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Rockies Promote Chase Dollander

By Darragh McDonald | April 6, 2025 at 11:58am CDT

TODAY: The Rockies officially selected Dollander’s contract, and optioned Bradley Blalock to Triple-A in the corresponding move.

APRIL 4: The Rockies are going to promote their top pitching prospect, reports Patrick Lyons of Just Baseball. Right-hander Chase Dollander will make his major league debut when he starts for the club on Sunday. There’s already an opening on the 40-man roster, so the club will only need to make a corresponding active roster move.

Dollander, now 23, has been a hyped-up name for a while now. He put up big numbers for Tennessee and was ranked as one of the top players available in the 2023 draft. The Rockies selected him with the ninth overall pick and then signed him to a slot-value bonus of $5,716,900.

He made his professional debut last year in impressive fashion. He tossed 118 innings over 23 starts, going from High-A to Double-A in the process. He allowed just 2.59 earned runs per nine, striking out 33.9% of batters faced while giving out walks at a 9.4% clip.

Going into 2025, the industry consensus is that he’s one of the top prospects in the league. Baseball America currently lists him #7 overall and MLB Pipeline #24. FanGraphs had him at #12 to start the season, but with the now-graduated Dylan Crews as one of the guys ahead of him. ESPN had Dollander at #14, though also behind Crews. Keith Law of The Athletic was more bearish, putting Dollander down at #75, with concerns about some of his results in Tennessee.

The Rockies reportedly gave some consideration to having Dollander in the season-opening rotation. They sent him to Triple-A Albuquerque instead, where he made one start, allowing one earned run over four innings. The big league club started the season with just four games before their first off-day, having Kyle Freeland, Antonio Senzatela, Ryan Feltner and Germán Márquez start those.

Austin Gomber likely would have had a fifth spot but he started the season on the 15-day injured list with shoulder soreness. He made a rehab start for Albuquerque but was scratched from making a second due to inflammation in that shoulder, per Thomas Harding of MLB.com. Perhaps due to Gomber’s setback, Dollander will get an early-season call-up.

The big unknown will be how Dollander handles the challenges of pitching at Coors Field, the most hitter-friendly venue in the big leagues. Geoff Pontes of Baseball America believes Dollander is well-positioned to succeed, even though plenty of other talented arms have struggled there. Pontes points out that pitchers with low release heights, such as Dollander, have previously fared well at Coors. The piece also cites the spin efficiency of Dollander’s fastball, which sits between 96 and 98 miles per hour, as a factor that could work in his favor. In addition that fastball, he throws a  changeup, a curveball and another breaking ball that is characterized as either a slider or a cutter by various sources.

If Dollander can thrive at Coors, he could become the most important arm in the rotation for their next competitive window. The club has been losing for a long time now but have seen some young players come up and establish themselves as building blocks, such as Ezequiel Tovar at shortstop and Brenton Doyle in center field.

In the rotation, there’s little long-term certainty. Márquez and Gomber are impending free agents while the contracts for Senzatela and Freeland are only guaranteed through 2026, with options for 2027. It’s possible the Rockies sign new deals with those pitchers but they’re all in their 30s now regardless. At 23 years old, Dollander could potentially be the rock of the group for many years to come, if everything breaks right.

Though he wasn’t on the Opening Day roster, he is getting called up early enough to potentially earn a full service year in 2025. A baseball season is 187 days long but a player needs only 172 days on the active roster or injured list to get a full year. If he’s not optioned down to the minors at any point, he would be on track to qualify for free agency after the 2030 campaign, though a notable optional assignment would push that trajectory by one year.

If he does stay up, the Rockies would be eligible to potentially receive an extra draft pick. The current collective bargaining agreement introduced measures to combat service time manipulation. One such measure is that a team can earn an extra draft if they promote a top prospect early enough to earn a full service year. To qualify, a player must be on two of the three Top 100 lists of BA, ESPN and MLB Pipeline. The player must then win Rookie of the Year or place in the top three of MVP or Cy Young voting in their pre-arbitration seasons.

