Adam Ottavino "excited" by Colorado Rockies offseason additions

The Colorado Rockies 2016 bullpen was the subject of much frustration for fans which lead to an offseason of heavy debate about how to fix a unit that blew 28 saves and sunk a team that was above .500 when Trevor Story got hurt.

For anyone who watched the club, it was obvious what turned a very promising season into another disappointing one; an inability to finish games. And this fact isn’t lost on the man who finished the season at the teams closer, Adam Ottavino. This is why he says he is more than fine with the team going out and spending money on Greg Holland and Mike Dunn to compete with him for time. The desire to win outweighs all.

“I was excited,” he told BSN Denver about learning of the new additions. “We need good pitchers. Anytime you can add a guy with [Holland’s] track record, it’s a good thing.”

Of course, the acquisitions of Dunn and Holland weren’t necessarily a reflection of the job that Ottavino did a year ago after returning mid season post Tommy John surgery but rather a reflection of the failings of most of the roster behind him. That being said, Ottavino, Jake McGee, and Carlos Estevez all still stand on this team as legitimate potential closers and one might think there would be a bit of competitive juices that start flowing after the front office makes these kinds of moves.

But Ottavino says that at this point, it really isn’t about competing with each other, it’s about competing with the guys in the different colored uniforms. “I don’t think so,” he says when we ask if there has been any friendly competition for specific roles. “I think everyone is just trying to do their job. We want to all be good and we all want each other to be good. Everyone is just trying to win.”

More important than battling each other, especially knowing that each is going to be called upon in important situations, is making sure the new guys fit into a cohesive unit and that everyone is on the same page. And on that note so far Ottavino says, “It’s been good. We’re all in the same group, trying to do the same things as relief pitchers, we’re gonna be spending a lot of time together and I’m looking forward to the season with them.”