The Rockies are still trudging through a season they’d like to forget, and the pitching problems remain impossible to miss. Colorado’s 5.47 team ERA is better than last year’s 5.97, but it still sits dead last in baseball, which is where the offseason work for president Paul DePodesta and GM Josh Byrnes will have to start.
But the lineup is telling a different story.
Colorado’s offense has quietly turned into one of the more encouraging parts of the roster, even as the losses keep coming. The Rockies have scored 34 runs in five games this month, an average of 6.8 per game, and the group driving that surge goes well beyond Hunter Goodman’s 36-homer breakout. Four other hitters - TJ Rumfield, Jake McCarthy, Cole Carrigg and Adael Amador - have been rolling through September.
Rumfield has been the loudest of the bunch. The rookie first baseman is 10-for-20 this month, batting .500 with two home runs and six RBI over five games.
His 1.545 OPS in September trails only Rafael Devers of the San Francisco Giants across MLB, and it has given his Rookie of the Year case a real late push. Laura Lambert has noted that Rumfield’s .299/.389/.460 line stacks up well with other top rookie names like Sal Stewart of the Cincinnati Reds and JJ Wetherholt of the St.
Louis Cardinals.
McCarthy has been just as important in a different way. The 29-year-old left fielder is giving Colorado a true table-setter, hitting .381/.480/.714 in September with eight hits, four extra-base hits, five RBI, four walks and three stolen bases.
That kind of production matters even more after he cooled off a bit in the second half following a .301 average in 83 games before the All-Star break. For now, he looks like he belongs in the Rockies’ future outfield picture and near the top of the order.
Carrigg has also kept the line moving. The center fielder has eight hits this month and is trying to finish what has been a promising but uneven rookie season on a high note. After posting a .927 OPS in a strong July, he’s carrying a 1.000 OPS through five September games and appears to have shaken off a rough August.
Amador is making his own case to stick. The 23-year-old second baseman didn’t return to the majors until August, but he has made a trip back to Triple-A Albuquerque much harder to justify. In 10 games with Colorado, he’s slashing .345/.424/.621 with a 1.045 OPS, along with seven hits, four runs and three RBI this month.
And the list doesn’t stop there. Zac Veen has been even hotter in September with a 1.357 OPS, while Brett Sullivan is right behind at 1.238. Coors Field will always tilt the numbers some, but the bigger picture is hard to ignore: Colorado has a young group of hitters producing now, and that gives the Rockies something real to build around as they move toward 2027 mode.
In Other News...
Gabriel Hughes Just Gave Rockies Fans A Pitching Reason For Hope
Gabriel Hughes gave the Rockies a solid jolt in a tough setting at Yankee Stadium, turning in the best start of his major league career and showing why the organization still sees something to build on. Even with early defensive mistakes putting him in a bind, Hughes settled in quickly, worked five innings, allowed two runs with one earned, and struck out six while keeping the game from getting away.
The encouraging part for Colorado was how composed he looked after the rough opening, retiring 10 of the next 11 hitters and handling a lineup that included Aaron Judge. Manager Warren Schaeffer came away praising Hughes sharp pitching and command, the kind of public vote of confidence that matters for a young arm trying to carve out a place in a rotation that can use every bit of stability it can find. [Read more 🡒]
TJ Rumfield Is Giving Rockies Fans A Rookie Of The Year Reason To Care
TJ Rumfield arrived in Colorado in January, the kind of transaction that can get lost in the shuffle of a long offseason, but he has made sure the Rockies have noticed since. The rookie has become one of the more productive first-year players in the National League, backing it up with strong work both at the plate and in the field. For a club always looking for reasons to build around young talent, Rumfield has quickly gone from a trade return to a legitimate part of the conversation.
Rumfield has also handled the move with the sort of perspective teams appreciate from a young player. He has spoken appreciatively about the Yankees and the role they played in his development, while also acknowledging former teammates still in New York. For Rockies fans, the story is no longer just about where he came from, but how far he can keep pushing in a rookie race that suddenly has him in the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Rockies Face A Brutal Yankees Test As One Threat Returns
The Rockies are heading into a difficult series opener against the Yankees with Gabriel Hughes projected to take the ball, and the assignment only gets tougher with New York lining up Cam Schlittler on the other side. It is the kind of early test that can expose a young pitcher quickly, especially against a lineup that tends to punish mistakes and force Colorado to make clean outs from the jump.
New York also brings back a familiar problem in the middle of the order, adding more pressure to a matchup that already looked demanding on paper. For Colorado, the first inning will be worth watching closely, since the tone of the night could be set immediately if the right-handed power in the Yankees' lineup starts seeing Hughes early. [Read more 🡒]