After a fourth straight 100-loss season, the Rockies head into a winter that already feels pivotal. It’s the second offseason with Paul DePodesta running baseball operations, and even with another brutal year in Denver, there were at least a few signs of life under first-year full-time manager Warren Schaeffer.
The bigger picture around MLB is murky too. A work stoppage on Dec. 1 is looming, and if that becomes reality, the winter could turn quiet in a hurry. Still, before any lockout arrives, Colorado has some choices to make - and none looms larger than deciding which young players are worth keeping at the center of the plan.
Hunter Goodman should be at the top of that list.
Trade chatter has followed the Rockies catcher since his breakout 2025 season, when he hit .278/.323/.520 with 31 home runs and 91 RBIs. He backed that up in 2026 with an even bigger power output, earning a second straight National League All-Star nod after slashing .245/.310/.529 with 41 home runs and 88 RBIs.
Sure, DePodesta could listen to offers. He probably will.
But a power-hitting catcher who produces like Goodman does is not the kind of player you move simply for the sake of making a deal. Colorado might be able to land a useful piece in return, but replacing that kind of middle-of-the-order pop is another matter entirely.
Goodman, 26, also won a Silver Slugger Award in 2025, and he fits into a young core that gave the Rockies something to point to in 2026. TJ Rumfield, acquired from the New York Yankees last offseason, had a strong first full MLB season and is in the mix for the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
Cole Carrigg arrived in 2026, got called up in early June, and settled in as an everyday player. At times, he was one of Colorado’s better bats and one of the more impactful players in the lineup.
A Goodman-Rumfield-Carrigg middle of the order is the kind of trio Rockies fans could get behind in 2027 and beyond. And when the front office starts sorting through the winter’s decisions, the easiest one should be clear: Hunter Goodman is a player to build around.
In Other News...
Hunter Goodman Deserved Better In An Award Snub Rockies Fans Will Hate
Hunter Goodman put together the kind of offensive season that should have made him impossible to ignore, even in a year when the Rockies spent most of their time buried in the standings. The catcher cleared the 40-homer mark and finished with an .839 OPS, production that stood out not just for Colorado but across the National League. More than half of those home runs came on the road, which only adds to the sense that his bat traveled better than the team around him did.
Still, Goodman was left off the list of finalists for the National League Hank Aaron Award, a decision that is hard for Rockies fans to swallow. The finalists came from a group whose numbers can be compared cleanly enough, but Goodman's omission invites the bigger question that hangs over plenty of Colorado seasons: how much does team context cloud individual recognition? For a player who delivered that kind of power in that ballpark and in that environment, the snub feels like more than just a small slight. [Read more 🡒]
Rockies May Have Found A Rebuild Piece Yankees Let Go
TJ Rumfield has quickly turned a low-profile trade into one of the Rockies more interesting development stories. After Colorado acquired him from the Yankees for reliever Angel Chivilli, Rumfield settled in as the everyday first baseman and gave the club a steady left-handed bat in the middle of the lineup, hitting .300 with 16 home runs and 73 RBIs across 155 games.
The part that stands out for Colorado is how much on-base skill he showed while handling a full-time role, which is the kind of trait a rebuilding team can build around. Chivilli gave New York some innings out of the bullpen, but the swap now looks like the sort of move that could end up mattering more for the Rockies if Rumfield keeps stacking up production at first base. [Read more 🡒]
Rockies Offseason Suddenly Carries Pressure Fans Have Been Waiting For
A 15-game jump and a finish with 58 wins have changed the tenor of the Rockies offseason, at least a little. Team president Paul DePodesta and club president Walker Monfort framed the winter around a club that showed progress in 2026, while also signaling that the next step has to come from a more aggressive approach to building out the roster and baseball operations.
There is now added pressure to translate that optimism into something tangible, especially with payroll decisions and a new minority investment from Penner Sports Group part of the backdrop. Colorado has already identified starting pitching as a clear area to address, and the organization also made sure to credit Warren Schaeffer for helping create a more competitive clubhouse tone, leaving the question of how far the Rockies are willing to go to push that momentum forward. [Read more 🡒]