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Rockies Place Thairo Estrada On IL With Thumb Sprain

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The Rockies announced today that infielder Ezequiel Tovar has been reinstated from the 10-day injured list. In a corresponding move, fellow infielder Thairo Estrada goes the other way. He’s been placed on the 10-day IL due to a sprained left thumb, retroactive to July 11th.

It’s a notable development for Estrada and the Rockies, as he is one of the most obvious trade candidates this month. He’s a veteran playing for the worst team in the league, so all signs were pointing to him being on the block.

Unfortunately, his value was already low due to a previous injury. He signed a one-year, $3.25MM deal with the Rockies in the offseason but then broke his right wrist on a hit-by-pitch during spring training. Since he missed time in 2024 due to left wrist sprains, it was a less than ideal development for him.

He was reinstated from the IL at the end of May. Since then, he stepped to the plate 125 times with a .284/.312/.397 batting line. That looks okay at first glance but translates to an 83 wRC+ due to the favorable conditions of Coors Field.

Estrada had a strong three-run with the Giants from 2021 to 2023. He slashed .266/.320/.416 for a 105 wRC+ over those seasons, stealing 45 bases in the process. But he hit just .217/.247/.343 last year while battling those wrist issues. That got him bumped from the roster, which led to his deal with the Rockies.

If he had been able to bounce back to that 2021-23 form, he would have been an intriguing piece at this year’s deadline. Unfortunately, he’s now coming up on two years of being hurt and fairly ineffective. Given that the IL stint is backdated, he could come back in a week. But even in that best-case scenario, that doesn’t give him much time to change his trade value. He can be retained for 2026 via arbitration but is trending towards a non-tender.

Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy, Imagn Images

Which Other Draft Picks Are Eligible To Be Traded Before Sunday?

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The Rays made an “early” strike in deadline season yesterday, shipping off their Competitive Balance Round A selection (No. 37 overall) in Sunday’s draft to acquire righty Bryan Baker from the division-rival Orioles. Baker, 30, has had his two worst outings of the season in his final Orioles appearance and last night’s Rays debut — which came just hours after he was “shocked” to learn he was traded and boarded a last-minute flight to meet his new team in Boston — but carried a 2.58 ERA and 33.3% strikeout rate through July 5. He comes to the Rays with three additional seasons of club control, as well.

Following the trade, O’s general manager Mike Elias acknowledged that Thursday’s trade was “earlier than my comfort level” but that the timing of the draft and strength of the return pushed him to make a deal sooner than he’d have preferred (link via Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). It’s feasible that other general managers/president of baseball operations feel similar pressure if presented with opportunities to add an extra pick over the next two-plus days.

As a refresher, Competitive Balance picks are the only picks in the annual amateur draft that are eligible to be traded. They can only be traded one time, meaning the pick the Orioles received for Baker — and the picks the Dodgers, Guardians and Red Sox received in trades of Gavin Lux, Josh Naylor and Quinn Priester, respectively — are now locked in place for those clubs. There are still a handful of selections that could be traded, however.

Here’s a rundown of the picks in Competitive Balance Rounds A and B. MLBTR has confirmed via industry sources that the picks held by the Dodgers, Yankees and Mets in Round A are ineligible to be traded, as they’re technically first-round picks that were dropped down into Competitive Balance Round A as penalty for exceeding the luxury tax by more than $40MM. Similarly, the picks held by the Rays and Brewers in Round B are ineligible to be traded due to the fact that they are compensation for failing to sign last year’s picks in Competitive Balance Round B. Picks that are eligible to be traded are in bold; those ineligible to be moved are in strikethrough font. The deadline to trade any of these eligible picks is 4pm ET on Sunday — two hours prior to the start of this year’s amateur draft.

