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LeMahieu Unlikely To Return To Rockies

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Don’t count on a reunion between DJ LeMahieu and the Rockies.  Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post recently contacted “those close to LeMahieu” to gauge the chances of the free agent returning to his former team, and “was told that while [LeMahieu is] keeping his options open, he doesn’t see the Rockies as a good fit for him.”  LeMahieu spent seven seasons with the Rox from 2012-18, a stretch that saw him make three All-Star appearances, win two Gold Gloves, and capture the 2016 NL batting title.

Don’t count on a reunion between DJ LeMahieu and the Rockies.  Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post recently contacted “those close to LeMahieu” to gauge the chances of the free agent returning to his former team, and “was told that while [LeMahieu is] keeping his options open, he doesn’t see the Rockies as a good fit for him.”  LeMahieu spent seven seasons with the Rox from 2012-18, a stretch that saw him make three All-Star appearances, win two Gold Gloves, and capture the 2016 NL batting title.

After leaving Coors Field to sign with the Yankees in the 2018-19 offseason, however, LeMahieu hit another level, posting MVP-type numbers over his two seasons in the Bronx.  It’s certainly possible that LeMahieu simply remains in New York, though several teams are bound to inquire about his services — that is to say, teams with more available payroll and perhaps closer to immediate contention than the Rockies.

Matt Kemp Hopes To Keep Playing Until Age 40

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The 36-year-old Kemp was an All-Star as recently as 2018, though he endured an injury-shortened 2019 season that led to minor league deals in 2020 with both the Marlins and Rockies, the latter coming in June.  Kemp hit .239/.326/.419 with six homers over 132 plate appearances for Colorado, working primarily as a DH and pinch-hitter and only playing left field in one of his 43 games.  It remains to be seen if the Rockies or another team will give Kemp another chance at extending his career, though his prospects at another contract would definitely get a boost if the National League fully adopts the designated hitter.

Rockies Unlikely To Part Ways With Jeff Bridich?

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The Rockies are coming off their second consecutive losing season and fourth-place finish in the NL West, but the team’s struggles probably aren’t going to lead to a front office change in the near future, in the opinion of Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post.  Saunders would be “surprised” but not “shocked” if GM Jeff Bridich was fired, though Saunders figures Bridich’s job is safe since owner Dick Monfort is known to be very loyal to employees, plus the Rockies reached the postseason in both 2017 and 2018.  Assuming Bridich stays, he’ll face an intriguing offseason, as the Rockies have several big contracts coming off the books but also a lot of roster holes to fill, as well as lingering questions about extension talks with Trevor Story and whether or not Nolan Arenado could be traded.

David Dahl Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

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Rockies outfielder David Dahl, whose season ended Sept. 23 because of a right shoulder strain, underwent surgery on Tuesday, Thomas Harding of MLB.com tweets. The surgery was a success, and the Rockies expect that Dahl will be ready for spring training, per Harding.

It’s a relief for the Rockies that Dahl’s on track for next season, as the 26-year-old has largely been a quality member of their offense since his career began in 2016. Dahl owns a .286/.334/.494 line with 38 home runs in 1,020 plate appearances, though his production went off the rails during a 2020 in which he batted a horrid .183/.222/.247 without a homer across 99 trips to the plate.

Of course, injuries have been the main problem for Dahl since his pre-MLB days started. He has never played more than 100 regular-season games (in 2019) with the Rockies and has appeared in just 264 dating back to his first year. Dahl appeared in a meager 24 of a possible 60 games this year, but the hope is that he’ll have a healthy, bounce-back campaign next season.

Rockies Designate James Pazos For Assignment

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The Rockies announced that they have designated left-hander James Pazos for assignment.

Pazos, previously with the Yankees, Mariners and Phillies, joined the Rockies in a trade with Philadelphia early in the 2019 season. He has since given the Rockies just 15 2/3 innings of 6.89 ERA pitching with 6.32 K/9 and 5.17 BB/9.

