Colorado Rockies news and links for Monday, November 4th, 2024
You may think from Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort’s comments on high-spending teams like the New York Mets and San Diego Padres that he would run his baseball team in the most miserly manner possible. The expectation would be that the Rockies would rank in the league’s lowest payrolls along with John Fisher’s “Sacremento” Athletics and Bob Nutting’s Pittsburgh Pirates. However, this is a common misconception.
Over the last eight seasons dating back to the start of the Bud Black managerial era, the Rockies haven’t exactly been cheapskates.
Since 2017, they have tended to hang in the middle-of-the-pack for team payroll, while also not dipping below $100 million in team payroll for a full regular season since 2014.
With the Rockies’ general spending habits, it’s reasonable to think this team would have been far more competitive over the last eight seasons than they have been.
However, the Rockies haven’t managed a winning season or playoff berth since 2018 and are riding a crashing wave of six consecutive losing seasons since their last meaningful fall baseball.
An article from Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post over the weekend continues to illustrate something we have known for years: The Rockies may be decent spenders . . . but they spend their money in ways that do not help the team win baseball games.
Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
Saunders reported on Saturday that the 61-101 Rockies spent approximately $2.41 million per win in 2024, putting them at the 14th highest cost per victory in the league. The Rockies are one of six teams with losing records in the top 15 for this category, along with fellow bottom feeders in the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels. Six other teams in the top 15 made the playoffs, including the eventual World Series-champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Rockies’ poor spending over the last decade is well documented, from the much maligned $106 million “super bullpen” of Wade Davis, Bryan Shaw, and Jake McGee to giving Ian Desmond $70 million over five years.
More recently the standout would be Kris Bryant’s seven-year, $182 million albatross for a player who has yet to make it through 162 games over three seasons.
The 2024 season was a further microcosm of the Rockies’ foolish spending habits.
Kris Bryant made $28 million to play just 37 games while being worth just -0.7 rWAR.
Compare that number with other Rockies salaries:
- Antonio Senzatela and Germán Márquez, both coming off Tommy John surgery, earned a combined $22 million for a total of four starts.
- Ryan McMahon made $12 million and played a full season while becoming an All-Star and Gold Glove finalist. However, he hit just .188/.283/.309 with six home runs after the All-Star Break.
- Kyle Freeland made $16 million, and 38-year-old Charlie Blackmon was paid $14.5 million for his swansong season. Both were available for most of the 2024 season.
The problem now is that the Rockies can no longer sustain their unwise spending.
Austerity measures are coming, and the team is expected to cut payroll significantly in 2025. With the closure of AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain, the team no longer receives significant guaranteed television revenue ($57 million in 2023) to bolster the coffers.
Charlie Blackmon, Daniel Bard, Jake Cave, Dakota Hudson, and Peter Lambert are all off the books as of the start of the off-season, and other high-dollar departures are expected. Pitchers Cal Quantrill and Austin Gomber, as well as Gold Glove second baseman Brendan Rodgers, could all be on the way out this winter to avoid paying them substantial amounts in arbitration. If all three of them are traded or non-tendered, the Rockies have just four arbitration-eligible players—Sam Hilliard, Ryan Feltner, Justin Lawrence, and Lucas Gilbreath—for a projected combined sum of $6.2 million. The most expensive of the bunch is right-handed pitcher Ryan Feltner at $2.6 million.
However, the Rockies are still hamstrung by multiple contracts. Roughly $77 million in payroll is accounted for by only five players going into the 2025 season spread across Bryant, Freeland, McMahon, Senzatela, and Márquez. This is approximately 85.4% of what payroll utility Spotrac has listed for the Rockies’ current allocations in 2025 prior to other signings, departures, and arbitration. The team will also be paying long-departed third baseman Nolan Arenado one final sum of $5 million.
Photo by Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The 2025 Rockies will be a younger and cheaper team with most of their lineup not yet arbitration eligible or playing on very team-friendly deals. The majority of the startling lineup outside of Ezequiel Tovar and Ryan McMahon will be making under $1 million for the season. Any moves the team makes over the off-season will likely be indicative of further belt-tightening, and we are already seeing this on display. On Saturday the Rockies acquired utility infielder Owen Miller from the Milwaukee Brewers for cash considerations. Miller, 27, is out of minor league options but not currently on the 40-man roster and not arbitration eligible. A first and second baseman by trade, Miller might figure to be depth behind Aaron Schunk and Adael Amador should Brendan Rodgers depart.
The Rockies may be dealing with the consequences of their contract decisions for now, but eventually they will be free. Germán Márquez is a free agent after 2025, and everyone else except Kris Bryant and Ezequiel Tovar are expected to be off the books after 2027.
However, the Rockies’ revenue issues won’t just vanish. With no TV deal in place and attendance slowly dwindling after years of bad decisions and losing, the Colorado Rockies will eventually need to wise up when it comes to their payroll, or they will be doomed to eternally repeat the mistakes of the past.
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Arizona Fall League
Salt River Rafters 8, Mesa Solar Sox 3
On Saturday’s Arizona Fall League matchup, Ryan Ritter drew two walks and scored once in two at-bats while playing as DH. Juan Guerrero hit his third home run of the Fall League—a three RBI shot—in a 1-for-3 effort at the plate, and Jose Cordova went 2-for-4 with a double. The only Rockies pitcher to take the mound was Evan Justice. Justice has been largely perfect through seven outings, giving up just one walk and no hits while striking out nine batters.
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Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle win 2024 Gold Glove Awards | Purple Row
On Sunday night the winners of the 2024 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards were announced. Rockies shortstop Ezequiel Tovar and center fielder Brenton Doyle both took home the awards for their respective positions!
Here are 10 of the top Minor League jerseys in 2024 | MLB.com
The Albuquerque Isotopes’ blue “Los Mariachis de Nuevo Mexico” jerseys took home an award for one of Minor League Baseball’s top jerseys of the season on National Jersey day.
Rockies acquire Utility Infielder Owen Miller from Brewers | Purple Row
In case you missed it, here is our write-up from Saturday on the Rockies trading cash considerations to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for utility-man Owen Miller as their first off-season acquisition.
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