Scottsdale, Ariz — The Colorado Rockies have not historically been known for their pitching. GM Jeff Bridich is doing his damnedest to change that and likes the early results from his mostly young staff out of 2016 spring training thus far.
With the exception of Tyler Matzek, who needed to be excused from camp to work on his ongoing anxiety struggles and an injury to Tyler Anderson, the Rockies have seen promising signs from almost every pitcher on the organizational roster.
Jorge De La Rosa, Chad Bettis, Jon Gray, and Tyler Chatwood lead the group in terms of ERA, which can be a bit misleading this early but is still encouraging for Bridich to see from the guys expected to start the season in the rotation. Jordan Lyles had some early struggles but rebounded nicely on Friday and currently looks like the best bet to fill out the five-man rotation.
Prospects Jeff Hoffman, Kyle Freeland, Antonio Senzatela, and even German Marquez are turning heads in camp through some mixed results but clearly enticing talent.
Eddie Butler was reassigned to Triple-A almost entirely because those other guys have separated themselves. “The stuff is still there, the velo is good,” says GM Jeff Bridich. “He attacked better from the outside, he got ahead better. I think we saw a more confident, a more focused, and a more relaxed Eddie Butler.” But Bridich isn’t just looking for good enough, he wants to help Butler become the absolute best version of himself.
“We’re looking for a complete starter,” Bridich continued. “We know it’s in there.” The Rockies have the luxury of starting Eddie Butler in Albuquerque to get him even more development and try to get his 2016 started on a positive track. With the other names available, there is no need to rush him.
Listing the whole bullpen roster would be cumbersome, but suffice it to say they have mostly excelled this spring.
Of course, none of this really means much. You don’t win baseball seasons in March. But for the first time in a long time, the Rockies have come into spring training with arguably more talent in camp on the mound than in the field.
“For the most part, the outings have been very competitive,” but Bridich reminds us “You can’t go crazy one way or the other.”
Bridich says that De La Rosa and Bettis spent “almost the entire winter” essentially in camp. “And I think it shows,” he says.
The top two guys on the pitching staff are setting quite the tone early. Stay tuned to see if they can keep these good feelings, and good results, flowing into the regular season.