Those will perhaps be factors later in the year. For now, one of the best young pitchers in the game is coming up to the majors. Facing big league hitters for the first time is always a fascinating challenge for any pitching prospect but the interest level is arguably even higher in this case, given the unique circumstances of Coors Field and Dollander’s potential importance to the franchise.

Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri and Steven Branscombe, Imagn Images

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Colorado Rockies Newsstand Top Prospect Promotions Transactions Austin Gomber Chase Dollander

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NL West Notes: Ohtani, Gomber, Birdsong

By Nick Deeds | April 5, 2025 at 10:05pm CDT

The Dodgers have been taking things slowly with superstar Shohei Ohtani as he prepares for his return to pitching. After just over a month off from regular bullpen sessions, Ohtani resumed throwing last weekend and threw another bullpen session earlier today. As noted by Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register, Ohtani threw 26 pitches, and for the first time this year he included his splitter in the bullpen session. This came after what Plunkett described as a “light” bullpen session on Thursday. While that’s a noticeable ramp-up in activity, it shouldn’t be mistaken for the Dodgers accelerating Ohtani’s timeline back to the big league mound.

According to Plunkett, manager Dave Roberts indicated that the club hopes to replicate something akin to the schedule Ohtani will have when he returns to the big league mound as a starter by having him throw off the mound twice a week: once with a lighter bullpen session on Thursday followed by a full session on Saturday. Despite the superstar now getting back on the mound somewhat regularly, Plunkett notes that there’s still a long way to go before he’ll be ready to pitch in a big league game for the Dodgers. He relays that, per Roberts, the next step for Ohtani would be to incorporate his entire arsenal into his bullpen sessions rather than exclusively fastballs and an occasional splitter.

It won’t be until Ohtani is using his full arsenal that facing live hitters in simulated games, which the Dodgers plan to use in lieu of a rehab assignment to get Ohtani up to game speed while still allowing him to continue serving as their everyday DH in the lineup, is on the table. He’ll surely need several of those outings before he’s ready to get into games, and Plunkett suggests that at this point a realistic timeline for Ohtani’s pitching debut with the Dodgers would be sometime in June “at the earliest.” In the meantime, the Dodgers are utilizing a rotation of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, and Dustin May. Both Clayton Kershaw and Tony Gonsolin could also return from the injured list before Ohtani is ready to pitch, giving the Dodgers a host of potential options for the rotation.

More from around the NL West…

  • Rockies southpaw Austin Gomber began the season on the injured list due to soreness in his left shoulder, and while he was sent out for a rehab assignment just after Opening Day with an eye towards returning after just the first couple of weeks of the season, he was scratched from his next rehab start due to shoulder inflammation. That paved the way for Colorado to promote Chase Dollander to the big leagues, and Thomas Harding of MLB.com spoke to Gomber in more detail about the situation today. According to Harding, Gomber wasn’t able to pitch at maximum effectiveness during his rehab start even after receiving an anti-inflammatory injection in his shoulder. As a result, Gomber noted that the plan now is for him to have a slower and “more traditional” rehab process. He won’t throw for another week while the inflammation calms down, and will likely not return to the mound for another two or three weeks after that.
  • While the Giants initially planned to use young right-hander Hayden Birdsong as a long reliever and piggyback starter after he lost out on the fifth starter job to Landen Roupp, it appears that may no longer be in the cards. As noted by Justice delos Santos of Mercury News, manager Bob Melvin told reporters today that the club is now treating Birdsong as a “true reliever” after his limited usage to begin the season. Birdsong has appeared just once in the Giants’ first week of games, making a two-inning appearance that saw him throw just 27 pitches.  With Birdsong no longer stretched out as a starter for the time being, Melvin suggested that a one-inning appearance for the righty could be on the table. Birdsong pitched exclusively as a starter in the majors last year, with a 4.75 ERA in 16 starts, and hadn’t made a relief appearance in the major or minor leagues at the Double-A level or higher at any point in his career prior to his 2025 debut.
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Colorado Rockies Los Angeles Dodgers Notes San Francisco Giants Austin Gomber Hayden Birdsong Shohei Ohtani

