Editor’s note: First of a week-long series breaking down the Rockies’ roster heading into the offseason. Today: the starting pitching.
Last November, at baseball’s annual general managers meetings at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel, newly hired Rockies general manager Jeff Bridich spelled out the team’s top priority.
“We absolutely, 100 percent need to address our rotation,” Bridich said.
Ninety-four losses later, nothing has changed. In fact, the numbers show that Colorado’s starting rotation actually regressed from 2014 to 2015. If the Rockies are to make strides — even baby steps — toward becoming competitive, their starting pitching must improve significantly.
The 2014 rotation had a 4.89 ERA with a .276 batting average against. Colorado’s 2015 starters had a 5.27 ERA and a .291 average against.
WATCH: Patrick Saunders and Nick Groke discuss Rockies starting pitching
How will the Rockies improve in 2016? It appears Bridich is betting on improvement from within.
He points to steady veteran left-hander Jorge De La Rosa, promising right-hander Chad Bettis, the maturation of rookie right-hander Jon Gray and improvement from back-of-the-rotation candidates such as Jordan Lyles and Chris Rusin. Bridich also has high hopes for right-hander Tyler Chatwood returning from his second Tommy John surgery.
Bettis, who changed his delivery during spring training, finished 8-6 with a 4.23 ERA and 98 strikeouts, with 42 walks. He appears to be Colorado’s most-promising starter for 2016.
“Chad was able to take steps back to take huge leaps forward,” Bridich said. “What a big lift he’s been, in terms of adding another impactful piece to our rotation for the future.”
Yet even if Bettis and Gray improve significantly, it’s difficult to see that being enough to lift the Rockies out of the National League West basement.
“They have to find a top, veteran arm,” said agent Scott Boras, who represents Rockies stars Nolan Arenado and Carlos Gonzalez. “They have good, young pitchers. But they have before, too. And they’re all three (years) and out.”
Bridich has said he will consider adding quality pitching via a trade or through free agency but makes no guarantees. Yes, he is aware that his top players, such as Arenado and Gonzalez, have publicly campaigned for the acquisition of an impactful, veteran starter. But Bridich said it’s not the simple.
“Honestly, that is probably an oversimplification, saying that all we need is (big-name starter),” he said. “The more top-level talent you add, that makes the whole team better. I don’t think it’s going to fall on getting any one guy.”
Bridich’s big offseason pitching addition last winter was signing veteran Kyle Kendrick to a $5.5 million contract, a move that proved disastrous. Kendrick finished 7-13 with a 6.32 ERA and 33 home runs allowed.
There are some several big-name free-agent starters hitting the open market, including David Price, Johnny Cueto, Jordan Zimmermann, Jeff Samardzija and Mike Leake.
History says Colorado will not bid on those high-priced free agents. Perhaps middle-tier pitchers such as Ian Kennedy and A.J. Burnett will attract Bridich’s interest.
By trading star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and veteran reliever LaTroy Hawkins to Toronto in exchange for veteran shortstop Jose Reyes and right-handed pitching prospects Jeff Hoffman, Miguel Castro and Jesus Tinoco, Bridich showed he’s willing to make a bold move to upgrade Colorado’s pitching.
“(Trading for pitching) is always going to be a realistic option for us,” he said.
Patrick Saunders: psaunders@denverpost.com or @psaundersdp
2016 Rockies rotation projection
Rockies beat reporter Patrick Saunders breaks down the Rockies’ starting pitching prospects for 2016.
THE CORE:
LHP Jorge De La Rosa
9-7, 4.17 ERA in 26 starts
He would be a third or fourth starter for a contending team, but he’s Colorado’s ace. De La Rosa will be 35 next season, with a history of nagging injuries, but he’s not afraid to pitch at Coors Field. He’s entering the final year of his contract, so an offseason trade is not out of the question.
RHP Chad Bettis
8-6, 4.23 ERA in 20 starts
After tweaking his delivery in spring training, Bettis found better fastball command, and he has developed a strikeout curveball. Bettis had some ugly outings, but he gives his team a chance to win. He’ll be 26 and is not eligible for arbitration until 2018.
RHP Jon Gray
0-2, 5.53 ERA in nine starts
One of the most highly touted pitchers in team history got off to a shaky start in his first taste of the majors, failing to win a game and getting rocked at Coors Field (8.27 ERA). But Gray showed maturity, threw a mid-90s fastball and unleashed a wicked slider. Plus, he’s now working on a curveball. It’s time to start fulfilling his potential.
POSSIBLE STARTERS:
RHP Tyler Chatwood
1-0, 4.50 ERA in four starts (2014)
After undergoing Tommy John surgery in mid-July 2014 (he had a similar surgery in high school), Chatwood spent all of 2015 rehabbing. He looks strong, still throws in the mid-90s and has shown an ability to battle.
LHP Chris Rusin
6-10, 5.33 ERA in 24 games (22 starts)
Rusin can be very good, as his two complete games at Coors Field showed. But he can also be very bad, as shown when the Mets pounded him for 11 runs on 12 hits in two innings in August. Rusin lacks firepower, but the Rockies thinks he’s a savvy pitcher.
LONGSHOT CONTENDERS:
RHP Jordan Lyles
2-5, 5.14 ERA in 10 starts
Another freakish injury — this time a broken toe that required surgery — sidelined Lyles for most of the season. He has made just 32 starts over the past two seasons, but he is strike thrower, something the Rockies need. Lyles will never be a front-line starter, but he could evolve into a gutsy pitcher, a la Josh Fogg in 2007.
RHP Eddie Butler
3-10, 5.90 ERA in 16 starts
Butler throws a 95 mph fastball and a hard slider and is developing a changeup, but the former first-round pick has a lot of growing up to do. In some ways, he regressed in 2015, lacking composure on the mound and he didn’t improve when he was sent down to Triple-A, where he was 2-6 with a 5.40 ERA.
RHP David Hale
2-5, 6.09 ERA in 17 games (12 starts)
A strained oblique muscle in spring training, followed by a groin strain that cost him over a month, made 2015 a trying season. Even when healthy, Hale didn’t impress. He allowed a 14 home runs in 78 innings pitched. He seems to be better suited to a long relief role.
LHP Tyler Matzek
2-1, 4.09 ERA in five starts
The left-hander went from being a tantalizing talent into a huge question mark. He was demoted to Triple-A after just five starts because he couldn’t find the strike zone. A trip to the minors didn’t cure his yips, though he did do some relief work at Triple-A at season’s end. The Rockies haven’t given up on him, but his future is shaky and probably involves a move to the bullpen.
