The Rockies have already made their direction clear. At 42-65 entering Monday and with FanGraphs giving them a 0.0% chance of reaching the postseason, Colorado should be selling at the deadline. But that does not mean every player with value has to be moved, and Jake McCarthy looks like one the Rockies ought to keep.
McCarthy fits the kind of club Colorado says it wants to build: quicker, more aggressive, and less dependent on one-dimensional power. He is under team control through 2028, and his game has played in a way that matters beyond the thin air at Coors Field.
Through July 27, the 28-year-old was hitting .298/.340/.502 with 10 home runs, seven triples, 58 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. On the road, he was still productive at .272/.325/.424 with three home runs, three triples and nine steals.
That matters because Colorado did not bring him in just to chase home runs. The Rockies acquired McCarthy from Arizona in January for minor league right-hander Josh Grosz after he batted .204 with four home runs in 2025.
They wanted the speed, the contact and the defensive versatility. McCarthy had ranked in the 99th percentile in sprint speed and had experience at all three outfield spots.
Colorado also made a point of getting him back to the player he was before he tried to force more power into his game. McCarthy was asked to lean into the traits that made him useful in the first place, and he understood the assignment.
“What really makes me go and makes me valuable is working good at-bats, getting on base and being a good defender,” McCarthy said after the trade.
That formula has given the Rockies one of the more encouraging offensive seasons on the roster. McCarthy is creating runs by putting the ball in play, reaching base, taking the extra bag and covering a lot of ground in Colorado’s huge outfield.
He also fits alongside young players such as Cole Carrigg, Kyle Karros and T. J.
Rumfield without getting in their way.
Still, there is a real argument for listening if another team comes calling. McCarthy is 28, and this may be the highest his value ever gets.
Colorado also has younger outfielders it needs to sort through. If the return is strong enough, the Rockies should at least pay attention.
But it would have to be more than a package of prospects who are far from the Majors.
That is the line rebuilding teams eventually have to walk. You can’t keep dealing every useful player just to stockpile more names in the system.
At some point, you need actual productive pieces to form a core. McCarthy is affordable, controllable and already producing in the exact style Colorado wants to emphasize.
The Rockies should move short-term veterans. They should not move one of the players who already looks like part of what comes next.
In Other News...
This Rockies Speedster Could Change Colorado's Center Field Future
A Venezuelan prospect in the Rockies system is starting to make his case at Single-A Fresno, where his speed remains the calling card and his offensive line is showing signs of life in 2026. He has long stood out for his ability to change a game on the bases, and with 96 career minor league steals, he brings a dimension Colorado does not have in abundance as it looks for long-term answers in center field.
The question now is how much more his bat can give him. Scouts and analysts like the athleticism and the defensive fit, but they also point to the lack of power as the hurdle that could keep him from becoming an everyday regular, leaving open a range of outcomes from a specialized role to a more useful all-around piece if the hitting keeps coming. [Read more 🡒]
Beyond Ethan Holliday These Rockies Prospects Demand Second Half Attention
Ethan Holliday may be the name that draws the biggest spotlight in the Rockies system, but he is hardly the only young player worth tracking as the second half unfolds. Roldy Brito has put together a strong 2025 season and has pushed himself near the top of the organizations prospect list, while Calaz remains one of the more intriguing bats in the group because of his raw speed and power potential. Jackson Cox, meanwhile, is working his way back from Tommy John surgery and giving Colorado another pitching name to monitor as he settles back into Double-A.
What makes this stretch interesting for the Rockies is that each of those prospects is at a different stage of development, which gives the front office a broader read on where the pipeline stands. Brito is already forcing attention with his production, Calaz is trying to turn tools into more consistent results, and Cox is showing whether his arm can keep trending in the right direction after a long recovery. For a club looking for signs of real organizational depth, the next few months could say plenty about which of these names are ready to become part of the bigger conversation. [Read more 🡒]