Brendan Rodgers showcasing his lesser-known skills

Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black usually declines to speak at great length about players who have yet to debut in MLB.

But he also understands the obvious potential of the top prospect in the organization, Brendan Rodgers.

Furthermore, it has become clear as the offseason has transitioned into the spring season, that the Rockies plan to replace their best second baseman ever, DJ LeMahieu, is to find an internal option.

With veteran Daniel Murphy confirmed to be at first base unless of emergency, the battle at second will come down to Ryan McMahon, Garrett Hampson, and Rodgers.

McMahon remains the favorite and Hampson’s all-around skill set will see him land a 25-man roster spot for most of the season whether he comes off the bench of forces his way into the starting lineup.

That might seem to leave Rodgers out. But if his prodigious abilities and stellar evaluations weren’t enough to convince that Rodgers will be a factor soon, perhaps Black’s comments will.

“He comes with, obviously, some fanfare,” he said with a smile. “People are talking about him.”

And it’s not just because of his high draft pedigree (No. 3 overall) or his placement on multiple top prospect lists. Rodgers has shown steady improvement throughout his professional career.

“From my vantage point,” Black said, “A year later … I’ve seen some growth. “We spoke with Brendan yesterday morning here, we have what we call Player Plan meetings… about goals, expectations, challenges, things they worked on in the 2018 season, things they learned. I saw a lot of maturity when he sat in that chair when we talked about 2019.”

Rodgers is getting a good long look so far this spring, tied for second on the team with 13 at-bats so far. The club clearly wants to get more looks at how well his progression is moving along.

He has three hits, three RBI and two walks in those 13 at-bats but perhaps most impressively, has yet to strike out. He doesn’t have any extra-base hits yet, but the consistent battles at the plate while he is spending time defensively away from his most familiar position, continue to highlight Rodgers constant drive for improvement.

“He’s a natural shortstop,” says Black. “I think that’s where he feels most comfortable. But, as we’ve talked about in my tenure here and before I got here, the Rockies have done a great job of expanding players on defense as far as other positions.”

With both McMahon and Hampson playing at a fantastic pace, it looks more and more likely that Rodgers will begin the year in Triple-A, even if he has a breakout performance from here on out.

And that’s fine for Colorado, especially with the confidence that, wherever he is, the most promising talent in the Rockies’ farm system will just keep getting better.