Colorado Rockies add 5 players to 40-man roster

Today, the Colorado Rockies have announced that they’ve kept five players protected from the Rule 5 draft by offering them 40-man roster contracts.

All five minor leaguers are pitchers. Yency Almonte, Rayan Gonzalez, Shane Carle, and Zach Jemiola all throw from the right side while Sam Moll is the lone lefty.

These moves bring the Rockies 40-man roster to 39, meaning they can only add one more player via free agency before they need to start making some cuts. Names that could end up on the chopping block include Cristhian Adames, Eddie Butler, Matt Carasiti, and Stephen Cardullo. It also remains to be seen what (if anything) is done with Jason Motte and Chad Qualls.

There are a few notables among players whom the Rockies declined to protect, most especially pitcher Jesus Tinoco who was famously the third prospect involved in the Troy Tulowitzki deal. Tinoco came into the organization with a ton of promise but struggled mightily in 2016 making him a risk for anyone trying to grab him in the Rule 5 Draft, but certainly not an insane one.

Outfielders Mike Tauchman, Dillon Thomas, and Max White were all likely considered as well but the Rockies glut of outfielders and these players lack of uber-high ceilings made it difficult to justify handing them a roster spot at this time.

Each of the protected players could wind up in the MLB bullpen as early as next season, with Almonte projecting as a Triple-A starter hoping to force his way into the rotation picture.