The Colorado Rockies are coming off an interesting offseason that has some thinking they should be trending upwards heading in to the 2017 season. The Rockies turned a number of heads when they signed Ian Desmond to a monster deal, then they signed some smaller names to fill out a lineup that has the potential to be fairly good if they can stay healthy. Colorado has a solid offense, an underrated starting rotation and a potentially quality bullpen and that means they could be on the rise this coming season.
Key Additions: IF Alexi Amarista, 1B Ian Desmond, OF Chris Denorfia, RP Mike Dunn, SP Greg Holland
Key Losses: SP Jorge De La Rosa, C Nick Hundley, RP Boone Logan, OF Ryan Raburn, 1B Mark Reynolds
Strengths
Handing $70 million to Desmond was a fairly big surprise that caught a number of experts off guard, but the Rockies clearly had a strong desire to get their man and they solidified their order with his addition. Nolen Arenado is one of the best players in baseball, Trevor Story is an excellent power hitter, Charlie Blackmon is a legitimate leadoff man and Desmond should slide in nicely near the top of their very deep lineup. Tom Murphy brings intriguing power to the table and could take over the starting catcher role ahead of Tony Wolters. In addition to a potent offense, Colorado’s starting rotation is also very talented led by Jon Gray. The physical right-hander flashed his immense potential when he registered 16 strikeouts in a complete game in September and he should serve as the ace of this unit. Tyler Anderson had a 3.54 strikeout-to-walk rate while Chad Bettis, Tyler Chatwood and Jeff Hoffman should be better than average rounding out the rotation.
Weaknesses
Colorado’s bullpen has the potential to be solid but there is no guarantee they will reach their potential as a group. Adam Ottavino is the favorite to open the year as the Rockies closer while Greg Holland could push him for that role depending on how they choose to use him. There aren’t any elite arms in the Colorado bullpen so the potential of this group is still somewhat limited. Meanwhile, the starting rotation has improved but will still need to survive Coors Field for half of its games. The Rockies offense should thrive in the elevation but it might not be the best thing for a young rotation that will need to stay mentally tough in order to bounce back from some of the rough outings they could encounter playing at home. The offense will also start the season without Desmond, who is out with a broken hand. He’s expected to join the team before the end of April but it’s still a blow for the Rockies to see their $70 million investment start the season on the sidelines.
2017 Colorado Rockies Preview
| Catcher | Tony Wolters | Tom Murphy | Dustin Garneau | ||
| First Base | Ian Desmond | Gerardo Parra | Jordan Patterson | ||
| Second Base | DJ LeMahieu | Cristhian Adames | Alexi Amarista | ||
| Third Base | Nolan Arenado | Cristhian Adames | Alexi Amarista | Pat Valaika | |
| Shortstop | Trevor Story | Cristhian Adames | Alexi Amarista | ||
| Left Field | Gerardo Parra | David Dahl | Ian Desmond | Raimel Tapia | |
| Center Field | Charlie Blackmon | Ian Desmond | David Dahl | ||
| Right Field | Carlos Gonzalez | David Dahl | Gerardo Parra | Raimel Tapia | |
| Designated Hitter | |||||
| Starting Pitcher | Jon Gray | Chad Bettis | Tyler Anderson | Tyler Chatwood | Jeff Hoffman |
| Relief Pitcher | Jairo Diaz | Adam Ottavino | Mike Dunn | Jordan Lyles | Chad Qualls |
| Closer | Greg Holland | ||||
Projected Win Total: 79.5
World Series Odds: +7500
Outlook
Colorado definitely has the potential to take a step forward in terms of win total this season but they will be in tough to climb any higher in the NL West with the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants still clearly the top two teams in the division. Look for the Rockies to slightly improve on their win total from a year ago with the offense leading the way and the rotation proving it could put up decent numbers despite playing half of its games at Coors Field. Colorado might be closer to contending than some think.
Prediction: 82-80
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