The teams whose homegrown talent stands out the most are the likes of the Atlanta Braves. They extended their talented younger players to long-term, team-friendly extensions and they have blossomed into All-Star caliber talent. While the 2023 Colorado Rockies have the most homegrown talent in the league, they are on pace for 100 losses.
According to FanGraphs, the Rockies have 15 players on the roster coming straight through the system, the most in the National League. They only have five players who joined via free agency and three from trades, making their rebuilding philosophy distinct in one direction.
The Rockies’ Homegrown Talent
Bleacher Report lists the top five homegrown players for Colorado as Ryan McMahon, Kyle Freeland, Charlie Blackmon, Ezequiel Tovar, and Yonathan Daza. While Blackmon and Freeland have been a part of the team for several years, they both struggle with injuries and well below-average production.
Tovar is still young and talented, but his 83 OPS+ in 2023 needs to improve for him to remain an everyday part of the Rockies lineup once they begin to fight for a playoff spot. Daza only played in 24 games in 2023 before getting hurt. His production was not there either in those limited games.
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Failed Talent Imports
Colorado’s latest big free-agent acquisition has flamed out quickly. The signing of Kris Bryant did not make much sense then and, with his lackluster performance, makes even less sense now. To make matters worse, the team failed to get a lot of valuable talent after letting go of Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story, and more.
Recent signings of Wade Davis, Ian Desmond, Daniel Murphy, and others all proved to be instant failures. Plus getting pitching to come to Colorado without immensely overpaying is always a challenge.
Trades have not been nice to the team, either. Whether they are buying or selling, they almost always seem to get the short end of the stick. The front office especially mishandled the Arenado trade, as he has continued to produce with the St. Louis Cardinals. When the deal was made, CBS Sports called it a fleece, and it has not looked better since.
Next In Line
The last few drafts have provided hope for a team perennially near the bottom of the league standings. With 2023 first-round pick Chase Dollander, they got a high-upside and proven arm who had a rough last year in college but can be one of the league’s best. Given the fact he is a pitcher, it was an excellent pick for a team desperate for talent in that area.
2022 saw the Rockies take a lot of pitchers whom they hope to develop into big-league arms, a draft trend that will likely continue in the coming years. On the offensive side, 2021 seventh-overall pick Benny Montgomery put up a .896 OPS in A-ball in 2022. The outfielder can cover a lot of ground at Coors Field once he makes his debut.
One-home game? Nice. Two-homer game? Wow. THREE-homer game?! 🤯
No. 5 @Rockies prospect Drew Romo takes it to another level with a milestone night for @GoYardGoats. pic.twitter.com/sOXOncJlY5
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) July 29, 2023
But the draft with the two players with the most potential to be massive contributors to a future contending Rockies team is the 2020 draft. Picking both Zac Veen and Drew Romo in the first two rounds, the Rockies got their No. 5 and No. 9 prospects on the farm. While they are developing, the team has money to spend on potential free agents to complement them once they make the MLB club.
Photo Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
