Headlines

  • Mike Shildt Steps Down As Padres Manager
  • Tigers Extended Manager A.J. Hinch Earlier This Season
  • Munetaka Murakami To Be Posted This Offseason
  • Cody Bellinger To Opt Out Of Contract With Yankees
  • Angels, Albert Pujols Discussing Managerial Deal
  • Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2026
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

Remove Ads
  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Athletics
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2026-27 MLB Free Agent List
    • Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2026
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Rockies Sign John Curtiss To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | January 25, 2024 at 10:52am CDT

The Rockies have signed veteran righty reliever John Curtiss to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training, MLBTR has learned. He’ll compete for a job in manager Bud Black’s bullpen this spring.

Curtiss, 30, has pitched in parts of six big league seasons but didn’t break out until a terrific 2020 showing with the Rays (1.80 ERA, 25.3% strikeout rate, 3% walk rate in 25 innings). Tampa Bay traded him to the Marlins the following offseason, and Miami flipped him to the Brewers after a strong start to his 2021 campaign. Unfortunately for both Curtiss and the Brewers, the right-hander suffered a torn ligament in his elbow just two weeks after being acquired and wound up undergoing Tommy John surgery.

The Mets signed Curtis after the Brewers non-tendered him, knowing he’d miss his first season with the team. That pact included a club option that the Mets exercised, and Curtiss returned to pitch 19 2/3 frames for New York this past season. His 4.58 ERA, 19.8% strikeout rate and 9.9% walk rate were all down relative to his 2020-21 seasons, however, and Curtiss wound up hitting the injured list with discomfort in his surgically repaired elbow. His ligament remained intact, but the right-hander still required surgery to remove loose bodies from the elbow. The Mets announced at the time of the procedure that he was expected to be ready for spring training.

Despite that favorable timeline, the Mets removed Curtiss from the 40-man roster following the season. He elected free agency, as is his right as a player with more than three years of MLB service.

If Curtiss is back at full strength, he’ll likely have a good chance to break a thin Rockies bullpen. The righty’s track record is fairly limited, but from 2020-23 he pitched 89 innings of 3.24 ERA ball with a combined 23.2% strikeout rate, 6.3% walk rate and 40.8% ground-ball rate. Curtiss’ 94.5 mph average fastball with the Mets in 2023 was right in line with his pre-surgery levels from 2020-21. There’s some unknown now that he’s undergone a second elbow operation, of course, but it’s encouraging that he’d regained his velocity following the Tommy John procedure.

As things stand, the Rockies’ bullpen is practically wide open. Right-hander Justin Lawrence is the favorite to close games after notching 11 saves and logging a 3.72 ERA in 75 innings out of the ’pen last year. Jake Bird should have a spot locked down after recording a team-high 84 1/3 innings with a respectable 4.27 ERA. Beyond that, things are murky. The Rockies let Brent Suter, their top 2023 performer, depart in free agency. He signed a one-year, $3MM deal with the Reds. Veterans Pierce Johnson and Brad Hand were traded at last year’s deadline.

Right-hander Daniel Bard is still under contract for another season, but he followed his All-Star 2022 campaign with a tough 2023 season that saw him return to the injured list owing to a long-running battle with anxiety that has at multiple points led to the yips. Bard eventually pitched 49 1/3 innings with a 4.56 ERA but did so with nearly a walk per inning and with more total walks issued than strikeouts recorded. Tyler Kinley posted a 6.06 ERA in his return from elbow surgery, albeit in a sample of just 16 1/3 innings. The Rox picked up veteran lefty Jalen Beeks in November after the Rays placed him on waivers, and he’ll look to bounce back after a down showing in 2023.

Other options in the Colorado ’pen include Nick Mears, Gavin Hollowell and Rule 5 pickup Anthony Molina. Curtiss will compete with that group as well as a slate of non-roster veterans including Ty Blach, Matt Koch and Chance Adams. If Curtiss makes the club and finds success in that harsh pitching environment, he can be controlled through the 2026 season via arbitration.

