The playoff picture in both leagues is so tight that few teams are locked in a trade. The Rockies are one exception. They are also the worst team in MLB, sitting 18 games under .500 while being outscored by 99 runs. It’s not as bad as last year, when they were arguably the worst team ever, but they may be on their way to a fourth straight 100-plus loss campaign.
That theoretically opens the door for Rox to get a jump on the trade market. Colorado and the Angels may be the only teams that can hold on to any hope regarding the 2026 conversion. If nearly every team remains reluctant to deal with the MLB draft two months before the deadline, that could create an opportunity for teams that are clearly uncompetitive to leave early.
That doesn’t seem to be the Colorado way, though. President of baseball Paul DePodesta told Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post over the weekend that the team’s trade talks so far have been preliminary. “We haven’t campaigned for the league or anything like that, but we’re starting to have some conversations if there’s a possibility of a game,” DePodesta said.
Colorado’s baseball leader was tight-lipped when asked if he was on the no-contact list, though he did say there are a few key players he might not trade. “There are going to be guys that are really hard for us to get going. I think that’s true for any team,” he told Saunders. “There are guys who we feel are the players who are our foundations if we go forward.”
He continued by commenting that the front office must be “opportunistic” when teams are calling for certain players and saying “there are many guys we are not willing to buy.” DePodesta didn’t highlight anyone from that group, though it seems safe to assume they won’t trade an injured starter right now. Chase the Dollar.
A powerful catcher Hunter Goodman he is under the control of the club in 2029 and will be one of their better trading chips. The Rockies avoided trading players with that kind of club control at the deadline. Those were under the previous offices but the same group of owners of Monfort.
A 24-year-old shortstop Ezequiel Tovar it had to be part of the foundation of reconstruction. He’s signed for $51.5MM through 2027-30 and is hitting .209/.259/.323 on the season. Tovar is a gifted defender but has yet to show signs of developing a more aggressive approach in the batter’s box. Even if the Rockies can find a team willing to take on the entire contract — which seems unlikely given how poorly he’s hit the past few seasons — the returns will be so slim that they won’t be able to move him.
Which players on Colorado’s roster are they likely to acquire in the coming weeks?
The liberator Antonio Senzatela he is the most obvious candidate. The righty has gone from a struggling starter to an elite arm. Senzatela owns a 1.98 earned run average in 36 1/3 innings on the season. His fielding percentage of 21.4% is still slightly below average but a personal best. Senzatela’s fastball average jumped two ticks to 97.3 mph, and he’s getting solid results from the low-90s cutter he added late last season.
Sennzatela is playing on a salary of $12MM, about $7MM of which is owed. That will drop to $3.5MM at the August 3 deadline. There is a $14MM club option for the 2027 season that still seems too expensive. Teams will likely look at Senzatela as a hire, and while he’ll be the third or fourth best arm in the bullpen, he should give the Rockies a few mid-level prospects.
There aren’t many other obvious trade candidates in the bullpen. There will certainly be teams interested in taking the flier Seth Halvorsencontrollable for five seasons and has a triple-digit fastball, but those traits are just as appealing in Colorado. Jimmy Herget again Brennan Bernardino they will not get more than a kind of organizational depth.
Colorado made several one-year additions to the free agent rotation as potential draft picks at the deadline. None of the Jose Quintana, Michael Lorenzen or Tomoyuki Sugano pitched well enough to garner a lot of interest from the opponent.
Quintana hit an elbow that would have taken him out in the allotted time. Lorenzen has an earned run average of over 8.00. Sugano’s 3.92 ERA is solid at the top, especially given the Coors Field effect, but comes with a league-worst strikeout rate (13.6%) and persistent home run concerns. Statcast has Sugano with a projected ERA of 7.52 based on the lack of whiffs and the amount of hard contact he allows.
Mickey Moniak again Jake McCarthy each in their own arbitration window and could gain interest as complementary foreign players. Moniak, currently suffering from ankle tendonitis, has played at Coors Field for the past season and a half. He doesn’t hit lefties or defend much but can be a solid side platoon presence. He is playing for a $4MM salary and could jump to $7-8MM next season, assuming he offers his final season contract in arbitration.
McCarthy makes just $1.525MM and is manageable for two years after this one. He can play central midfield but is probably best suited on the left. McCarthy has alternated between strong and offensive seasons but is back, hitting .282/.324/.453 in 188 plate appearances. The average trade market is small enough that a team like the Rays, Astros or Guardians could consider him a viable regular.
