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NL West Notes: Black, Treinen, Graterol, Rodriguez, Jones

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As the Rockies trudge through another rough year, there isn’t yet any indication over whether or not manager Bud Black could be returning for his ninth season.  GM Bill Schmidt told the Denver Post’s Patrick Saunders that the team and Black will “talk at the end of the season” and that “there’s nothing more to report on that” for the time being.  It isn’t exactly a vote of confidence for Black, who is on pace for his sixth straight losing season and his second straight year of at least 100 losses.

While Black’s contract is technically up after the season, his deal has been described in the past (by reporter Nick Groke) as “a rolling year-to-year contract.”  In both February 2022 and 2023, the Rox announced a new one-year extension to Black’s deal, yet no such extension was announced this past spring even though the two sides had some talks about Black’s future.  It could be that owner Dick Monfort’s well-known penchant for loyalty to his employees was running a little thin coming off a 103-loss season, or perhaps Black himself might be considering a different role at age 67.  Saunders writes that Black “loves teaching young players and participating in the Rockies’ attempts to improve,” but has also “remained mum about” the possibility of returning as Colorado’s skipper.

More from around the NL West…

  • The Dodgers’ list of forthcoming reinforcements off the injured list includes Blake Treinen, as manager Dave Roberts told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya (links to X) and other reporters that Treinen is expected to be activated on Tuesday.  This means Treinen will miss just the minimum 15 days after some left hip discomfort sent him to the IL back on August 5.  Shoulder injuries limited Treinen to five innings in 2022 and he didn’t pitch at all in 2023, and despite this minor hip issue and a bruised lung/rib fractures suffered during Spring Training, he has still posted a 2.67 ERA in 30 1/3 innings for Los Angeles this year.  In more positive news about the relief corps, Roberts said Brusdar Graterol will soon throw a bullpen session, as Graterol is making a quicker recovery than expected from a hamstring strain.  There was some concern that Graterol’s season might’ve been in jeopardy when he was put on the 15-day IL back on August 7, but it looks like he’ll be able to return and try to salvage something from what has thus far been a lost year.  Shoulder inflammation prevented Graterol from making his season debut until August 6, and he faced just three batters (recording one out) before hurting his hamstring.
  • Giants reliever Randy Rodriguez was placed on the 15-day injured list earlier this week due to right elbow inflammation, and manager Bob Melvin told reporters (including Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle) today that tests didn’t reveal any structural damage.  Rodriguez will still be shut down for a couple of weeks before being re-evaluated, so his absence should extend well beyond the 15-day minimum.  The hard-throwing Rodriguez has made a solid accounting of himself in his rookie season, posting a 3.93 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, and 7.6% walk rate over 50 1/3 innings.
  • Circling back to the Rockies for one final note, Colorado activated Nolan Jones from the 10-day injured list today, and optioned catcher Hunter Goodman to Triple-A.  After a seeming breakout year in 2023, Jones has hit only .202/.311/.313 in 191 PA this season, while playing in just 49 games due to two lengthy IL stints related to lower back pain.  Jones also had extra concerns off the field, as he told Patrick Saunders that his newborn daughter had some breathing problems but is now thankfully doing better.

Rockies Outright Riley Pint

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The Rockies announced that right-hander Riley Pint has been outrighted off the team’s 40-man roster.  Pint wasn’t known to have been designated for assignment, but he apparently cleared waivers and will now likely be headed to the Rockies’ Triple-A affiliate.  This is the first time Pint has been outrighted and he has less than a year of MLB service time, so he can’t reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency.

Taken fourth overall in the 2016 draft, Pint briefly retired during the 2021 minor league season after dealing with multiple injuries and a lack of performance over his first six years as a professional.  Pint returned to the mound in 2022 but couldn’t shake the severe control issues that have plagued his career, and to date he has a whopping 17.77% walk rate over 300 2/3 minor league innings.  His brief time in the majors has been even more extreme in terms of free passes, as Pint has walked eight of the 27 batters he has faced at the MLB level — between all these walks and two homers allowed, Pint has a 22.09 ERA over his 3 2/3 career innings in the Show.