Round A

  • No. 33 overall: Red Sox (acquired from Brewers in exchange for RHP Quinn Priester)
  • No. 34: Tigers
  • No. 35: Mariners
  • No. 36: Twins
  • No. 37: Orioles (acquired from Rays in exchange for RHP Bryan Baker)
  • No. 38: Mets
  • No. 39: Yankees
  • No. 40: Dodgers
  • No. 41: Dodgers (acquired from Reds in exchange for INF/OF Gavin Lux)
  • No. 42: Rays (acquired from A’s in exchange for LHPs Jeffrey Springs, Jacob Lopez)
  • No. 43: Marlins

Round B

  • No. 66 overall: Guardians
  • No. 67: Rays (compensation for unsigned pick in 2024)
  • No. 68: Brewers (compensation for unsigned pick in 2024)
  • No. 69: Orioles
  • No. 70: Guardians (acquired from D-backs in exchange for 1B Josh Naylor)
  • No. 71: Royals
  • No. 72: Cardinals
  • No. 73: Pirates
  • No. 74: Rockies

The Tigers are the only clear buyer with a pick that can be traded, and it’s a prominent one. The Mariners and Cardinals are only one game out of a Wild Card spot in their respective leagues. Seattle is expected to act as a buyer and has been on the hunt for corner infield bats and late-inning bullpen help. The Royals (3.5 games), Twins (4) and Guardians (5) are all within five games of a Wild Card spot.

Fans would largely welcome the advent of additional selections becoming eligible to be traded, but that’s not in the cards for now. MLBPA executive director Bruce Meyer joined Foul Territory earlier this week and told hosts Scott Braun, Erik Kratz and A.J. Pierzynski that the union is in favor of trading draft picks and has unsuccessfully raised the issue in past waves of collective bargaining (video link, draft pick talk coming around the one hour, 12-minute mark).

“This union has consistently been in favor of teams being able to trade draft picks,” said Meyer. “It would help competition. We think it would help small-market teams that have those valuable draft picks. They should have the flexibility to trade them if it’s in the best interest of the team. I think many teams would agree, but the league for whatever reason has, to date, been against allowing clubs the ability to trade Rule 4 [amateur] draft picks. We proposed it last time. It was rejected. I don’t want to commit to much for the next round of bargaining, but I feel pretty confident we’ll propose that again, because we think it’s actually beneficial to competitive balance.”

It should be noted that virtually any proposal in collective bargaining comes with some give and take. Meyer’s comments only portray one side of the discussion, and it’s not clear whether anything else was attached to that proposal. Regardless, it’s notable that the union’s lead negotiator has signaled a desire to again broach the subject of draft pick trades when the two sides return to the table to hammer out a new collective bargaining agreement.

Latest On Rockies’ Expected Deadline Approach

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The Rockies dropped to 21-71 with today’s loss in Boston, putting them on a 37-win pace for the season. That’d have them four wins shy of last year’s White Sox, the worst team in modern history. The Rockies are obviously going to be deadline sellers, but the extent of that sale is complicated by the organization’s track record of holding onto players that any other team would have traded.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes that the Rox intend to be more willing to listen on veteran players than they have been at prior deadlines. He suggests they’ll seriously entertain interest in the likes of third baseman Ryan McMahon, reliever Jake Bird, and starter Germán Márquez. That broadly aligns with a report from Jon Heyman of The New York Post last week. Heyman reported that the Rockies are open to offers on McMahon, specifically, after they pulled him off the trade market early in 2024.

However, that increased willingness to deal veterans doesn’t mean the Rockies are completely open for business. Rosenthal writes that the team remains unlikely to trade young players whom they view as core pieces. He lists shortstop Ezequiel Tovar, center fielder Brenton Doyle, and rookie righty Chase Dollander in that group. Rosenthal more surprisingly adds relievers Seth Halvorsen and Zach Agnos, plus starter Ryan Feltner, as players who may fall in the latter category.

McMahon, Márquez and Bird are Colorado’s three most obvious trade chips. They all featured prominently on MLBTR’s initial list of the top 40 trade candidates last week. McMahon is a plus defensive third baseman with power and strikeout concerns. He had an abysmal April, raked in May, and has cooled back off since the beginning of June. He’s hitting just .210/.310/.373 on the season and has been a well below-average hitter (.207/.305/.350) over the past calendar year.

