Colorado Rockies news and links for Monday, March 24th, 2025
“If one of the young guys are ready, we’re not afraid to go with them.”
These were the words of Colorado Rockies general manager Bill Schmidt as spring training began back in February… Words that ring exceptionally hollow after this past weekend.
These events were kicked off by the shocking trade of outfielder Nolan Jones to the Cleveland Guardians in a one-for-one exchange that brought utility player Tyler Freeman to Colorado. Per manager Bud Black, Freeman will split time with Kyle Farmer at second base in wake of the injury to Thairo Estrada.
Thank you, Nolan
Best of luck in Cleveland! pic.twitter.com/xQsLRUs58H
— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) March 22, 2025
Rockies fans struggled to wrap their heads around the trade, but there was a silver lining: The departure of Jones opened up a spot in the logjammed outfield for a promising young prospect who had played well during spring training.
Surely this move was a precursor to Zac Veen (no. 4 PuRP) making the Opening Day roster.
Imagine, then, the surprise that came on Sunday morning when the Rockies announced Veen had been optioned to the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes. The Rockies would instead start their 2025 season with five—technically six if you count Tyler Freeman—outfielders on the roster.
Zac Veen would not be one of them.
Two-time Gold Glove winner Brenton Doyle will, of course, make his home in center field this season for the Rockies. Meanwhile, the corner spots will be manned by sophomore Jordan Beck and veterans Sean Bouchard and Nick Martini. Sam Hilliard will be the team’s reserve outfielder.
When the Rockies brought in 34-year-old Nick Martini on a non-roster invite this winter, there were already fears of what he may become. Rockies fans had just spent 2024 with Jake Cave as their primary right fielder and Martini was of a similar profile: a gritty veteran with little sustained success during his career. He may put up some solid performances throughout the season but would ultimately play far too much and vulture playing time away from younger players when the Rockies should be focused on rebuilding.
Rockies manager Bud Black confirmed those fears on Sunday.
“Nick Martini showed very well — he brings an element to our club not unlike what Jake Cave brought last year, as a fan favorite that Jake Cave became,” Black said.
To say Martini didn’t earn a roster spot this spring would be untrue. Martini has a team second-best 1.067 OPS in Cactus League play. He’s hit 14-for-36 with two home runs, more walks than strikeouts, and even a few stolen bases.
Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images
However, to see him penciled in as the potential starting right fielder in 2025 is disheartening. Trading Nolan Jones was the perfect opportunity for the team to get younger and give prospects a shot, and instead they handed the now open spot to a 34-year-old journeyman.
Even more frustrating is that Zac Veen did everything right this spring. He hit .279/.353/.475 with four doubles, a triple, and two home runs. He drove in 11 RBIs and stole a whopping nine bases.
He played solid defense and even made some appearances in center field—a position he has historically only made ten career appearances in—in what looked to be a demonstration of his ability to spell Brenton Doyle when needed.
Veen’s effort this spring saw him named the Abby Greer Spring Training MVP.
Yet Veen will start the season in Triple-A “to hone his skills,” according to Bud Black.
Black cited Veen’s 32.8% spring training strikeout rate as a reason for the move. However, Veen’s strikeout rate was just one tick higher than that of starting first baseman Michael Toglia (32.7%), and was significantly better than that of starting third baseman Ryan McMahon (41.3%).
Fellow outfielders Sean Bouchard (29.2%) and Jordan Beck (38.7%) also struck out at a significant clip this spring and still made the team.
The argument rings even more hollow with the fact that Sam Hilliard hit just .125/.208/.271 with a Cactus League high 25 strikeouts for an eye-watering 52.1% strikeout rate. Hilliard made the team due to his strong defensive skill-set and ability to play all three outfield positions.
Per Thomas Harding, the Rockies ultimately felt that Veen would need regular playing time as a daily starter for the Isotopes rather than splitting time on the big league roster with five other outfielders. However, that crowded outfield is the Rockies’ own fault.
The Rockies had a starting corner outfield spot open with the departure of Nolan Jones. They chose to give that spot to Nick Martini and back him up with Sean Bouchard.
Zac Veen will still hopefully make his Major League debut in 2025, although skipper Bud Black wouldn’t quite commit to that either.
“Zac realizes that it’s probably a little more time needed in the Minors before he potentially gets an opportunity,” Black said. “Hopefully, he’ll force that by how he plays.”
However, it’s unclear what more the 23-year-old top prospect could have done to “force that.”
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How Freeman’s role with the Rockies could shape up | MLB.com
Thomas Harding explores what new acquisition Tyler Freeman’s role may develop into throughout the course of the season. Freeman made his Rockies spring training debut on Sunday where he played both second base and center field, hitting a single and stealing a base.
1 important thing we learned about each team this spring | MLB.com
With just two spring training games left before MLB teams begin departing Arizona and Florida for their Opening Day locations, MLB.com explores a lesson we learned about each team. For the Rockies—Thomas Harding writes—the talent pool is much deeper than last year. With Brenton Doyle and Ezequiel Tovar now established in their roles and Michael Toglia not close behind, there are key pieces there. The pitching pool has also deepened both with starters and relievers we will likely see throughout the year.
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