At his peak, Pazos was a threat out of the Mariners’ bullpen from 2017-18. He amassed at least 50 innings in each of those seasons, combining for 103 2/3 frames, and logged a 3.39 ERA with 9.55 K/9 against 3.39 BB/9. Pazos averaged nearly 96 mph on his fastball in the first of those two seasons, but the 29-year-old has seen his velocity fall to the lower 90s since then.

Scott Oberg Undergoes Thoracic Outlet Surgery

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Rockies reliever Scott Oberg underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery to help alleviate blood clots earlier this week, Nick Groke of The Athletic reports. The Rockies aren’t yet sure whether Oberg will pitch again.

Thoracic outlet surgery could be a devastating blow to any pitcher’s career, but it’s especially worrying that blood clots continue to serve as a major hindrance to Oberg. The 30-year-old, who hasn’t pitched at all this season, previously underwent three surgeries to address blood clots.

Oberg, of course, was downright excellent out of the Rockies’ bullpen from 2018-19. After combining for 114 2/3 innings of 2.35 ERA ball with 9.03 K/9 and 2.75 BB/9 during that span, Oberg inked a three-year, $13MM extension with Colorado last offseason. Oberg hasn’t taken the mound since then, though, and the hope now is that he’ll return to the mound as soon as possible. However, Oberg’s certainly facing even more of an uphill battle in the wake of such a serious procedure.

Rockies Select Tommy Doyle, Place David Dahl On 45-Day IL

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The Rockies announced that they’ve selected right-hander Tommy Doyle and placed outfielder David Dahl on the 45-day injured list with a right shoulder strain.

Doyle, 24, was a third-round pick of the Rockies in 2017 who posted impressive production in the minors during the previous two seasons. He reached High-A ball for the first time in 2019 and logged a 3.25 ERA/3.61 FIP with 12.0 K/9 and 3.25 BB/9 over 36 innings. Since then, FanGraphs (No. 17), MLB.com (No. 19) and Baseball America (No. 23) have ranked Doyle among Colorado’s 25 best prospects. According to FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen, the hard-throwing Doyle could make it as a setup man in the majors.

This is the latest in an ever-growing line of injuries for the 26-year-old Dahl, who has missed an exorbitant amount of time since he debuted in 2016. Dahl sat out almost a month earlier this year with back problems, and he’ll now see his season end now just a week and a half after returning. While Dahl has been an above-average offensive contributor throughout his career, he had an uncharacteristically awful 2020 at the plate, hitting .183/.222/.247 with no home runs in 99 trips.

Rockies Place Nolan Arenado On IL, Release Wade Davis

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The Rockies announced that they’ve placed third baseman Nolan Arenado on the 10-day injured list with left AC joint inflammation and a left shoulder bone bruise, released reliever Wade Davis and recalled outfielder Sam Hilliard.

This will end the 2020 campaign for Arenado, a five-time All-Star who posted the worst numbers of his career this year. In fairness to Arenado, he only played 48 games and accrued 201 plate appearances, but no one expected the big-hitting 29-year-old to slash .253/.303/.434 – way down from the .295/.351/.546 line he owned entering the season.

It’s now possible Arenado has taken his last at-bat with the Rockies, as his dissatisfaction with team management was well-documented last offseason and may not have gotten any better since. Arenado has made it clear that he wants to win, but at 23-29, the Rockies are in line to miss the playoffs for a second straight season. Of course, from their standpoint, there may not be any incentive to move Arenado off such a disappointing showing by the 29-year-old. Regardless, 2021 could be the last guaranteed season for Arenado, whom the Rockies signed to an eight-year, $234MM contract before 2019. That deal includes a post-2021 opt-out clause, though Arenado may be leery of exercising it in and leaving so much cash on the table.