There’ll nevertheless be interest in McMahon, particularly given the scarcity of infield talent that may be available. The Yankees need to acquire a third baseman and have reportedly already checked in. The Cubs and Tigers are speculative possibilities. McMahon is playing on a $12MM salary in his age-30 season and will make $16MM annually between 2026-27.

Márquez is an impending free agent who is making $10MM. He was an above-average starter earlier in his career but hasn’t been as sharp since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2023. He’s sitting on a 5.84 ERA with a subpar 15.3% strikeout rate over 18 starts. The 30-year-old righty is coming off his best month of the season, though, working to a 2.97 mark while striking out 21% of opponents in June. His fastball still sits around 95 MPH, so teams could view him as an upside play outside of Coors Field. He’s unlikely to be a qualifying offer candidate, so there’s little reason not to trade him.

Bird, 29, had quietly been one of the league’s best relievers until he was blown up by the Red Sox on Tuesday. That outing jumped his season ERA by nearly a full run, up from 2.79 to 3.70. Bird has fanned more than 27% of opposing hitters and has generally done well to keep runs off the board. He looked to be a fairly nondescript middle reliever entering the season. He’s under club control for three seasons beyond this one, but this is a breakout year for a reliever approaching his 30th birthday. The Rockies would be wise to cash him in this summer while his trade value is at its peak.

The Rockies have a few other veteran players, though they’d have little to no trade value. They’ll presumably hope to find a lottery ticket prospect for the likes of Thairo Estrada, Austin Gomber and Tyler Kinley. It’s not surprising they’re reluctant to move Tovar or Doyle, both of whom are struggling through down years but looked like potential cornerstones a season ago. Dollander has been hit hard in his debut campaign and was recently optioned back to Triple-A, but he’s a recent top 10 pick and the organization’s best hope of developing a front-line starter.

Feltner is a back-of-the-rotation starter who has missed most of this season rehabbing a back issue. He just returned from the injured list last week and has been limited to six starts. The Rox could get a notable return for Halvorsen, a fireballer who has gotten a look in the ninth inning. He’s only 25 and controllable for five more seasons. A team in Colorado’s position should arguably be willing to trade any reliever, but there’s more of a case for holding Haloversen than there would be with Bird. It’s tougher to see the logic in including Agnos as a potential building block. He’s a rookie reliever with a 5.19 ERA and 15 strikeouts in his first 26 career innings. Agnos, a former 10th-round pick, has good but not elite velocity and has never been a highly-regarded prospect despite excellent minor league numbers.

Rockies Option Chase Dollander

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The Rockies announced today that they have optioned right-hander Chase Dollander to Triple-A Albuquerque. Fellow righty Bradley Blalock has been recalled from Albuquerque as the corresponding move.

Dollander, 23, was called up to the majors in the first week of April. The ninth overall pick of the 2023 draft, he tore through the minors last year, posting a 2.59 earned run average, 33.9% strikeout rate and 9.4% walk rate in 118 innings. He was already a top prospect after being drafted but that performance shot him up even higher on the rankings. After just one Triple-A start this year, he was up in the show.

Thus far, he hasn’t been able to deliver on that prospect hype. Around a brief stint on the injured list due to forearm tightness, he now has 15 big league starts under his belt with a 6.68 ERA. His 16.8% strikeout rate and 10.7% walk rate are both subpar.

Not every prospect comes up to the majors and finds immediate success, so it’s not necessarily a concern that Dollander has struggled so far. On the other hand, Coors Field is a notoriously challenging venue to pitch in and that seems to be a factor here. Dollander has a 4.25 ERA on the road but a massive 9.37 mark in the mountains. His 20.3% strikeout rate on the road is much better than his 13.7% clip at Coors.

Getting major league hitters out is tough in any stadium but the Coors effect only heightens the challenge. Batted balls fly farther in the thin air but breaking pitches also move less, so there may be a steep learning curve as Dollander tries to make his stuff work at altitude.