Pint’s weeklong stint on Colorado’s active roster ended on Thursday when he was optioned to Triple-A, and he has now been removed from the 40-man roster altogether.  It isn’t yet clear if the outright assignment could hint at the end of Pint’s time in the organization, even though his ability to miss bats (33.1% strikeout rate at Triple-A) remains elite.  This strikeout ability helped Pint post a 3.10 ERA in 29 innings with Triple-A Albuquerque this season, albeit also with a 19.8% walk rate.  The possibility exists that Pint could be a valuable reliever if he can manage even decent control, yet he hasn’t made any progress in this area.

Rockies Release Elias Diaz, Promote Drew Romo

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3:10pm: The Rockies announced that Diaz has been given his unconditional release. He’s a free agent who can sign with any club at any point. Romo’s contract has indeed been selected from Triple-A Albuquerque in his place.

Colorado also reinstated left-hander Lucas Gilbreath from the 60-day injured list. A spot on the 40-man roster was already cleared by yesterday’s outright of Josh Rogers. Gilbreath has been out since undergoing Tommy John surgery in March of 2023.

1:55pm: In place of Diaz, the Rockies are expected to select the contract of catching prospect Drew Romo, reports Thomas Harding of MLB.com. He’ll presumably slot into the Rockies’ primary catching role down the stretch and audition for a potential long-term gig behind the plate in Denver.

1:45pm: The Rockies are releasing catcher Elias Diaz, whom they placed on outright waivers earlier this week, reports Daniel Alvarez Montes of El Extra Base. Once he’s cleared release waivers, he’ll be free to sign with any club. The new team would only owe Diaz the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the big league roster or injured list. The Rockies will be on the hook for the remainder of this season’s $6MM salary.

That Diaz is slated to be released is an indicator that no other club was willing to take on his remaining $1.45MM salary (plus the $50K fee for placing a waiver claim). Colorado could’ve simply kept Diaz on the roster and attempted to waive him again later this month when he was owed less money, but it seems they’ll instead part ways with the veteran backstop entirely, granting him extra time to settle in with a contending club down the stretch. Diaz had been in the final season of a three-year, $14.5MM contract with the Rockies and is a free agent at season’s end anyhow, so the move to release him appears to primarily be about affording him the ability to latch on with a contending club while also clearing time for a look at Romo.

Releasing Diaz now will naturally raise questions as to why the Rockies didn’t move Diaz for even a modest return at last month’s trade deadline. It’s a fair gripe on the surface, although it stands to reason that if Diaz went unclaimed when he’d cost other teams around $1.5MM in total, there probably wasn’t a robust trade market for him when he was owed more money and the Rockies were seeking prospect value in return.

It’s still plenty arguable that the Rox should’ve sold high on him at last year’s trade deadline or perhaps in the offseason, but the Rox instead added some modest pieces and entered this year with visions of a more competitive club than they’ve ultimately fielded.

Diaz, 33, is hitting .270/.315/.378 on the season. That’s a solid-looking line, particularly for a catcher, though metrics like wRC+ (80) and OPS+ (88) feel he’s been below-average at the plate after adjusting for the Rockies’ hitter-friendly home environment. Either of those marks is passable for a backstop with solid defensive grades, however, and Diaz is just that. He’s delivered markedly improved framing grades in 2024 and been credited with plus marks in Defensive Runs Saved (5) and Outs Above Average (5).

Diaz has never been a plus hitter outside of a strong 2018 showing with the Pirates, but he owns a .254/.306/.406 line over the past four seasons, during which he’s averaged 17 homers per 162 games played. He’s not an elite catcher but is a serviceable option who’s had his share of big league success and experience. At the very least, he’s an upgrade over the backup option for many postseason hopefuls. And as long as he signs with a new club on or before Aug. 31, he’ll be eligible for his new team’s postseason roster.

