The Rockies have a decision to make, and it could shape the rest of their offseason.
With Colorado heading into another winter of roster questions, president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta is going to draw plenty of attention from around the league. The biggest thing rival front offices will be watching is whether the Rockies actually put some of their players into trade talks. That conversation could get complicated if a potential lockout hits on Dec. 1, though business is expected to keep moving until then with free-agent signings and possibly some deals.
One name that keeps surfacing is Hunter Goodman. Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report named him Colorado’s top trade asset this offseason and made the case that this is the time for the Rockies to seriously consider moving the catcher.
Goodman was already part of trade chatter last winter and again at the trade deadline in August, but Colorado held off on making a move. Rymer believes that patience may not need to last much longer.
"The Rockies need as much prospect depth as they can get, so Goodman absolutely needs to be back on the market this winter. He's slugged 72 home runs across the last two seasons, with good numbers away from Coors Field. He has three more years of club control left,'' Rymer wrote.
The appeal is obvious. Goodman’s bat plays.
He just finished a season with a career-best 41 home runs and 88 RBIs in 138 games, while hitting .245/.310/.529. Even with the Coors Field factor always part of the discussion, his power production has made him one of the more intriguing names on the market.
There’s also the question of where he fits long term. Goodman is 27, and some teams may look at him as a future DH rather than a catcher as he gets older. That uncertainty only adds to the trade debate.
Colorado, meanwhile, took a step forward in 2026 even if the record still looks rough. The Rockies lost 100 games for the fourth straight year, but Warren Schaeffer’s club was more competitive and gave some of the league’s better teams tougher series than in years past. The next goal is clear: lose fewer than 100 games in 2027 and keep developing younger players.
For a team still rebuilding for at least a couple more seasons, Rymer’s case is hard to ignore. Goodman’s value is high right now, and that makes him one of the most interesting names DePodesta could move this winter.
In Other News...
Rockies Are Betting Ethan Katz Can Fix What Never Gets Fixed
The Rockies are making another swing at solving their pitching problem, this time by bringing in Ethan Katz as their new pitching coach. Katz arrives with a decade of coaching experience and six major league seasons on his rsum, and he steps into a job that has become one of the organizations most persistent pressure points as Colorado tries to build something sturdier on the mound.
For president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta, the hire fits into a broader effort to address a staff that has struggled to keep ERAs in a workable range in recent seasons. The hope is not just about short-term cleanup, either. Colorado wants Katz to help shape its young pitchers and give the group a clearer developmental path, even if the Rockies have heard versions of that promise before. [Read more 🡒]