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MLBTR Podcast: Garrett Crochet’s Extension, Problems In Atlanta, And Other Early-Season Storylines

By Darragh McDonald | April 2, 2025 at 3:27pm CDT

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

  • The Red Sox signing Garrett Crochet to a six-year extension (0:50)
  • The Red Sox keeping Rafael Devers at designated hitter full-time and the general position player logjam (12:20)
  • The Braves have started the season ice cold and have lost Reynaldo López to the injured list and Jurickson Profar to a PED suspension (20:05)
  • The Rockies trade Nolan Jones to the Guardians for Tyler Freeman (28:05)
  • The Astros put Cam Smith on their Opening Day roster, which could alter the view of the trade with the Cubs (34:05)
  • The ongoing contract talks between the Blue Jays and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (44:00)
  • The Mariners signing Cal Raleigh to a six-year extension (50:30)
  • The Guardians extending Tanner Bibee and the Diamondbacks extending Brandon Pfaadt and others (54:35)

Check out our past episodes!

  • What We Learned From The Offseason – listen here
  • The Rays’ Stadium Deal Is Dead, Rangers’ Rotation Issues, And More! – listen here
  • Lawrence Butler’s Extension, Gerrit Cole’s TJ, And Rays’ Ownership Pressured To Sell – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Tim Heitman, Imagn Images

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Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves Boston Red Sox Chicago Cubs Cleveland Guardians Colorado Rockies Houston Astros MLB Trade Rumors Podcast Seattle Mariners Toronto Blue Jays Brandon Pfaadt Cal Raleigh Cam Smith Garrett Crochet Jurickson Profar Nolan Jones Rafael Devers Reynaldo Lopez Tanner Bibee Tyler Freeman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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Rockies Outright Sam Hilliard

By Darragh McDonald | March 31, 2025 at 5:40pm CDT

The Rockies announced that outfielder Sam Hilliard has passed through waivers unclaimed and been sent outrighted to Triple-A Albuquerque. He has the right to elect free agency but it’s unclear if he will.

Players with at least three years of major league service time can reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency. However, only players with at least five years of service can do so while retaining the salary they are still owed on their contracts. Hilliard and the Rockies avoided arbitration back in the fall, agreeing to a $1MM salary this year. Presumably, Hilliard won’t want to leave that on the table and will therefore report to Albuquerque.

If that comes to pass, Hilliard will provide the Rockies with a bit of extra outfield depth without taking up a roster spot. They currently project to have Brenton Doyle, Jordan Beck, Nick Martini, Mickey Moniak and Sean Bouchard rotating through the outfield spots. There’s not a ton of experience there, with no one in that group having reached four years of big league service time.

If any of them struggle or get hurt, the Rockies could bring Hilliard back up for some more playing time. He has shown some power and speed in the big leagues but with strikeout concerns as well. In 875 career plate appearances, he has 42 homers and has swiped 24 bags but has been struck out at a big 34.1% clip. His .219/.296/.438 batting line translates to an 84 wRC+.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

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Colorado Rockies Transactions Sam Hilliard

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NL Injury Notes: Realmuto, Turner, Suarez, Abbott, Murphy, Freeman

By Mark Polishuk | March 30, 2025 at 10:43pm CDT

X-rays were negative on J.T. Realmuto’s left foot after he fouled a ball off himself in Saturday’s 11-6 win over the Nationals.  The Phillies took Realmuto out of the game, and the catcher also didn’t play today “more a precaution than anything,” manager Rob Thomson told reporters (including Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer).  Realmuto will likely be back in action tomorrow when the Phillies have their home opener, though Trea Turner could miss a third straight game as he recovers from back spasms.  Thomson said Turner was available off the bench today and might play Monday, though the Phils’ off-day on Tuesday would allow Turner to get a full four days of recovery time if he is held out of Monday’s lineup.

In other Phillies injury news, Ranger Suarez threw a 26-pitch bullpen session on Saturday, and an up-and-down bullpen is now slated for Tuesday.  If all goes well, Lauber writes that Suarez will make at least one minor league rehab start before being activated from the 15-day injured list.  Suarez was bothered by a bad back during Spring Training, and the Phils decided to put him on the IL to give him more time to heal up and them finish his spring preparations in advance of his 2025 debut.