As for the 22-year-old Romo, he was the No. 35 overall pick by the Rockies back in 2020 and ranked among the game’s top-100 prospects as recently as the 2022-23 offseason. He’s considered to be a glove-first catcher but has shown more offense in the upper minors across the past two seasons, including a quality .297/.339/.499 batting line in a very hitter-friendly Albuquerque setting this season (103 wRC+).

Scouting reports at FanGraphs, Baseball America and other outlets praise the switch-hitting Romo as a plus defender with a plus arm but well below-average power. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen noted that Romo had some uncharacteristic throwing issues last year (19% caught-stealing rate), but he’s bounced back in a big way with a heartier 29% rate in 2024.

With Diaz released and fellow backstop Jacob Stallings also playing on an expiring contract, Romo ought to be given a full run as the team’s starting catcher. Colorado doesn’t have any other near-ready catching prospects — Hunter Goodman can catch some, but they’ve used him more in the outfield — and certainly doesn’t have another one with Romo’s defensive chops.

Romo and Goodman could potentially shoulder the workload behind the plate down the stretch, depending on what comes of Stallings, who’s hitting .266/.367/.457 in 216 plate appearances while playing on a one-year, $2MM contract. Speculatively speaking, if the Rox are comfortable with Goodman collecting more playing time behind the plate, they could make a similar move with Stallings to the one they’ve made with Diaz.

Rockies Outright Josh Rogers

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The Rockies have sent left-hander Josh Rogers outright to Triple-A Albuquerque. MLBTR has confirmed the move, which was reflected on the lefty’s transaction tracker at MLB.com. There was no previous public indication that Rogers was removed from the club’s 40-man roster, so their count drops to 39.

It’s the second outright of the year for Rogers. Signed to a minor league deal in the offseason, he has twice been selected to the roster but without pitching a ton at the big league level. He was first added at the end of May but he landed on the injured list in the middle of June with a left shoulder rotator cuff strain. He came off the IL a month later but was quickly optioned, designated for assignment and outrighted to Albuquerque.

Since he had previous career outrights, Rogers had the right to elect free agency but chose to accept his assignment. That allowed him to be selected back to the club’s roster on Sunday and he tossed an inning and two thirds for Colorado that day. After that outing, he was optioned to Albuquerque and it appears the club quietly put him on waivers as well, passing him through unclaimed in recent days. He still has the right to elect free agency but may accept as he did earlier in the year.

Around those transactions, Rogers has thrown 11 innings for the Rockies this year, allowing eight earned runs for a 6.55 ERA. Combined with his previous work with the Orioles and Nationals, he has a 5.55 ERA in 99 career innings. His 8.9% walk rate is around league average but his 10.9% strikeout rate is far below par. He’s also thrown 57 2/3 Triple-A innings this year with a 6.71 ERA, 14.4% strikeout rate and 4.5% walk rate.

Chasen Shreve Elects Free Agency

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Left-hander Chasen Shreve, who was recently designated for assignment by the Rockies, rejected an outright assignment and elected free agency, per the MLB.com transactions log. He’s back on the open market.

Shreve, 34, only pitched one inning with the Rockies. He retired all three hitters he faced on a trio of grounders. It was just one inning, but that frame now gives Shreve a stretch of 11 consecutive seasons pitching in the big leagues in some capacity. Though he hasn’t gotten much of a look in the majors this year, Shreve has been pitching well in Triple-A. He’s spent time in the Yankees’ and Rangers’ systems as well, totaling 34 1/3 innings with a 2.62 earned run average, 26.7% strikeout rate, 9.2% walk rate and 41.5% ground-ball rate.

