The Rockies won 59 games last season and made almost no significant additions. They can expect some internal improvements, but this should be one of the worst teams in the National League. Major League Signings C : (including buyout of 2025 mutual option) RHP : (eligible for arbitration through 2025) 2024 spending: $3MM Total spending: $3.5MM Option Decisions None Trades and Claims LHP off waivers from Rays RHP from Guardians for minor league C Selected RHP in Rule 5 draft from Rays CF off waivers from Orioles Notable Minor League Signings , , , , , , , Extensions DH to a one-year, $13MM extension Notable Lo ses , (non-tendered), (non-tendered), , (released to pursue KBO opportunity), , (non-tendered) The Rockies got a jump on their offseason just before it began. While the Rox were long since eliminated from playoff contention, the regular season wasnt quite over when Colorado signed to a one-year extension on September 29. That the Rox wanted to keep the career-long member of the organization for a 14th season wasnt surprising. The price point, on the other hand, was unexpected. Colorado guaranteed Blackmon $13MM, an odd decision considering hed been pushed mostly to designated hitter and has been a good, not great, offensive player over the past few years. Paying an above-market price to prevent Blackmon from getting to free agency seemed a questionable move on day one. It looks even worse considering how the offseason transpired. Colorados front office can be forgiven for not anticipating the free agent market for hitters Kyle Lowry Jersey of Blackmons ilk would be down. Yet its tough to justify in the context of apparent organization payroll restrictions. Pending contract selections of players who are in camp on minor league deals, Blackmons salary accounts for more than half the financial commitments that Colorado made this winter. No team did le s in free agency. The Roxs only major league signings were backup catcher and depth starter . Both players had been non-tendered by their previous teams. The Rockies announced the signings, which were worth $3.5MM combined, in tandem on January 5. Stallings is a fine backup catcher who had previous succe s when paired with Colorados current starter, , in Pittsburgh. Hudson keeps the ball on the ground and had some early succe s with the Cardinals before falling off. Hes an alright rebound target, but his acquisition isnt going to dramatically change the pitching staff. The lack of free agent spending might be le s notable had Colorado made significant moves on the trade market. They made one trade all winter. That was a buy-low flier on righty , wholl get a spot in the season-opening rotation. Colorado took on a fairly significant $6.55MM arbitration salary in what was largely a financially motivated swap for the Guardians. The Rox sent former seventh-round pick , who projects as a depth catcher, back to Cleveland. Its a solid addition. Quantrill didnt have much succe s in 2023, but that could be attributable to recurring shoulder i sues. The former eighth overall pick is only a season removed from turning in a 3.38 ERA over a full set of 32 starts. Even at his best, Quantrill hasnt mi sed many bats. He has plus command and has shown the ability to mostly stay off barrels, though. Colorado can control him through 2025 via arbitration. For little more than a willingne s to tender him a contract, hes a worthwhile flier for a team that entered the winter with almost no starting pitching. The problem is that Quantrill and Hudson were the only rotation options whom Colorado added to the 40-man roster. It leaves them with arguably the worst group of starting pitchers in the majors. is reliable but has never come close to replicating his sterling 2018 season, when he turned in a 2.85 ERA over 33 starts. His stuff has regre sed in recent seasons and he allowed more than five earned runs per nine a year ago. Freelands velocity has spiked this spring, which is promising, but hes still miscast as a staff ace. Beyond him, its a host of rebound candidates or development hopefuls. Quantrill will occupy a spot in the middle of the rotation. So will lefty , who has been inconsistent but showed reasonably well in the second half of last season. Fourth starter has an ERA above 6.00 in 32 MLB appearances. Hudson and (who owns a 6.47 career ERA) are competing for the fifth spot. Its far from an inspiring group. Things could look a bit better in 2025, when and should be back after Tommy John rehabs. For the upcoming season, skipper Bud Black could have a hard time getting enough innings out of this group. Thatd put a lot of strain on a bullpen that, while similarly thin, has some promise towards the back end. Colorado can hope for better out of after a healthy offseason. The righty was brilliant early in 2022 before elbow surgery knocked him out for more than a calendar year. While he struggled late last season, its understandable if he hadnt shaken off the rust. Hes competing with hard-throwing righty for