More injury updates from around the National League…

  • Speaking of pitchers on the 15-day IL, the Reds told reporters (including Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer) that southpaw Andrew Abbott will throw his first rehab start with Triple-A Louisville on Tuesday.  Abbott is slated for another outing on April 6, and a decision will then be made about whether or not he might be activated onto the Reds’ roster.  A shoulder strain ended Abbott’s 2024 season in late August, and recovering from that strain set Abbott back in his usual offseason work, so the Reds opted to slowly ramp the left-hander up in Spring Training.  If all goes well, Abbott should line up to make his 2025 debut on April 11 or 12, depending on how Cincinnati sets up its pitching staff.
  • Braves catcher Sean Murphy will also probably be starting a minor league rehab assignment this week, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes that Murphy will likely take the field for the Braves’ A-level affiliate on Friday.  Murphy cracked a rib after he was hit by a pitch during a Spring Training game in early March, and we’ve already hit the lower end of the initial 4-6 week recovery timeline.  Still, Murphy appears to be making good enough progress that a return to Atlanta’s lineup should be feasible by mid-April.
  • Tyler Freeman left today’s game with a bruised left wrist after he was hit by a Taj Bradley pitch, but x-rays were negative, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding writes.  Freeman might be well enough to return to the Rockies’ lineup tomorrow, though since Colorado doesn’t play on Tuesday, this is another situation where a player with a minor injury might simply get an extra day to fully heal.
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Atlanta Braves Cincinnati Reds Colorado Rockies Notes Philadelphia Phillies Andrew Abbott J.T. Realmuto Ranger Suarez Sean Murphy Trea Turner Tyler Freeman

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Offseason In Review: Colorado Rockies

By Darragh McDonald | March 29, 2025 at 8:49am CDT

The Rockies are one of the few teams in the majors will no real shot at contending this year, so their offseason was understandably very quiet.

Major League Signings

  • IF Thairo Estrada: One year, $4MM (includes $750K buyout on 2026 mutual option)
  • IF Kyle Farmer: One year, $3.25MM (includes $750K buyout on 2026 mutual option)
  • C Jacob Stallings: One year, $2.5MM (includes $500K buyout on 2026 mutual option)
  • LHP Scott Alexander: One year, $2MM
  • OF Mickey Moniak: One year, $1.25MM

2025 spending: $13MM
Total spending: $13MM

Option Decisions

  • C Jacob Stallings declined mutual option (later re-signed)

Trades and Claims

  • Acquired IF Owen Miller from Brewers for cash considerations
  • Claimed RHP Jimmy Herget off waivers from Cubs
  • Acquired IF/OF Tyler Freeman from Guardians for OF Nolan Jones

Notable Minor League Signings

  • Jack O'Loughlin, Austin Nola, Diego Castillo, Jake Woodford (later released), Keston Hiura, Nick Martini (later added to 40-man), Tommy Doyle

Extensions

  • None

Notable Losses

  • Charlie Blackmon (retired), Jake Cave, Dakota Hudson, Peter Lambert, Elehuris Montero, Brendan Rodgers (non-tendered), Cal Quantrill (non-tendered), Justin Lawrence (waivers), Nolan Jones, Greg Jones (waivers)

There wasn't a lot of momentum for the Rockies going into the winter. 2024 was their sixth straight losing season. It was their second in a row getting to triple-digit losses. In the age of the expanded playoffs, most clubs are at least theoretical contenders, but the Rockies are one of a few that are clearly on the outside.

Such a team could perhaps find itself in plenty of offseason rumors anyway. The White Sox were coming off an atrocious 2024 season but still had notable trade candidates to talk about in Garrett Crochet and Luis Robert Jr. The Rockies have been reluctant to make such moves, however. Ryan McMahon could have been an exciting offseason trade candidate if there was any indication the Rockies were open to moving him, but that has never seemed likely.

