The Colorado Rockies don’t need a fantasy winter. They need competence on the mound.
That’s the clearest takeaway from a season that ended with another 100-loss record, even if Colorado did manage to win 15 more games than in 2025. The club still came inches from the worst record in Major League history, and the final two months were dragged down by a rotation that posted a 7.00 ERA after the trade deadline.
And yet, there is more here than the record suggests.
The Rockies head into next season with what should be one of the better outfields in baseball, thanks to Cole Carrigg, Mickey Moniak, and Jake McCarthy. The lineup is no longer just Moniak and Hunter Goodman carrying the load, either. There is real promise in the offense.
There’s also reason to believe the bat side is only going to keep getting stronger. TJ Rumfield emerged as an elite NL Rookie of the Year contender after hitting .300 with a .390 on-base percentage. That sets a pretty high bar for Charlie Condon, who should be on the Opening Day roster after blasting 27 home runs and driving in 98 runs in Triple-A.
So the front office’s job is pretty straightforward: give manager Warren Schaeffer something usable on the pitching side and stop wasting what the young position players are starting to build.
That means this offseason only counts as a success if Colorado adds at least one starter, and ideally two, who can keep the ERA in a reasonable range. Nobody is asking the Rockies to land Tarik Skubal or Sonny Gray. But another year of a 7.00 ERA is a nonstarter.
Paul DePodesta has already acknowledged that there is a pitching problem inside the organization, and if he’s serious about fixing it, there are paths available. The Rockies do not need a Cy Young favorite in 2027. They need arms good enough to help them get into the 75-80 win range.
One possible fit is Montgomery, who missed all of 2025 and most of 2026 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. When he finally returned, the Texas Rangers used him out of the bullpen.
He finished the year with a 4.15 ERA, and over his final 14 innings during a playoff push, he turned in a 1.93 ERA. He also made himself more appealing to a team like Colorado by earning not much over a million in 2026.
Buehler is another option who wouldn’t require a massive deal. He was at just $1.5 million with the San Diego Padres, struck out plenty of hitters, and also gave up too many home runs, which led to a 4.63 ERA.
Colorado doesn’t exactly need a miracle formula to see the difference. The Rockies posted that 7.00 ERA in August and September, while the offense scored more than 4.00 runs per game. If they can get even pitching in the neighborhood of Montgomery and Buehler, they’ll give themselves a real chance.
No one is pretending this staff is already good. It isn’t.
But if the players keep buying into the idea that this organization is turning a corner, then there’s a path for the Rockies to believe they can get back to the postseason.
In Other News...
Rockies Pitching Problems Just Forced Another Big Change
The Rockies are making another change on the coaching side after parting ways with pitching coach Alon Leichman following just one season. It comes with Colorado still trying to dig out from a stretch in which the staff finished last in several statistical categories, a reminder that the clubs rebuilding effort is still very much being shaped by what happens on the mound.
President of baseball operations Paul DePodesta said the organization has been concerned about how the pitching has fared early in games, especially in the first two innings. Colorado will now begin searching for a new pitching coach, another important decision for a franchise trying to stabilize a unit that has struggled to set the tone from the start. [Read more 🡒]
Rockies Finally Have A Young Outfielder Worth Building Around
Colorados 2026 season still came with plenty of rough edges, but it also offered something the Rockies have been searching for: a young outfielder who looks like he belongs in the middle of the long-term picture. Carrigg arrived after moving over from shortstop and made his major league debut in June, then settled in quickly enough to give the club real reason for optimism as the year wore on.
In 93 games, Carrigg showed a mix of production and adaptability that stood out on a roster still trying to sort out its next core. Rockies president Paul DePodesta and manager Warren Schaeffer both see him, along with other young players, as part of the foundation for whatever comes next, which matters for a team that has spent too much time looking for a breakthrough. The open question now is how much more there is to unlock as the Rockies try to turn one encouraging season into something sturdier. [Read more 🡒]