Given his struggles, it’s not necessarily a shock to see the Rockies send him down. It’s also possible that the upcoming All-Star break will allow them to recall him fairly quickly without missing more than one or two turns through the rotation. With some upcoming off-days, the Rockies might just use a four-man rotation for a while, or perhaps give Blalock a spot start or two.

Though the decision is defensible, Dollander is likely to be personally impacted by the move. A baseball season is usually 186 days long but a player needs only 172 days of service to be credited with a full year of service time. Dollander was called up just ten days into the season, so he was on track to hit the one-year mark. That almost certainly won’t happen now as an optional assignment for a pitcher has a 15-day minimum.

The Rockies could technically recall Dollander in less than 15 days if someone else goes on the injured list, but barring that scenario, Dollander no longer has a path to one year of service. As a top prospect, he could also earn a full year by finishing in the top two of Rookie of the Year voting but it’s hard to fathom that possibility with his current stats.

Put it all together and Dollander’s path to free agency has almost certainly been pushed by a year. Had he stayed up, he would have been on track for free agency after 2030. It now appears that post-2031 will be the earliest he could hit the open market. His path to arbitration could also be impacted, depending on how long this optional assignment lasts.

Those are long-term questions which will be answered in time. In the shorter term, the focus will be on Dollander’s on-field abilities and figuring out how to reach his potential. The 2025 Rockies are one of the worst baseball teams of all time and there aren’t many reasons for long-term optimism either. If Dollander can start looking like a potential ace again, that would provide a glimmer of hope, but it’s not there right now.

Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images

Rockies Reinstate Ryan Feltner From 60-Day IL, Outright Sam Hilliard

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The Rockies announced a pair of transactions today. They reinstated Ryan Feltner from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A, and they sent outfielder Sam Hilliard outright to Triple-A Albuquerque. The team already had an open spot for Feltner on the 40-man after designating Hilliard for assignment earlier in the week, so no corresponding move was necessary.

It is somewhat surprising news that Feltner has been optioned, considering he has made Colorado’s Opening Day rotation in each of the past three years and has not pitched in the minors for any reason other than a rehab assignment since July 2022. In fact, he was the team’s most effective starting pitcher just last season (4.49 ERA, 4.31 SIERA in 30 starts), and he looked much the same over his first six starts in 2025, pitching to a 4.75 ERA and 4.49 SIERA through the end of April. However, this seems to be less of a demotion and more of a continued rehab assignment for Feltner. He has been on the IL since May due to back spasms, and he did not look particularly sharp in any of his three rehab outings with the Isotopes.

With the way that rookie Chase Dollander has struggled this season, especially as of late, Feltner won’t be blocked if he proves he’s ready to return to the majors. At the same time, the 20-67 Rockies have little incentive to rush him back before then. Hopefully for Felter, a few more outings at Triple-A are all he needs to rein in his control and get back to being the pitcher he was before his injury.

As for Hilliard, he has the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, but not without sacrificing the remainder of his guaranteed salary for 2025. Thus, it seems likely he will accept the assignment, just as he did the last time the Rockies DFA’d and outrighted him this season. Presumably, he will return to Albuquerque and continue to serve as speedy, lefty-batting outfield depth for the organization.

Yankees Have Shown Interest In Ryan McMahon

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As the Yankees search for infield upgrades to address their need for either a second baseman or third baseman — Jazz Chisholm Jr. can play either spot — they’ve reached out to the Rockies regarding the potential availability of Ryan McMahon, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. While the Rockies have been unwilling to entertain offers for McMahon in the past, Heyman suggests that they’re willing to listen this time around as they barrel toward a potentially historic loss total in 2025. He adds that New York has yet to contact the D-backs about Eugenio Suarez, though that has more to do with Arizona being within arm’s reach of a Wild Card spot (three games back) than a lack of interest.