There were some reports early in the offseason with a bit of smoke, to a degree. The Rockies were reportedly looking to lower payroll, not surprising given their circumstances. They had some openness to trading Brendan Rodgers, Cal Quantrill and Justin Lawrence. They clearly didn't find much interest. Rodgers and Quantrill were later non-tendered. Lawrence was put on waivers and claimed by the Pirates.

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2024-25 Offseason In Review Colorado Rockies Front Office Originals MLBTR Originals Membership

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Rehab Assignments: Strider, Henderson, Gomber

By Anthony Franco | March 28, 2025 at 10:48pm CDT

The Braves assigned Spencer Strider to Triple-A Gwinnett on a rehab stint this afternoon. The hard-throwing righty will pitch for the Stripers tomorrow in Charlotte. It’ll be his first regular season action at any level since he underwent an internal brace surgery to repair his UCL last April. Strider was able to make a pair of Spring Training appearances, where he combined for four innings. He struck out 10 of the 16 batters he faced.

Strider’s stuff is clearly sharp, but the Braves stuck to their plan to have him begin the season on the 15-day injured list. That’ll afford him a couple weeks to continue his build-up in the minors. Strider is first eligible to return on April 8. He’ll pitch at least twice in Gwinnett before the Braves decide whether to activate him. Grant Holmes and AJ Smith-Shawver are currently rounding out the rotation behind Chris Sale, Reynaldo López and Spencer Schwellenbach.

A couple other notable players are out on rehab stints of their own:

  • The Orioles assigned Gunnar Henderson to Triple-A Norfolk tonight. Last year’s fourth-place MVP finisher took three at-bats and played seven innings at shortstop during his first game action in a month. Henderson suffered a right intercostal strain early in Spring Training. He didn’t appear in a game after February 27 and only made three exhibition appearances overall. That Henderson was able to play in the first game of Norfolk’s season confirms it’s likely to be a short-term absence for Baltimore’s superstar. Jorge Mateo and Ramón Urías are picking up the extra infield work alongside Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg and Ryan Mountcastle.
  • Rockies starter Austin Gomber was shelved by shoulder soreness to begin the season. Colorado sent him to Triple-A Albuquerque to start their season opener this evening. Gomber tossed four innings of two-run ball with five strikeouts. He built up to 66 pitches. The Rox are opening with a four-man rotation because of off days built into their schedule during the first two turns. Kyle Freeland, Antonio Senzatela, Germán Márquez and Ryan Feltner could take every start until the second week of April — at which point there’s a good chance Gomber will be ready to rejoin the rotation.
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Atlanta Braves Baltimore Orioles Colorado Rockies Austin Gomber Gunnar Henderson Spencer Strider

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Rockies To Designate Sam Hilliard For Assignment

By Darragh McDonald | March 27, 2025 at 11:20am CDT

The Rockies are going to designate outfielder Sam Hilliard for assignment, reports Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. That will be the corresponding move to sign fellow outfielder Mickey Moniak, a move which was reported yesterday.

Hilliard, 31, was previously lined up a bench outfielder for Colorado. However, when the Angels released Moniak, they pounced to grab him, which nudged Hilliard down the depth chart by one peg. The regular outfield playing time figures to be split between Brenton Doyle, Jordan Beck, Nick Martini and Sean Bouchard, with Moniak perhaps having a chance to force his way in there as well.

That will squeeze out Hilliard, who has longstanding ties to the Rockies. Drafted by Colorado in 2015, he got to the big leagues in 2019 and was with the club through the 2022 season. He was traded to Atlanta prior to 2023. Ahead of 2024, he bounced around the waiver wire but wound up back with the Rockies.

Overall, he has shown some pop and some speed but has undercut those assets with too many strikeouts. In 875 career plate appearances, he has 42 home runs and 24 stolen bases but has been punched out at a huge 34.1% clip. His .219/.296/.438 batting line translates to an 84 wRC+.