Davis, meanwhile, became a DFA casualty on Saturday, ending a horrid stint in Colorado for the former lights-out right-hander. On an annual basis, Davis became the highest-paid reliever ever when the Rockies signed him to a three-year, $52MM contract before 2018. Unfortunately for him and the Rockies, though, his tenure with the club couldn’t have gone much worse. Now 35, Davis mustered a miserable 6.49 ERA and lost about 2.5 mph on his fastball in 112 1/3 innings as a Rockie.

Nolan Arenado Undergoes Tests On Shoulder, Season In Jeopardy

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After an offseason when the 91-loss Colorado Rockies stayed mostly silent due to financial constraints, the Rockies entered 2020 with low expectations from the national media. They nonetheless jumped out to an 11-3 start, forcing consideration of the Rockies as a potential playoff contender. The bottom fell out before long, however, as the Rockies turned in a minus-68 run differential and fell towards the bottom of the National League. After four straight losses, they’re now 23-29 and 3 games out of a playoff spot.

Making matters worse, star third baseman Nolan Arenado recently underwent tests on his sore left shoulder, and it’s possible the Rox will be without their superstar for the remaining 8 games, per Thomas Harding of MLB.com. He’s been affected all season by the injury to the A/C joint of his left shoulder, perhaps helping contribute to a substandard (for him) .253/.303/.434 slash line with 8 home runs over 201 plate appearances. 1.4 rWAR over 48-games is nothing to sneeze at – it still extrapolates out to 4.7 rWAR over 162.

Just two years into his 8-year, $260MM deal and there’s more uncertainty than ever around Arenado’s future in Colorado. His priority has been clear: he wants to play for a contender. Per Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post, when questioned about whether making the playoffs this season would serve as proof of concept for the Rockies being on the right track, he answered, “No question for me. Eight teams (out of 15) make the playoffs and if we’re not one of those eight teams that’s not a very good sign.” The Rockies were already in a tough place payroll-wise, and after losing so much expected revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic, they are likely entering an even harsher financial climate. Paired with the opt-out Arenado holds following the 2021 season, and a legitimate case can be made for the wisdom – or even necessity – of an Arenado trade.

The Rockies playoff hopes aren’t dead yet, however. Four games at San Francisco and four more at Arizona are winnable games to round out the season. Still, second place in the West is well out of reach, leaving the Rockies to compete for 1 of 2 wild card spots in a battle royal of contenders that includes two of the Cardinals, Reds, and Brewers, two of the Phillies, Marlins, and Mets, and of course, the Giants. Two of those seven clubs will make the playoffs via the 2nd place slot in their divisions, leaving five teams the Rockies need to leapfrog in the final week of games in order to reach postseason play. A sweep of the Giants would put them a game ahead of San Francisco, but that’s a lot to expect from a team with a .316 winning percentage over their last 38 games.

Rockies To Promote AJ Ramos

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6:17 pm: Ramos’ promotion has been made official. Roster space was opened by the designation of right-hander Wade Davis for assignment.

1:02 pm: The Rockies are preparing to call right-hander AJ Ramos up to their active roster, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link).  An additional move will need to be made to create a space for Ramos on the team’s 40-man roster.

After a couple of false starts, it looks like Ramos is finally set to make his return to the majors after almost 28 months.  The righty underwent shoulder surgery in 2018 after a rough 19 2/3 innings with the Mets that season, and was off the radar until this summer, when he inked minor league deals with both the Dodgers and Cubs.  Neither of those contracts led to a Major League call-up, however, and the Rockies signed Ramos to yet another minors deal after the Cubs released him in early September.

Ramos turns 34 tomorrow, so the promotion is a nice birthday present for the former All-Star.  Ramos posted some strong numbers with the Marlins from 2012-17 (including a 2.78 ERA, 2.19 K/BB rate, and 10.4 K/9), though his productivity dipped in 2017, particularly after a July trade to the Mets.  The 22-28 Rockies are on the verge of being eliminated from postseason contention, so there’s nothing to be lost in seeing whether or not Ramos could potentially be a candidate for their 2021 bullpen.

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