For the fourth season in a row, the Colorado Rockies lost more than 100 games, but that does not mean they are OK with losing. 

On Thursday, the Rockies demonstrated that by firing their pitching coach, Alon Leichman, after just one season at his post, according to a report by MLB Insider Ken Rosenthal.

Some might be wondering why Colorado chose to move off a member of its coaching staff after just one season, especially when struggles are still evident. Let's identify why the front office made this decision.

While the Rockies were making strides offensively and were demonstrating the makings of an exciting young core, the pitching staff was delivering egregious results on a continuous basis.

Among the 30 Major League Baseball teams, the Rockies finished the regular season in last place in several categories. They included ERA (5.59), WHIP (1.52) and opponent batting average (.288).

The ugly numbers did not stop there as Colorado's pitchers also finished last in strikeouts (1,113) while allowing the most hits (1,635) and the third-most home runs (227). Simply put, whenever opposing batters got to face Colorado, they knew they could have big results.

Leichman was, after all, in charge of this staff, and he did not do anything to help it.

The Rockies hired Leichman after a franchise-worst season in 2025, in which they went 43-119. Following the disastrous season, Colorado named Paul DePodesta as its next president of baseball operations, and his front office was responsible for hiring Leichman.

Last season, the Rockies were not any better on the mound. They finished last in ERA, WHIP, and opponent batting average. When comparing last season's numbers to this season's numbers, the difference was negligible, even though technically there was an improvement. 

Still, while the offense was finishing top five in multiple categories and players like Hunter Goodman, TJ Rumfield and Jake McCarthy were providing a reason to believe in this team's future, the Rockies' arms were doing anything but that.

Colorado needs to take a long, hard look at its pitching staff and overhaul it, and firing Leichman was a reasonable first step in doing that. If the Rockies are going to improve sooner rather than later, they need the right coaches in place to guide the team.

It is going to be a busy offseason for DePodesta and his front office as they try to navigate what comes next for this group, especially in the face of an impending MLB lockout.