Though Hilliard is out of options, the Rockies tendered him a contract for 2025. The two sides agreed to a $1MM salary for this year. He has at least three years of service time, meaning he has the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency. However, since he has less than five years of service, doing so would mean forfeiting the money that is still owed to him. If he clears waivers, he would like stick with the Rockies as non-roster depth.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

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Colorado Rockies Transactions Mickey Moniak Sam Hilliard

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Rockies, Mickey Moniak Agree To Major League Deal

By Anthony Franco | March 26, 2025 at 8:16pm CDT

The Rockies are in agreement with Mickey Moniak on a one-year, $1.25MM contract, report Mark Feinsand and Thomas Harding of MLB.com. The Angels released the former first overall pick yesterday. Moniak, a Wasserman client, has a little over three years of service time and is technically controllable through 2027 via arbitration. Colorado has not announced the signing. They opened a 40-man roster spot by waiving Greg Jones, who was claimed by the White Sox this afternoon.

Moniak had gone to an arbitration hearing with the Halos. He prevailed and was awarded a $2MM salary. However, arbitration salaries are only fully guaranteed if the player and team mutually agree to them without a hearing. The distinction was introduced in the most recent collective bargaining agreement, at least partially to incentivize players to agree to deals without going to hearings.

Players who go to a hearing (regardless of whether they win or lose) are only guaranteed termination pay until the beginning of the regular season. Players released before or early in Spring Training receive 30 days termination pay; those released within 15 days of Opening Day are guaranteed 45 days termination pay. Moniak obviously fell into the latter bucket, so he received roughly $484K from the Angels when he was cut loose.

That’s on top of the money he’s guaranteed from the Rockies, meaning he has now locked in around $1.73MM for this season. That’s about $270K below what he had won in the hearing, but it’s roughly $230K above the Angels’ $1.5MM filing figure during the arbitration process. Moniak lands just shy of the midpoint between his and the Halos’ respective filing numbers.

Moniak, a lefty-hitting center fielder, has spent the last two seasons playing a semi-regular role with the Angels. He had a productive 2023 season, hitting .280/.307/.495 with 14 homers in 85 games. A massive 35% strikeout rate made it unlikely he’d be able to keep up that production. His numbers indeed fell off last season, as he hit .219/.266/.380 over 418 plate appearances. Moniak cut his strikeout rate to a slightly more palatable 27.3% mark, but that came with a dramatic drop to his ball-in-play results.

The Angels are moving Mike Trout to right field this season. That reopened the path for Moniak and another former top prospect, Jo Adell, to work as a center field platoon. Moniak had a terrible Spring Training, batting .191 while striking out 18 times in 58 plate appearances. Adell’s numbers were even worse (.172/.194/.375 in 67 PAs), but the Angels decided to move on from Moniak and cut a little more than $1.5MM from their payroll.

Moniak projects as a fourth outfielder in Colorado. Brenton Doyle is one of the better all-around center fielders in MLB. Jordan Beck, Sean Bouchard and minor league signee Nick Martini round out the corner outfield after last week’s Nolan Jones/Tyler Freeman swap. The signing probably doesn’t bode well for Sam Hilliard, another left-handed hitter who was slated to work as the fourth outfielder. Moniak and Hilliard are both out of options, so they’ll need to break camp or be exposed to waivers. Moniak is clearly going to make the team. Hilliard batted .137 while striking out nearly half the time this spring.

Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson, Imagn Images

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Colorado Rockies Transactions Mickey Moniak

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White Sox Designate Oscar Colas For Assignment, Claim Greg Jones From Rockies

By Steve Adams | March 26, 2025 at 12:51pm CDT

The White Sox have designated outfielder Oscar Colas for assignment and claimed infielder/outfielder Greg Jones off waivers from the Rockies, per a team announcement. Chicago optioned Jones and righty Justin Anderson to Triple-A Charlotte. The Sox also reassigned infielders Bobby Dalbec, Tristan Gray and Chase Meidroth to minor league camp alongside righties James Karinchak and Steven Wilson.