Share Repost Send via email

Colorado Rockies Transactions John Curtiss

The Top Unsigned Catchers
Main
Blue Jays, Orioles Have Shown Interest In Domingo German
View Comments (11)
Post a Comment

11 Comments

  1. Tom the ray fan

    2 years ago

    Rays legend and great early settler name.

    Reply
    • Emilia

      2 years ago

      I’m pretty sure he was a kid on the Waltons

      1
      Reply
  2. westcasey

    2 years ago

    I am sure of one thing and that is ; Colorado Rockies front office is sure of nothing. No plan, no direction, no movement, nobody seems to care much.

    1
    Reply
  3. User 3044878754

    2 years ago

    And Jack Corrigan needs a mouth transplant

    Reply
  4. HEHEHATE

    2 years ago

    If Colorado stopped putting developmental resources, financial compensation and roster space towards starting pitching they might finally be onto a way to counteract the ball park and horrible organizational practices. I wish you luck Rockies fans, because this is a mess with no light at the end of the tunnel and a lame duck manager following the asinine practices to keep his own job relevant.

    1
    Reply
  5. SRNY

    2 years ago

    Daniel Bard had “a return case of the yips”? That’s in terribly poor taste, the man battles severe anxiety and mental health issues.

    1
    Reply
    • I.M. Insane

      2 years ago

      Oh, please.

      1
      Reply
  6. Yanks2

    2 years ago

    He elected his right to free agency as is the case with players with more than 3 years of service.

    I thought it was 6 years?

    Reply
  7. DCartrow

    2 years ago

    Ssince he ssucked for the Brewerss and Metss,I’m glad the Rockiess ssigned Curtiss.

    4
    Reply
    • Bill M

      2 years ago

      I ssee what ya did there

      2
      Reply
  8. SonnySteele

    2 years ago

    You know you’re on the MLB fringe when the Rockies sign you to a minor league contract. Good luck, Mr. Curtiss.

    1
    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Mike Shildt Steps Down As Padres Manager

    Tigers Extended Manager A.J. Hinch Earlier This Season

    Munetaka Murakami To Be Posted This Offseason

    Cody Bellinger To Opt Out Of Contract With Yankees

    Angels, Albert Pujols Discussing Managerial Deal

    Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2026

    Rangers Hire Skip Schumaker As Manager

    Albert Pujols To Interview For Angels’ Managerial Vacancy, May Be “Leading Choice”

    Bill Schmidt Will Not Return As Rockies’ GM

    Brian Snitker Will Not Return As Braves’ Manager In 2026

    Angels To Have New Manager In 2026

    Rays Sale To Patrick Zalupski’s Group Officially Completed

    Guardians Promote Chase DeLauter For Wild Card Series

    Bruce Bochy Will Not Return As Rangers Manager Amid Financial Uncertainty

    Liam Hendriks Undergoes Ulnar Nerve Transposition Surgery

    Twins Fire Rocco Baldelli

    Giants Fire Bob Melvin

    Pirates Sign Manager Don Kelly To Extension

    Pete Alonso To Opt Out Of Mets Contract, Enter Free Agency

    Padres Place Ramón Laureano On Injured List Due To Finger Fracture

    Recent

    Mike Shildt Steps Down As Padres Manager

    Ryan Flaherty Expected To Be In Mix For Orioles, Padres Managerial Searches

    Red Sox To Retain Most Of Coaching Staff, Part Ways With Assistant Hitting Coach Ben Rosenthal

    Offseason Outlook: Chicago White Sox

    Tobias Myers, Ben Casparius Added To NLCS Rosters

    White Sox Outright Fletcher, Julks, Peguero, White

    Pirates Claim Will Robertson, Designate Ryan Kreidler

    Blue Jays Notes: Santander, Bichette, Rotation

    Trade Rumors Front Office Subscriber Chat, Today 3pm CT

    Sandy Alomar Sr. Passes Away

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • Every MLB Trade In July
    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android App Store Google Play

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Remove Ads, Support Our Writers
    • Front Office Originals
    • Tim Dierkes' MLB Mailbag
    • Front Office Fantasy Baseball
    • MLBTR Podcast
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2026-27 MLB Free Agent List
    • Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2026
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • RSS/Twitter Feeds By Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    hide arrows scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version