the ninth inning. Colorado grabbed long man off waivers from the Rays. He posted an ERA near six last season but had a 2.80 ERA with an above-average 28% strikeout rate as recently as 2022. The Rox took righty from the Tampa Bay system in the Rule 5 draft. Right-hander returns after tying for the MLB lead with 84 1/3 relief innings a year ago. He posted a solid 4.27 ERA behind a 54.2% ground-ball percentage. Colorado lost to the Reds in free agency, maybe opening a spot in the Opening Day bullpen for a minor league signee like or . While the Rockies were surprisingly quiet in sitting out the pitching market, they did even le s to addre s the position player group. Beyond Stallings, the only major league pickup was old friend , whom Colorado claimed off waivers in Spring Training. Hes probably competing with minor league signee for a bench job. Hilliard and Zimmer each hit left-handed and are capable of playing center field. Adding a player of that ilk was a goal for the front office. Starting center fielder hits from the right side. Hes an excellent defender but turned in a .203/.250/.353 batting line as a rookie. Right fielder is also a right-handed batter. While the UCLA product has posted excellent offensive numbers in a small big league sample, he soon turns 28 and has all of 48 MLB games under his belt. Its no surprise the Rox wanted another option in case either Doyle or Bouchard stumbles. Theres not as much question in left field, where had a strong campaign and looks like one of the organizations most promising players. Blackmon could occasionally see corner outfield work but will primarily DH. is moving to first base for the most part as Colorado tries to keep their $182MM signee healthier. Other than that, the starting infield is unchanged. will be back at second base, hopefully with better results than he managed late last summer after returning from shoulder surgery. and are an excellent defensive tandem on the left side. The Rox will want to see more from the latter offensively. Tovar was a top prospect but had a middling rookie season as a hitter, largely thanks to a very aggre sive approach. Still just 22, its po sible he develops a bit more selectivity in his second extended look at big league pitching. Stallings replaces and as the backup catcher behind Daz. The out-of-options should crack the MLB roster as a corner infielder and bench bat. The Rockies non-tendered utilityman , likely clearing a path for to get back to the big leagues as a depth middle infielder. Its a bit surprising that Colorado didnt take a non-roster flier on a veteran who could back up Rodgers and Tovar. Perhaps thats something theyll look to addre s as players trigger opt-outs from minor league deals with other teams on the eve of Opening Day. That may not be the teams most pre sing goal of the next couple weeks. reported over the weekend that the Rockies and Black were in discu sions about another contract extension. The Rox have extended the veteran skipper on one-year deals in each of the past two offseasons. Hes signed through 2024, which will be his eighth season at the helm. Colorado is among the sports most loyal organizations and has stuck by Black, who certainly hasnt been given the most talented rosters with which to work. Aside from a po sible managerial extension, it seems fair to presume any late-spring moves would be minor in nature. The Rockies were content to run back the vast majority of last years team, which lost a franchise-record 103 games. Thats a reflection of a payroll saddled with underwater investments in Bryant, Freeland and Senzatela (in addition to the $10MM which they still owe the Cardinals as part of the trade). The Rox were also hit by the broadcasting challenges facing a large portion of the league. AT&T Sports abandoned their local TV deal at the end of last season, cutting off a source of revenue that the team around $57MM last year. MLB is distributing the teams games in-market for 2024. Beyond the revenue challenges, the Rockies still havent shown a clear path to putting a competitive roster on the field. That might be easier to visualize later in the season if prospects like , , and get to the big leagues. 2022 college draftee might not be much further off. The Rockies took a flier on with last years ninth overall selection to add the highest-ceiling pitching prospect theyve had in the organization in some time. Theyll pick third in the upcoming draft and appear headed for high odds of another lottery pick in 2025. Thats probably of diminishing solace for a fanbase that has seen the team finish in fourth or fifth in the NL West five years running. On paper, theres a huge gap between Colorado and everyone else in their division yet again. Aside from Hall of Fame induction, this will probably be another tough summer for Rockies fans. How would you grade the Rockies' offseason? F 59.28% (1,530votes) D 27.93% (721votes) C 9.38% (242votes) A 1.94% (50votes) B 1.47% (38votes) Total Votes: 2,581 Dewan Hernandez Jersey