Now 26 years old, Colas came to the White Sox with considerable fanfare. The Cuban-born slugger was touted as one of the more intriguing prospects on the 2020-21 and 2021-22 international amateur markets. He bizarrely (and frankly, unfairly) drew comparisons to Shohei Ohtani, of all players, for his plus raw power and because he’d dabbled in pitching during his time in Cuba and a brief foray into Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. Outlandish as that comparison was, it did set some unrealistic expectations among fans who were dreaming on Colas as a potential superstar.

Even before the White Sox signed him, Colas had signaled that he no longer intended to pitch and that he’d focus his efforts on his work as a position player. He formally signed with Chicago in Jan. 2022 for a reported $2.7MM bonus. Colas went on to tear through minor league pitching that season, slashing .314/.371/.524 with 23 homers across three levels. Strong as those rate stats were, his production came with some red flags. Colas spent the bulk of the season playing against younger and less experienced competition, and he rarely walked. His strikeout rates also climbed rapidly as he moved from High-A to Double-A to Triple-A.

The Sox gave Colas his big league debut in 2023, and he quickly looked overmatched. In 75 games and 263 plate appearances, he hit just .216/.257/.314 with a tiny 4.6% walk rate and a bloated 27.6% strikeout rate. Of the 328 big league hitters with at least 250 plate appearances in 2023, Colas chased balls off the plate at the 13th-highest rate, per Statcast, despite also turning in a well below-average contact rate on such swings. Only 39 of those 328 hitters had a lower overall contact rate than Colas.

For all of Colas’ big league struggles in 2023, he at least turned in a .272/.345/.465 line in Triple-A Charlotte. That was league-average production by measure of wRC+ — a testament to the hitter-friendly nature of the Triple-A International and Pacific Coast Leagues. Colas showed solid discipline in the minors, walking at a 9.2% clip against a roughly average 22.3% strikeout rate.

The 2024 season brought considerable regression. Colas hit only .246/.332/.400 in Triple-A. His 11% walk rate was an improvement, and his 23.1% strikeout rate effectively matched the prior season, but Colas’ power deteriorated. He also became increasingly prone to hitting grounders and harmless infield flies; nearly one-quarter of his fly balls in Triple-A last year registered as infield flies. That’s more than double the 10.3% MLB average. Despite the Sox fielding a historically bad team, they scarcely gave Colas a look; he logged only 38 plate appearances and hit .273/.368/.273 while fanning 10 times (26.3%). Spring training hasn’t done Colas any favors. He received only 18 official plate appearances and went 4-for-16 with seven strikeouts.

The White Sox will now trade Colas or place him on waivers within the next five days. Outright waivers are a 48-hour process, which could drag his stay in DFA limbo out to a maximum of one week. Though he was a touted prospect not long ago, Colas’ struggles and limited skill set might allow Chicago to keep him. Today’s front offices typically aren’t enamored of power-focused corner bats with questionable on-base skills and sub-par defensive acumen.

In Jones, the Sox will pick up one of the sport’s fastest players. The 27-year-old has only six MLB plate appearances to his credit — he went 1-for-6 with a homer for Colorado last year — but drew 80 grades for his speed as a prospect. Jones went 46-for-49 in stolen bases at the Triple-A level last year despite being limited to just 89 games by injury. He hit .267/.344/.453 with the Rockies’ top affiliate (99 wRC+).

Jones is in the last of his three minor league option years. The former Rays first-rounder has split the bulk of his pro career between shortstop and center field. He’ll give the South Siders some depth at both spots and would presumably be an option in the outfield corners or at second base and third base as well. The Rockies gave him 64 games in center, 16 at shortstop, eight at second base and four in right field last year.

Colorado picked Jones up in a March 2024 trade sending left-handed pitching prospect Joe Rock to the Rays. The Rockies are left without anything to show for that swap now, whereas Rock has blossomed into a nearly MLB-ready rotation prospect for Tampa Bay. Rock profiles as more of a back-end starter or multi-inning reliever than a top-of-the-rotation talent, but the swap has clearly worked out in the Rays’ favor to this point.

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Chicago White Sox Colorado Rockies Transactions Bobby Dalbec Chase Meidroth Greg Jones James Karinchak Justin Anderson Oscar Colas Steven Wilson Tristan Gray

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