
The clearest signs have come from the lineup. Manager Warren Schaeffer has watched several young players take meaningful steps, and that matters for a team trying to build something sturdier.
Catcher Hunter Goodmacn now has 26 home runs after going deep again Monday night against Miami. First baseman TJ Rumfield, picked up from the New York Yankees over the winter, has been one of the more pleasant surprises.
Third baseman Kyle Karros has also given the Rockies another useful young piece, and Mickey Moniak is sitting on nearly a .900 OPS.
That’s why Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report’s halftime grade felt a little too harsh. Kelly handed Colorado a D-, but the offense and the emergence of those younger contributors suggest the Rockies have at least moved in the right direction.
The bigger drag is still the pitching staff, and that’s where the grade makes more sense. DePodesta brought in veterans Michael Lorenzen, Tomoyuki Sugano and Jose Quintana on one-year deals to stabilize the rotation and potentially give the club trade chips later. So far, the results have fallen short of what the Rockies needed.
“The problem in Denver remains the same, though. The Rockies signed veterans Michael Lorenzen, Tomoyuki Sugano and Jose Quintana to one-year deals in the offseason. Sugano has pitched the best of the trio, and he has a 4.80 ERA and 5.32 FIP,'' wrote Kelly.
Colorado is not being asked to contend in 2026, but after three straight seasons of 100-plus losses, any real sign of progress deserves to be noticed. Building a pitching staff that can survive at Coors Field is a different kind of challenge, and it is going to take time. The Rockies need young arms to develop, and Kyle Freeland won’t be around forever.
That part of the rebuild won’t happen overnight. But the progress already on the board, in more than one area, looks better than a D-.
In Other News...
Rockies Finally Turn To A Young Arm After Veteran Move
The Rockies are making another pitching shuffle, this time moving on from John Brebbia and opening a spot for Gabriel Hughes, the 2022 first-round pick who has been working back from Tommy John surgery. Brebbia has bounced around the league over the course of his career, but his recent struggles made the change unsurprising, while Hughes has been trending in the right direction at Triple-A and looks ready for his first shot in Denver.
Hughes is expected to ease in out of the bullpen at first, even though the organization still sees starter potential in his arm. For a Rockies staff that has been leaning on veterans and searching for any kind of stability, the call-up adds a dose of upside and a new reason to watch closely every time the phone rings to the bullpen. [Read more 🡒]
Mickey Moniak Is Facing The Rockies Question Fans Feared Most
A month on the injured list can leave a hitter chasing more than timing, and Mickey Moniak is working through that reality now. His return has come with the added challenge of undoing swing habits that formed while he was playing through discomfort, a reminder of how quickly one nagging issue can spill into the rest of an at-bat.
Moniaks ankle problem traced back to a hard collision in center field, and the ripple effects showed up at the plate once he got back in the lineup. The Rockies are betting the version of him they saw before the injury is still there, and manager Warren Schaeffer has sounded steady about the process, but for now the real question is whether Moniak can clean up the damage before it lingers any longer. [Read more 🡒]
Rockies May Already Regret Revisiting This Veteran Bullpen Decision
John Brebbias path back into the Rockies bullpen has already become a reminder of why the club moved on from him once this spring. The 36-year-old right-hander was cut before Opening Day after a rocky camp, then found his way back on a minor league deal and returned to Colorado on June 21 after a short stop with the Twins.
Since that recall, Brebbia has not given the Rockies much reason to think the second look will turn out differently. His recent run has been more of the same from a veteran whose performance has slipped over the past couple of seasons, and the team could soon be forced to weigh whether a younger arm deserves the next chance instead. [Read more 🡒]