The Rockies have selected the contract of right-hander Dakota Hudson from Triple-A Albuquerque, the team announced. In a corresponding move, left-hander Chasen Shreve has been designated for assignment.
Hudson, 29, accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A earlier this season. He signed a one-year, $1.5MM contract with Colorado this past winter, but following a poor performance over his first 17 starts (career-worst 5.84 ERA, 5.61 SIERA, and 12.3% strikeout rate), he was designated for assignment in early July. After he passed through waivers unclaimed, the Rockies sent him outright to the Albuquerque Isotopes.
Through three starts with the Isotopes, Hudson has given up 14 runs (12 earned) in 11 1/3 innings. He has 10 strikeouts, four walks, and a .360 batting average against. His most recent outing against the Las Vegas Aviators was especially brutal; he lasted just 2 2/3 innings, giving up seven runs (five earned) on seven hits while striking out only two. Nevertheless, the Rockies have selected his contract, and he will start tonight’s contest against the Braves at Coors Field (per Patrick Lyons of Just Baseball).
Lyons reported yesterday that Hudson would be starting today in place of Cal Quantrill, who is dealing with some “general forearm soreness.” The team has pushed back his next outing indefinitely (per Lyons). Presuming Quantrill is ready to get back on the mound within a few days, Hudson will, most likely, remain in the rotation until Ryan Feltner returns from the 15-day IL. Feltner landed on the injured list on Thursday with a right shoulder strain, but his recent MRI came back clean, and he could return as soon as his minimum 15 days on the IL are up (per Lyons). That should mean at least two more starts for Hudson after tonight. While he has struggled this season, Hudson is only two years removed from a solid 2022 campaign with the Cardinals, when he pitched to a 4.45 ERA and 5.11 SIERA over 139 2/3 innings. Those aren’t excellent numbers by any means, but all the Rockies need right now is an innings eater.
Shreve, 34, has pitched in the majors every year since 2014, appearing for the Braves, Yankees, Cardinals, Mets, Pirates, Tigers, Reds, and, most recently, the Rockies. He has a 3.96 ERA and 3.87 SIERA across 368 career appearances, mostly as a lower-leverage reliever. Despite his serviceable performance in 2023 (4.63 ERA, 3.77 SIERA in 50 games), the veteran southpaw could only land a minor league contract from the Rangers this winter. Texas released him in May, re-signed him, and then released him again in June. Following that, he signed a minor deal with the Yankees, only to be released again in August. After inking a minor league pact with the Rockies earlier this month, Shreve finally made it back to the majors. He made one brief appearance for Colorado on Wednesday, tossing a scoreless inning against the Mets. He will now be placed on waivers, and if he goes unclaimed, he could opt to return to free agency and seek an opportunity with his fourth organization of the season.