The Colorado Rockies Have an Infield-depth Problem

During the offseason, Colorado Rockies general manager Bill Schmidt was clear that acquiring additional roster depth was a priority. Here’s what Patrick Saunders wrote last December at the 2024 Winter Meetings:

The Rockies’ overarching goal this offseason is to build a better bench.


“I want to do that to allow (manager) Buddy (Black) to rest guys more,” Schmidt said. “We want our starting guys to be fresher.”


Specifically, Schmidt would like to get third baseman Ryan McMahon, Tovar, and Doyle “off their feet more.” The Rockies hung on to Sam Hilliard and let go of Jake Cave because Hilliard can play center field from time to time and give Doyle a break. In those instances, Doyle could be used as a designated hitter to keep him in the lineup.

In meeting those goals, the Rockies made a few moves. Here’s what they did and how it’s going.

They signed Thairo Estrada to take Brendan Rodgers’ place — This seemed like a smart move for all parties involved. Unfortunately, Estrada suffered a broken wrist during spring training and was expected to be out six to eight weeks. Yesterday, the Rockies moved him to the 60-day IL, which indicates he won’t be back anytime soon.

They signed Kyle Farmer as a bench utility player — Initially, that seemed like a good idea. The 34 year old was known for his versatility, and his hit-to-contact seemed likely to play well at Coors Field. (So far, he’s been fine.) Quickly, however, Farmer found himself off the bench and an everyday player, filling in for Estrada.

Giving Farmer this much playing time was fine until the wear and tear began to get to him, a point mentioned on last night’s Reds-Rockies television broadcast. Plus, in starting Farmer daily, the Rockies lost a key bench player. They had hoped to give Farmer some time off during their weekend series, but an injury sent him back into the lineup last night. This seems unsustainable.

They traded for utility player Tyler Freeman — Sending Nolan Jones back to the Cleveland Guardians for Freeman was supposed to provide additional depth given that Freeman could play throughout the infield and outfield. However, an oblique strain on April 10 put him on the IL indefinitely. In an attempt to cover second base, the Rockies recalled Adael Amador from Triple-A Albuquerque.

They recalled utility infielder Aaron Schunk — The Rockies made that move after putting Ezequiel Tovar on the 10-day IL with a hip injury. In 2024, Schunk was never really given a chance to show what he could do, but he has tried to make the most of his time in Denver. (In seven games, he has five hits, including four singles and a double.) Plus, he has the added advantage of being about to play third in addition to shortstop and second base.

However, in the fifth inning of last night’s game, Schunk was injured. “Looks like a groin injury,” manager Bud Black said afterwards. “Doesn’t look good.” And with that, a weary Kyle Farmer entered the game.

Prior to the start of yesterday’s game, they selected the contract of utility player Owen Miller — As Skyler Timmins wrote in March, the former Milwaukee Brewer and utility player had made a case for his presence on the roster. Now, he will get the opportunity to show what he can do.

That’s a long way of saying that the Rockies did their best to add depth.

However, most of that depth is either injured or in the starting lineup. Moreover, the Rockies do not have a strong infield in Triple-A Albuquerque: Warming Bernabel, Julio Carreras, Keston Huira, and Ryan Ritter. (In fairness, their roster is depleted because so much of their talent is now in Denver.)

By the way, that’s just middle infielders. If Ironmen Ryan McMahon or Michael Toglia were to go on the IL, it’s anyone’s guess as to the players that would take their place. (It‘s worth noting that Toglia is second in MLB K% at 40.9% while McMahon is third at 37.7%. But there’s clearly no opportunity for Toglia to go to ABQ for a tuneup.)

The Rockies had hoped Kris Bryant could relieve Toglia on occasion, but, obviously, that has not happened given his perennial back issues. Moreover, playing third base is out of the question. Plus, there’s no sense of when the former MVP will come off the IL.

The 2025 Colorado Rockies are not good — a 4-21 record makes that clear. However, a month into the season, their injury situation has not helped.

So what happens next?

Certainly, the Rockies hope that their healthy players will stay healthy while others are soon able to return to the roster. Moreover, it’s good Amador is getting regular playing time.

But then there’s the question of the next promotion to take Schunk’s spot — possibly shortstop Ryan Ritter. (Doing this will require adding him to the 40-man roster, another complicating factor.)

If so, the Rockies will have promoted six of their prospects to the Rockies in the first month of the season, a move driven by necessity rather than strategy. (Apparently, the Universe has decided the Rockies will, in fact, let the kids play.)

Look, the Rockies are a weird team, but all this injuries are making things especially strange.

Stay tuned.

UPDATE

This morning, Sunday, April 27, the Rockies announced the following moves:

It is a very Rockies move to bring back the familiar Alan Trejo rather than promoting someone within their system.

That said, a benefit of the move is that Trejo knows the system and will transition in seamlessly with his former team.

How long he remains with the Rockies will depend on the health of his teammates as well as his on-field performance. (Stints with the Los Angeles Dodgers a Texas Rangers may have changed his approach at the plate.)

So, continue to stay tuned.

What I’m Reading

• Thomas Harding’s “Márquez Becomes 1st Rockie to Record 1,000 Strikeouts with Club” (MLB.com) — Finally, some good news!

• Ray Ratto’s “Bud Black Has Either The Best Or The Worst Job In Baseball” (Defector) — Ratto brings that Defector approach to a question plaguing Rockies fans.

• Paul Caputo’s “Rockies React to Début of New City Connect Uniform” (SportsLogos.net) — We’ve seen the new uniforms in action twice. Caputo talks to the players about what’s working — and what’s not.

Closing Thoughts

And that’s it for this week.

Yes, I know: I’m late again. In my defense, I spent the week grading freshmen research papers, which always marks the most challenging part of my semester. After I get them done, the semester is downhill. But getting there . . . .

This week, we’ll see if the Rockies can get on track, but they’ve dug themselves into a hole that seems to me difficult to get out of, and there’s little evidence yet that adding Clint Hurdle has made a change. Plus, the injuries will make everything harder.

The 2025 Rockies are not a good team, but I think they will be an interesting one.

As always, thanks for reading, and feel free to share this with a friend.

Renee

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Rockies Pitch is a newsletter that focuses on Colorado Rockies baseball. Find me on Bluesky at @Renee.Dechert.com.