McMahon would bring a major upgrade to a Yankees infield that has felt one player short all season. Chisholm has split his time almost evenly between second base (251 innings) and third base (214 innings), performing well with the bat at both spots. He’s hitting .240/.339/.490 on the season and has swatted 14 homers to go along with 10 steals. His 28.2% strikeout rate is up nearly four percentage points over his 2024 levels, but Chisholm’s 11.5% walk rate is far and away a career-high mark.

Chisholm told The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner earlier this week that he knows he’s a better defender at second base and that he’d prefer to be playing there if all else were equal, but he’s happy to do “whatever it takes to help the team win.” A trade for McMahon (or another third baseman) could kill two birds with one stone: solidify the hot corner and get Chisholm back to the position at which he’s most comfortable and best-suited to play.

Earlier this year, it looked as though the Rockies may have missed the boat on trading McMahon. He drew considerable interest in the weeks and months leading into last summer’s trade deadline, but McMahon is reportedly a favorite of Rox owner Dick Monfort, who wasn’t keen on shipping out an All-Star infielder who’s signed affordably through 2027. McMahon wound up falling into a deep slump over the season’s final two months and started the 2025 campaign with the least-productive month of his big league tenure. He entered the month of May hitting just .147/.273/.235 with a sky-high 35.5% strikeout rate.

McMahon homered on May 1, however, and it’s been business as usual for him since. He’s largely back into All-Star form, hitting at a .253/.343/.468 clip with 10 homers, nine doubles and a triple in his past 216 turns at the plate. It should be noted that he’s currently in a bit of a cold spell, with just two hits and 11 strikeouts in his past 23 plate appearances, but nothing so drastic or prolonged as his swoon from August through April (.179/.272/.275, 320 plate appearances). He’s still hitting only .216/.318/.387 on the season because of that disastrous first month, but the trend lines in May and most of June were quite favorable.

On top of his resurgent bat, McMahon has maintained his status as a premium defensive player. Both Defensive Runs Saved (3) and Statcast’s Outs Above Average (3) grade him as a positive in 2025. He’s not on quite the same pace as he was in 4434 innings from 2021-24 (50 DRS, 38 OAA), but McMahon is an unequivocal plus defender at the hot corner who also has ample experience and strong defensive grades at second base.

McMahon’s contract is surely appealing to the Yankees as well. He’s not necessarily a raucous bargain, but the former No. 42 overall draft pick is being paid $12MM this season and is owed $16MM in both 2026 and 2027. The Yankees would pay a 110% tax on his contract’s annual value, given their status as a third-time offender in the top tier of luxury penalization, but McMahon’s six-year, $70MM extension is still well shy of the market rate for a plus defensive third baseman with 25-homer pop.

Heyman also suggests that Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes is at least “on the Yankees’ radar” as a change of scenery candidate, though he’d be a pure project. Hayes is an elite defender whose offensive output has cratered after recurring back troubles have popped up in recent years. He’s playing out an eight-year, $70MM contract signed with Pittsburgh prior to those back troubles surfacing. The Pirates owe him a $7MM salary this season and are on the hook for an additional $36MM over the contract’s final four guaranteed seasons (2026-29).

Hayes is hitting well over the past three weeks (.324/.342/.405 in 76 plate appearances), but it’d be a pretty big leap of faith to expect that to continue, considering the 28-year-old’s composite .239/.289/.297 slash in 714 plate appearances dating back to Opening Day 2024. Still, given the strength of his glove, his above-average speed and solid contact skills, Hayes at least makes sense for infield-needy clubs to track as a long-shot trade candidate.

Kevin Pillar Announces Retirement

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Kevin Pillar is hanging up his Superman cape. On an appearance on Foul Territory, he announced that he is retiring from playing. He was with the Rangers earlier this year but was released about a month ago.

Pillar, now 36, was able to engineer an incredible zero-to-hero career. The Blue Jays drafted him in the 32nd round of the 2011 draft. But despite that humble beginning, he would not only make it to the big leagues but he would stick around for more than a decade.