Of course, Shreve has a lengthy big league track record and has been effective more often than not in the majors. He’s tallied 357 MLB frames dating back to 2014 and pitched to a career 3.96 ERA that’s supported by a 3.87 SIERA. Shreve’s career strikeout, walk and ground-ball rates (25.2%, 10.8% and 41.9%, respectively) more or less closely mirror the marks he’s demonstrated in Triple-A this season. He pitched just two innings with the 2019 Cardinals and had a tough 26-inning run with the 2022 Mets (6.49 ERA) but has otherwise been a serviceable middle-innings arm who can capably be relied upon to hold opponents to around four runs for every nine innings pitched.

Shreve is hardly an elite arm, but he’s an experienced lefty who’s pitched in a variety of roles and could help a contending club down the stretch. Any team that signs him would be able to carry him on the postseason roster so long as he’s in the organization prior to Sept. 1. The Mets, Cubs and Mariners are among the teams who currently have only one southpaw in their big league bullpen, although Shreve could certainly latch on with an organization that has more left-handed bullpen depth than that.

Rockies Place Elias Diaz On Waivers

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The Rockies placed veteran catcher Elias Díaz on waivers this afternoon, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. The process will be resolved on Friday. Díaz is eligible to play while he’s on waivers, though that’s immaterial with Colorado having an off day tomorrow.

It’s possible but by no means guaranteed that this marks the end of his four-plus year stint in Denver. Waivers are irrevocable, so the Rockies cannot retract the placement if another team makes a claim. If he goes unclaimed, the Rox could simply retain him on the MLB roster for the last six weeks of the season.

Colorado reportedly expressed openness to moving Díaz before the trade deadline. The New York Post’s Jon Heyman wrote at the time that the Rox weren’t planning to explore another extension with the impending free agent. Since the Rox are out of playoff contention, there was little reason for them not to try to get some kind of young talent in return. Rosenthal writes that the Rockies didn’t find any team with significant interest in a trade, though, and Colorado ultimately held him past the deadline.

There’s no longer any chance for the Rockies to get anything in return for Díaz. MLB did away with the old August revocable waiver trade system back in 2019. Any player who has been on a 40-man roster during the season cannot be traded after the deadline. The only benefit to Colorado in placing Díaz on waivers is possible cost savings.

The 33-year-old catcher is playing this year on a $6MM salary. There’ll be a little over $1.4MM to be paid out between Friday and the end of the season. A claiming team would take that entire sum off Colorado’s books. Teams cannot negotiate with the Rockies to pay down a portion of the remaining money. A waiver acquisition is an all or nothing move. Díaz would be eligible for postseason play if another club put in a claim since he’d be in their organization before the start of September.

Díaz had the best season of his career in 2023. He connected on 14 homers with a .267/.316/.409 slash line over a career-high 526 plate appearances. Díaz popped another home run in the All-Star Game and collected the Midsummer Classic’s MVP award. His offensive production has taken a step back this season, as he’s hitting .270/.315/.378 over 84 contests. That’s still reasonable production for a #2 catcher, and Díaz has had a strong year defensively. He has cut down nearly 28% of stolen base attempts and has slightly above-average pitch framing grades from Statcast.

Clubs tend to be reluctant to acquire catchers midseason — Danny Jansen and Carson Kelly were the only backstops traded at the deadline — because of the challenge of quickly learning a new pitching staff’s strengths and weaknesses. Still, Díaz’s production this season would be an upgrade on what some teams have gotten out of their backup options.

Waiver priority is inverse order of the standings without regard to American or National League. The White Sox have the top priority, followed by the Marlins. Neither team is going to put in a claim, since there’s no incentive for them to take on the salary of an impending free agent.

The Cubs, who are 5.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot in the NL, are relying on a catching tandem of Miguel Amaya and Christian Bethancourt. Public estimates have them right on the border of the luxury tax threshold, though, and it’s hard to believe they’d claim Díaz for a very long shot playoff push if doing so moved them past that line. The Rays have fallen 6.5 back of a Wild Card spot and might not consider a claim worthwhile. The Mariners, Padres and Diamondbacks are a little further down the waiver order but could be potential fits.

