The Rockies have moved on from Michael Lorenzen, designating the veteran right-hander for assignment after recalling TJ Shook from Triple-A Albuquerque.
Lorenzen, 34, was part of Colorado’s offseason effort to patch together a more workable rotation. The club handed out one-year deals to several veterans, including $8MM to Lorenzen, $6MM to Jose Quintana and $5.1MM to Tomoyuki Sugano.
For Colorado, Lorenzen was a gamble built around fit. The Rockies seemed to believe his seven-pitch mix could play better in the thin air at Coors Field, especially since he doesn’t lean on any one pitch more than a quarter of the time. Lorenzen, meanwhile, likely saw a chance to stay in a starting role after spending stretches of recent seasons getting pushed to the bullpen.
It never clicked.
In 26 appearances this season, Lorenzen threw 115 2/3 innings and posted a 7.08 ERA. His 45.2% ground ball rate and 8.7% walk rate were workable, but the strikeout numbers never came close to carrying him, as he punched out just 14.6% of opposing hitters. The split between home and road was brutal, too: a 9.12 ERA at Coors Field compared to 5.61 away from it.
Because the Rockies entered the deadline as sellers, Lorenzen looked like a natural trade candidate as an impending free agent on a last-place club. His rough numbers likely cooled whatever interest might have been out there, and he remained in Colorado past the deadline. Now the team has decided to cut bait.
Since the deadline has already passed, Lorenzen will head to waivers soon. As a veteran with at least five years of service, he can refuse an outright assignment and choose free agency while keeping his salary intact. Colorado could also skip that process and release him outright.
Either way, the Rockies remain responsible for what Lorenzen is still owed. If another club signs him once he becomes a free agent, that team would only owe the prorated league minimum, with that amount deducted from Colorado’s bill.
There could still be a market. Lorenzen has a 3.73 ERA as a reliever in his career, which sits well below his 4.71 ERA as a starter. With the deadline behind everyone, upgrades are harder to find, and a team looking for a low-cost arm could see value in a move away from Coors Field and back into the bullpen.
Colorado, meanwhile, has a rotation spot to sort out as another lost season drags toward the finish. Sugano, Ryan Feltner and Kyle Freeland are lined up for the next three games.
Gabriel Hughes has held a rotation job for more than a month, Tanner Gordon has been working in long relief and could slide into Lorenzen’s place, and Quintana is on the 60-day injured list with an elbow sprain and has not started a rehab assignment. Eiberson Castellano is on the 40-man roster, and Valente Bellozo, Jack Mahoney and Mason Adams are also in the mix.
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