His best asset was his defense, as he quickly earned a reputation for making highlight-reel catches, often diving horizontally in a way that earned him his Superman nickname. He got some limited big league time in 2013 and 2014 before fully cementing himself as a big leaguer in 2015.

That year, he got into 159 games for the Jays, producing a batting line of .278/.314/.399. His 94 wRC+ indicated he was 6% below league average at the plate, but that was more than adequate to pair with his other attributes. He stole 25 bases and received strong grades for his glovework, leading FanGraphs to credit him with 3.7 wins above replacement. That played a big role in getting the Jays to the postseason for the first time since 1993. Though the club was eventually felled by the Royals in the ALCS, the Jays got José Bautista’s legendary bat flip game along the way.

That would ultimately prove to be an apex for Pillar. He never again stole more than 15 bases nor topped a 90 wRC+ in a full season. But he still proved to be a useful player in generally the same shape, with his speed and defense making up for some subpar offense. From 2016 to 2018, he got into 442 games for the Jays, slashing .258/.296/.401 for an 86 wRC+ and producing 4.5 fWAR.

By the time the 2019 season had rolled around, Pillar was 30 years old and the Jays were rebuilding. Early that year, he was flipped to the Giants, which started the journeyman period of his career. Over the next few years, he would bounce to the Red Sox, Rockies, Mets, Dodgers, Braves, White Sox, Angels and Rangers. Though he had moved into his 30s, his performance was roughly the same as before, though with his glovework naturally slipping a bit. Over those 2019-25 seasons, he played 544 games and hit .246/.284/.415 for an 85 wRC+ and produced 2.4 fWAR.

Most recently, he had a stint with the Rangers but hit just .209/.209/.256 in 20 games before getting designated for assignment and released. He had flirted with retirement before but now seems to have decided that it’s time to hang up the spikes.

Any 32nd-round pick making it to the big leagues is exceedingly rare. In fact, the draft was shortened to 20 rounds a few years ago, so it likely won’t happen again. Pillar not only made it, but he got into 1,234 games over 13 seasons. He racked up 1,053 hits, including 114 home runs. He was credited with 10.8 WAR from FanGraphs and 16.1 from Baseball Reference. He earned about $25MM in his career, according to Baseball Reference. We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Pillar on an impressive career and wish him the best with whatever comes next.

Rockies Designate Sam Hilliard For Assignment, Select Austin Nola

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The Rockies announced a series of roster moves today. They have recalled outfielder Yanquiel Fernández from Triple-A Albuquerque, a move that was previously reported, and also selected the contract of catcher Austin Nola. In corresponding moves, they have optioned backstop Braxton Fulford and designated outfielder Sam Hilliard for assignment.

Hilliard, 31, was added to Colorado’s roster just over a month ago. He has since been sent to the plate 61 times, with a huge 37.7% strikeout rate but also a strong 16.4% walk rate. The result is a lopsided line of .196/.328/.412.

He has occasionally shown promise as a big leaguer but often with his penchant for punchouts getting in the way. He now has 936 big league plate appearances over seven seasons with 44 home runs but a 34.3% strikeout rate. Since he’s out of options and the Rockies want to get a look at Fernández, Hilliard has been bumped off the 40-man roster.

Hilliard was also outrighted off the roster at the end of March. As a player with between three and five years of major league service time, he has the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency, but has to forfeit his remaining salary in order to do so. He is making $1MM this year, so he accepted an outright assignment the last time he was sent through waivers. It’s possible the same sequence of events plays out in the coming days.

Nola, 35, signed a minor league deal with the Rockies in the offseason. He has spent a decent amount of this year on the minor league injured list but has been healthy for the past month or so. He has 116 minor league plate appearances this year with a strong .330/.397/.456 line, though most of that has been in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, so it only translates to a 107 wRC+.

That will seemingly be enough to Nola a shot at the backup catcher job. The Rockies released Jacob Stallings last month, with Hunter Goodman and Fulford left in charge of the catching duties. Fulford will now presumably get everyday playing time in Triple-A while Nola returns to the majors.