A claim would allow Díaz to participate in a playoff race while shaving a bit of money from Colorado’s books. It’d presumably set the stage for the Rox to take their first look at prospect Drew Romo, whom they view as the catcher of the future. They’ll need to add Romo to the 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft by next offseason. The 35th overall pick in the 2020 draft, Romo is hitting .297/.339/.499 this year with Triple-A Albuquerque.

Rockies Outright John Curtiss

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Rockies right-hander John Curtiss went unclaimed on waivers and was assigned outright to Triple-A Albuquerque, per the team’s MLB.com transaction log. He has the right to reject that assignment in favor of free agency. If he accepts, he’ll stick with the Rox organization in Triple-A but no longer occupy a spot on the 40-man roster.

Curtiss signed a minor league deal with Colorado over the winter, was selected to the big league roster in May, and rejected an outright assignment after being designated for assignment. He’s since returned on an additional pair of minor league deals — opting out once along the way — and was selected back to the big league roster in late July. He’s pitched 2 1/3 MLB innings this year and been tagged for four runs. His Triple-A work has been vastly better. In an extremely hitter-friendly setting, he’s posted 38 innings of 4.03 ERA ball with a sub-par 18.5% strikeout rate against a strong 7.4% walk rate.

The Rockies are the seventh big league team for which the journeyman Curtiss has pitched. He’s amassed 108 2/3 innings in the majors and sports a lifetime 4.06 ERA with a roughly average 22.7% strikeout rate and sharp 7% walk rate. He was at his best in 2020-21 when he pitched 69 1/3 frames with a 2.86 earned run average, 24.1% strikeout rate and 5.2% walk rate between the Rays, Marlins and (much more briefly) Brewers. Milwaukee acquired Curtiss from Miami at the 2021 trade deadline, but he pitched just 4 1/3 innings before requiring Tommy John surgery.

Rockies Place Kris Bryant On Injured List

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The Rockies made a few moves before tonight’s series opener in Arizona. Most notably, Kris Bryant is headed back to the injured list. Colorado placed the former MVP on the 10-day IL, retroactive to August 11, with a back strain. Colorado recalled rookie outfielder Jordan Beck in his place. The Rox also brought up righty Bradley Blalock, whom they acquired from Milwaukee in the Nick Mears trade, while optioning southpaw Josh Rogers to Triple-A Albuquerque.

Bryant goes on the injured list for the eighth time in his Colorado tenure. It’s his third such stint of the season. Bryant lost a month last year to a different back strain. He dealt with another core issue this summer, as an internal oblique strain kept him out between June 3 and July 23. Bryant hit .277/.352/.340 over 13 games before landing back on the shelf.

Since signing with Colorado on a seven-year free agent deal, Bryant has hit .250/.332/.382 across 671 plate appearances. He has appeared in 159 of the Rox’s 443 games (just under 36%) since signing. That’s not the only reason that Colorado is headed for a fourth consecutive last place finish, yet it’s hard to envision a much worse start to the biggest free agent investment in franchise history.

Colorado has alternated Bryant and Charlie Blackmon between right field and designated hitter over the last few weeks. Blackmon is at DH with Jake Cave and Sam Hilliard splitting the corner outfield work tonight. The 23-year-old Beck — a former top 40 draft pick out of Tennessee — rejoins the group and should probably get regular playing time down the stretch. Beck hasn’t hit over his first 23 major league games, but he’s raking at a .319/.402/.558 clip over 39 contests in Albuquerque. That’s excellent production even in an extremely hitter-friendly setting.

As for Blalock, he’s in position to make his team debut. He has made two starts with Double-A Hartford since the trade. Blalock made his big league debut with Milwaukee in June. He has otherwise spent the season in Double-A, turning in a 4.36 ERA over 18 starts. He could work as rotation depth or in a long relief capacity for whatever time he’s on the MLB roster.

