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DENVER, COLORADO - JULY 21: Cole Carrigg #16 (left) and Kyle Karros #12 of the Colorado Rockies look at a replay on a tablet in the dugout after the top of the sixth inning against the Washington Nationals at Coors Field on July 21, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Yesterday in The Athletic, Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon wrote about Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman’s questionable defensive skills and how they might affect his trade value going forward.
We’ve talked about that quite a bit already, but I just have to say to those executives who want to move Goodman out of the catcher role, “Have you seen his positional splits?” And to those who would consider moving him to another position, “Good luck!”
Ultimately, the piece struck me as part of front office bargaining. Here’s a tell: “The Yankees have a coach who possibly could draw more out of Goodman — Tanner Swanson, their major-league field coordinator and director of catching. Within the industry, Swanson is regarded as a top catching instructor.”
What are we even doing here (besides trying to depress Goodman’s trade value)?
Actually, that’s not what interested me about Rosenthal and Sammon’s article. This did:
The first sentence — “which players can be part of their next 90-win team” — caught my attention, and I began to wonder who might be on that next contending team. So today, I’m going to try to begin teasing that out.
A couple of prefatory notes are in order.
First, I’m limiting myself to the current 40-man roster and mostly prospects at Triple-A Albuquerque. Second, I’m going to assume that in terms of hitters, Paul DePodesta and Josh Byrnes are mostly interested in players who can get on base because they see it as a way to mitigate the Coors Effect. Third, based on what we’ve seen, I’m going to assume that the Rockies are looking for pitchers with big arsenals and funky deliveries.
That’s simplifying things — I know — but look at this as a pre-writing exercise rather than the final product.
Catchers
Currently, the Rockies have three catchers on their 40-man roster:
- Hunter Goodman
- Brett Sullivan
- Braxton Fulford
I’ll start with the easy part: I do not believe Sullivan and Fulford are part of the Rockies core. However, I do think Sullivan, the archetypal backup catcher, has a future in coaching. But those two players are not key pieces when considering the Rockies future.
Goodman, though, I think is up for debate.
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If the Rockies can get a haul for him that accelerates the team’s timeline to get back into contention, they’ll make the deal — and that haul will have to include significant pitching. If they keep Goodman, that’s fine, too, because the Rockies have a keen sense of his skill set (unlike some teams).
Looking forward, I think probably the Rockies have just drafted their catcher of the future in either Daniel Jackson or Jack Natili. And — file this one away — Jack O’Dowd, in addition to pounding baseballs, is also a catcher.
Infielders
Now things get more challenging. Here’s who’s currently on the 40-man roster:
- Adael Amador
- Willi Castro
- Edouard Julien
- Kyle Karros
- Ryan Ritter
- TJ Rumfield
- Chad Stevens
- Ezequiel Tovar
I do not see Castro, Julien, and Stevens as part of the Rockies core. Castro, I think, will be traded while Julien and Stevens are released to continue the baseball journeys waiting for them.
Ritter and Tovar, I would argue, are placeholders. Despite Tovar’s struggles at the plate, he is the Rockies best option at shortstop in the near term. I suspect the Rockies hope to address his offensive issues and trade him. But Tyler Bell looks to be the future here though he has expressed a willingness to move to second.
Amador, I think, will get his second MLB audition in August. After the front office sees how he does, they’ll will decide his place in the lineup going forward.
Roldy Brito (No. 11 PuRP) and Ethan Holliday (No. 2 PuRP) fit in here somewhere. For Holliday, I am not sure where because I do not believe he’ll stick at short, but given that his season was cut short, we know less about his progress. (Frankly, I expect him to be moved to the outfield.)
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So here’s my infield core: Rumfield and Karros with Charlie Condon (No 1 PuRP) providing a RH platoon for first base. Tyler Bell is the future shortstop with second base being up for grabs, and Amador having the first shot — but maybe that’s where they’re hoping for Landyn Vidourek.
Outfielders
Here’s the current 40-man selection:
- Jordan Beck
- Cole Carrigg
- Brenton Doyle
- Tyler Freeman
- Troy Johnston
- Jake McCarthy
- Mickey Moniak
- Sterlin Tompson
- Zac Veen
And on the ‘Topes:
- Drew Avans
- Connor Capel
- Charlie Condon
For me, there are two for-sure names on this list: Cole Carrigg and Charlie Condon.
Veen and Thompson will be given an opportunity to show what they can do after the trade deadline.
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And the other players will be used to fill out a roster, as trade chips, or DFA’d when the season ends.
One note on McCarthy. Yes, he’s a model of what the Rockies want to do, but I see him more as an experiment than as part of the future. DePodesta and Byrnes had an idea of what they wanted to see work at Coors Field, and McCarthy showed it can. (Plus, check out his even- and 0dd-year splits.) At this point, McCarthy becomes more valuable as a trade piece.
Starting rotation
This one is fairly straightforward. Here’s the current 40-man:
- Chase Dollander
- Ryan Feltner
- Kyle Freeland
- Gabriel Hughes
- Michael Lorenzen
- José Quintana
- Tomoyuki Sugano
- Sean Sullivan
Of this list, only two are players to build around: Chase Dollander and Gabriel Hughes.
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Other starters I expect to be traded or used to finish the season. This is a part of the roster that DePodesta and Byrnes will focus on improving during the trade deadline and offseason.
Feltner, I would argue, is not consistent enough, and Sullivan seems better as a bullpen fit.
Bullpen
Here, things get weird, and I’m hesitant to say much of anything given the volatility of bullpen arms. And there are so many that I’m not going to list them all.
There is one that stands out: Nick Frasso. He may illustrate what the Rockies have in mind going forward. The other bullpen arms I think will either be traded or used as needed. (Hey, you can never have too many arms.) But Frasso and perhaps Juan Mejia strike me as the only two with staying power.
Here’s the thing about Seth Halvorsen: Whatever his talents, the Rockies front office did not see him as part of their core going forward.
We should see more of those kinds of moves before the trade deadline.
Closing thoughts
So that’s where I am in terms of looking to the future. I think DePodesta and Byrnes are eager to get this team in contention, and they will take whatever steps are needed to make that happen.
But with that, I turn the discussion over to the Purple Rowers, who, I’m sure, will have their own strong opinions.
Who do you see the Rockies building around going forward?
What I’m hearing about the Yankees’ trade deadline pursuit of a catcher | The Athletic ($ — gift link)
Of course, Hunter Goodman receives attention in this one with Chris Kirschner questioning Goodman’s defense skills. Then there’s this line: “During daily meetings between the Yankees’ starting pitcher and catcher, the catcher delivers comprehensive scouting reports detailing the strategy for attacking the opponent’s lineup.” Apparently the conclusion is that the Rockies don’t do game prep on the opposing team? At any rate, the Hunter Goodman articles increasingly seem less an analysis of his skills and more about decreasing his trade value.
The inevitable Kyle Karros | Blake Street Banter
Eli Whitney examines what Karros brings to the Rockies.
This rising Rockies prospect just hit over .400 for the second straight season | MLB.com
In case you’re just starting to learn about Cristian Arguelles, the 19-year-old outfielder dominating the ACL, here you go.
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