The Colorado Rockies have had a bad year, but there are some bright spots.
The Colorado Rockies' difficult 2026 Major League Baseball season is nearly over, and while Colorado is barreling toward 100 losses for the fourth straight year, they seem to be heading in the right direction.
With the season nearly over, ESPN MLB Insider Bradford Doolittle has put together his annual exercise in which he identifies the biggest success and the biggest disappointment for each MLB team. Let’s get into what that means for the Rockies:
The biggest success
In a season full of struggles, Doolittle recognizes the work that is being put into this club to make for a better future, and it seems to be paying off now, specifically as it pertains to hitters.
Doolittle credits the Rockies’ front office for adding productive hitters that can do well both at home and on the road. This season, two-time All-Star catcher Hunter Goodman has been the engine of the group, posting 38 home runs and an .841 OPS.
Others such as Jake McCarthy and TJ Rumfield have also demonstrated good production at the plate and have become complementary pieces next to Goodman. Doolittle credited Rumfield specifically as the latter has posted a .300 average and an .847 OPS with 15 homers as a rookie.
Doolittle also highlights Colorado’s much-improved road OPS from last season, when it was a franchise-worst .589 to .709 this season, which is the ninth-best mark in franchise history. Moreover, the Rockies’ .743 collective OPS is good for fifth in MLB.
The biggest disappointment
In this category, Doolittle’s singular focus is on one player: shortstop Ezequiel Tovar.
This is understandable because Tovar, who was once on an upward trajectory toward potential stardom, has seen his numbers fall in each of the last three seasons. Over 137 games this year, he has a .214 batting average, a .262 on-base percentage, a .339 slugging percentage and a .601 OPS.
It has been a rough regression for the 24-year-old Tovar, but as Doolittle pointed out, youth is on his side, but his struggles need to be addressed as soon as possible. What Doolittle chose not to point out in this category is the Rockies’ pitching.
Perhaps Tovar’s regression is worse than what we have seen on the mound from this team, but it feels like this deserves an honorable mention. Colorado’s pitching has been bad, and there are multiple ways to arrive at this conclusion.
The Rockies are last in multiple pitching categories, including ERA (5.57), WHIP (1.53) and strikeouts (1,033). Their four-man rotation of Kyle Freeland, Ryan Feltner, Tomoyuki Sugano and Michael Lorenzen all have ERA’s over 5.00, and only Sugano has a winning record.
Perhaps if Colorado’s pitching was just marginally better, the organization would not be facing another 100-loss campaign. This is arguably the most important position, and the Rockies need to overhaul it.