Rockies Select Josh Rogers, Place Dakota Hudson On 15-Day IL

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The Rockies have selected left-handed pitcher Josh Rogers from Triple-A Albuquerque, the team announced today. He will replace Dakota Hudson on the active roster; the Rockies placed Hudson on the 15-day IL with right elbow inflammation following his start last night. Colorado already had an open spot for Rogers on the 40-man roster.

Hudson, 29, had his contract selected less than 24 hours ago, and he started for the Rockies on Saturday against the Braves. He lasted only 2 2/3 innings, giving up three hits, four walks, and five earned runs. While he has struggled all season, his particular troubles last night may have had something to do with his injury. The Rockies have not yet provided many details about his status going forward.

Similar to Hudson, Rogers, 30, has already been outrighted by the Rockies once this season. He signed a minor league deal with the club this spring, and Colorado selected him to make his 2024 debut in May. The southpaw gave up seven earned runs over 9 1/3 innings before landing on the IL with a left shoulder rotator cuff strain. He was activated and DFA’d about a month later. However, like Hudson, he chose to accept an outright assignment to Triple-A, and that decision appears to have paid off. He will return to the Rockies bullpen for today’s series finale against the Braves. Rogers has a 6.71 ERA over 14 appearances (11 starts) at Triple-A this season.

Rockies Select Dakota Hudson, DFA Chasen Shreve

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The Rockies have selected the contract of right-hander Dakota Hudson from Triple-A Albuquerque, the team announced. In a corresponding move, left-hander Chasen Shreve has been designated for assignment.

Hudson, 29, accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A earlier this season. He signed a one-year, $1.5MM contract with Colorado this past winter, but following a poor performance over his first 17 starts (career-worst 5.84 ERA, 5.61 SIERA, and 12.3% strikeout rate), he was designated for assignment in early July. After he passed through waivers unclaimed, the Rockies sent him outright to the Albuquerque Isotopes.

Through three starts with the Isotopes, Hudson has given up 14 runs (12 earned) in 11 1/3 innings. He has 10 strikeouts, four walks, and a .360 batting average against. His most recent outing against the Las Vegas Aviators was especially brutal; he lasted just 2 2/3 innings, giving up seven runs (five earned) on seven hits while striking out only two. Nevertheless, the Rockies have selected his contract, and he will start tonight’s contest against the Braves at Coors Field (per Patrick Lyons of Just Baseball).

Lyons reported yesterday that Hudson would be starting today in place of Cal Quantrill, who is dealing with some “general forearm soreness.” The team has pushed back his next outing indefinitely (per Lyons). Presuming Quantrill is ready to get back on the mound within a few days, Hudson will, most likely, remain in the rotation until Ryan Feltner returns from the 15-day IL. Feltner landed on the injured list on Thursday with a right shoulder strain, but his recent MRI came back clean, and he could return as soon as his minimum 15 days on the IL are up (per Lyons). That should mean at least two more starts for Hudson after tonight. While he has struggled this season, Hudson is only two years removed from a solid 2022 campaign with the Cardinals, when he pitched to a 4.45 ERA and 5.11 SIERA over 139 2/3 innings. Those aren’t excellent numbers by any means, but all the Rockies need right now is an innings eater.

Shreve, 34, has pitched in the majors every year since 2014, appearing for the Braves, Yankees, Cardinals, Mets, Pirates, Tigers, Reds, and, most recently, the Rockies. He has a 3.96 ERA and 3.87 SIERA across 368 career appearances, mostly as a lower-leverage reliever. Despite his serviceable performance in 2023 (4.63 ERA, 3.77 SIERA in 50 games), the veteran southpaw could only land a minor league contract from the Rangers this winter. Texas released him in May, re-signed him, and then released him again in June. Following that, he signed a minor deal with the Yankees, only to be released again in August. After inking a minor league pact with the Rockies earlier this month, Shreve finally made it back to the majors. He made one brief appearance for Colorado on Wednesday, tossing a scoreless inning against the Mets. He will now be placed on waivers, and if he goes unclaimed, he could opt to return to free agency and seek an opportunity with his fourth organization of the season.

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