The Rockies and catcher Kyle McCann have agreed to a minor league deal, reports Thomas Harding of MLB.com. The Ballengee Group client also receives an invite to big league camp in spring training.
McCann, 28, got to make his major league debut with the Athletics in 2024. He got into 54 games and stepped to the plate 157 times. He hit five home runs and drew walks at a solid 10.2% clip but also struck out in 37.6% of those plate appearances. His .236/.318/.371 batting line was just above league average, translating to a 102 wRC+, but was buoyed by a .368 batting average on balls in play.
His minor league offense has had a similar shape, with some power and walks but lots of punchouts. Outlets like FanGraphs, Baseball Prospectus and Statcast all ranked him as a subpar defender during his time in the big leagues, particularly when it comes to pitch framing.
The A’s designated him for assignment in January of 2025. He cleared waivers and stuck with the club as non-roster depth but was released at the end of camp. In May, he signed with los Piratas de Campeche in the Mexican League. He got into 32 games for that club and stepped to the plate 140 times. He hit eight home runs with an 18.8% walk rate and 30.7% strikeout rate. The Mexican League is very hitter-friendly, with the league-wide slash line being .295/.378/.465 in 2025, but McCann’s .319/.450/.611 line was still strong even in that inflated environment.
The Rockies don’t have a ton of depth behind the plate. Hunter Goodman and Braxton Fulford are currently the only backstops on the 40-man roster. Goodman just had a breakout season in 2025 but Fulford has just 120 big league plate appearances with a .213/.267/.324 line in those. Brett Sullivan has been brought aboard via a minor league deal but he has just a .204/.250/.291 line in his 112 big league plate appearances.
McCann gives the Rockies a second non-roster catcher with at least some big league experience. If an injury pops up and the Rockies need another catcher at some point, McCann could perhaps have a leg up over Sullivan, who is out of options. McCann has a full slate of options, so he could be shuttled between Albuquerque and Denver if he gets a 40-man spot.
Photo courtesy of Darren Yamashita, Imagn Images
Why is McCann such a popular name for catchers?? Brian McCann, James McCann, Kyle McCann. Who will be the next catching McCann?
Yet none of them are related
Cann of corn 🥫🌽
I can’t get this guy out in 2K. It’s unreal.
The Rockies need to reserve the #34 for him once he breaks the major league roster, as is McCann tradition.