Nola has 345 big league games under his belt with a .249/.326/.370 line and 95 wRC+. That’s a solid mark for a catcher though his framing hasn’t received good marks from outlets like FanGraphs, Statcast or Baseball Prospectus. He is out of options and would therefore have to be removed from the 40-man roster if the Rockies decide to bump him from the active roster at any point.

Photo courtesy of Brad Mills, Imagn Images

Rockies Expected To Promote Yanquiel Fernandez

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The Rockies are calling up outfield prospect Yanquiel Fernández, reports Francys Romero. Colorado is off tonight, so they’re unlikely to announce the move until tomorrow. Fernandez is on the 40-man roster, meaning the Rox will only need to make an active roster move.

Fernandez, 22, was signed by the Rockies out of Cuba and made his pro debut back in 2021. A consensus top-100 prospect prior to the 2024 season after breaking out to a .319/.354/.605 slash line at High-A the year prior, Fernandez posted solid numbers at Double-A throughout the majority of 2024 but struggled badly at Triple-A with a paltry .211/.268/.313 slash line in 33 games at the highest level of the minors

That poor performance was enough to knock him off the majority of league-wide prospect lists, but this year he’s turned things around in his second attempt at the level. Across 271 plate appearances, he’s hitting .284/.347/.502. That sounds like a robust figure, but given the inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League it’s actually good for a rather pedestrian 96 wRC+. Still, Fernandez’s 14 doubles and 13 homers in 64 games this year is intriguing enough power potential that the Rockies are giving Fernandez a shot in the majors.

It remains to be seen which player Fernandez will be replacing on Colorado’s roster, but Jordan Beck, Tyler Freeman, Sam Hilliard, and Mickey Moniak are currently mixing and matching in the outfield corners while Brenton Doyle patrols center. Fernandez’s role as a left-handed corner bat is one that’s already held by both Moniak and Hilliard. Both have identical 95 wRC+ marks overall, though Hilliard’s performance is propped up by six extra-base hits in just 20 games despite him striking out at a 37.7% clip this season. Neither Moniak nor Hilliard have options remaining, so either one would either need to be placed on the injured list or designated for assignment if Fernandez is to replace them on the roster. Of course, it’s not impossible to imagine the club rostering all three with Freeman moving back to the infield or into a utility role.

Trade Deadline Outlook: Colorado Rockies

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MLBTR's team-by-team look at the upcoming trade deadline continues with a look at the Colorado Rockies, who are on pace to break the 2024 White Sox' modern-day record for losses in a single season. General manager Bill Schmidt's club is on pace for a staggering 37 wins this season -- a mark that 23 of the game's 29 other clubs have already reached as of late June. The Rockies are a clear seller -- or at least, they should be. The Rox typically march to the beat of their own drum, however, and owner Dick Monfort seems particularly averse to any large-scale sell-offs.

Still, given the Rockies' historic futility in 2025, the expectation is that they'll move some veteran pieces, while the fan base's hope might be for an uncharacteristically active deadline on the sell side of things.

Record: 18-62 (0% playoff odds, per FanGraphs)

Other series entries: Giants, Phillies, Pirates, Astros, Marlins

Sell Mode

Impending free agents: Germán Márquez, Thairo Estrada, Austin Gomber, Kyle Farmer, Orlando Arcia

Márquez has been a pillar for the Rockies' staff since coming over in a 2015-16 offseason trade that sent outfielder Corey Dickerson to the Rays. The Rox have resisted trading him in the past, twice signing him to extensions. He's now in his first full season post-Tommy John surgery, earning $10MM. There'll be about $3.17MM of that sum yet to be paid out of as of deadline day. Márquez got out to an awful start but has turned in a 3.21 ERA in 47 2/3 innings over his past nine starts (though that includes six unearned runs in his last start against the Dodgers). His 17.6% strikeout rate in that span is nowhere near peak levels, but his command has been good and he's averaging better than 95 mph on his heater. Plenty of teams would look at Marquez's velocity and track record of missing bats and think they could turn him around further.

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