As the MLB trade deadline approaches next week, the Rockies will certainly be sellers as they look to continue to restock their farm system with starting pitching prospects.
General manager Bill Schmidt’s already made two trades for minor league starters, sending infielder Mike Moustakas to the Angles for one and dealing right-hander Pierce Johnson to the Braves for two more earlier this week.
Now, as the Rockies head into a six-game homestand that ends a day after the Aug. 1 deadline, Schmidt has an array of veterans to offer in hopes of further strengthening the franchise’s farm system.
Here’s a look at the Rockies’ top trade prospects and their current value heading into the final weekend before the deadline. Keep in mind, the Rockies could also choose to package a couple of those players in a single deal to increase their prospect haul.
Elias Diaz
Contract situation: Under contract through 2024; $5.5 million salary.
Market value: Very High
Diaz not only played well enough to earn Colorado’s lone all-star nod, he went out and won the first Midsummer Classic MVP in franchise history with his game-winning, two-run homer in the eighth. He’s playing elite defense to pair with a .270 average and 10 homers. His market value has never been higher. Even though Colorado’s big-league catching depth is currently razor-thin, Schmidt would be wise to cash in on Diaz for the good of the club’s future.
Randal Grichuk
Contract situation: Unrestricted free agent at the end of this year; $10.33 million salary.
Market value: Very High
Grichuk opened the season on the injured list due to sports hernia surgery but has produced in the 60 games since returning. He’s hitting a career-high .313 with six homers, 25 RBIs and 19 doubles, and at age 31 he still has the athleticism and speed to provide plus-defense in any outfield spot along with his above-average arm. A target for any team in need of quality outfield depth.
Brent Suter
Contract situation: Unrestricted free agent at the end of this year; $3 million salary.
Market value: High
The veteran is putting up a career year in his first season in LoDo as one of the pillars of the largely over-performing Rockies bullpen. Suter has a 2.62 ERA in games, with a 1.097 WHIP and 37 strikeouts to 14 walks. He missed about a month due to an oblique injury, but returned July 19, with two scoreless outings since to re-boost his stock. Bullpen depth is a need for any contender, so Schmidt should be fielding calls on Suter.
C.J. Cron
Contract situation: Unrestricted free agent at the end of this year; $7.25 million salary.
Market value: High
Schmidt would’ve gotten a lot more for Cron at last year’s deadline, when the slugger was coming off his first All-Star appearance en route to a 29-homer, 102-RBI season. But Cron should still have value, even with some back issues that cost him over a month on the IL and also recently kept him out of the lineup. When fully healthy, Cron can mash, as evidenced by his four home runs since the all-star break. Buyers needing more power off the bench and from the DH spot will give Cron a long look.
Jurickson Profar
Contract situation: Unrestricted free agent at the end of this year; $7.75 million salary.
Market value: Medium
Profar has been a decent, last-minute addition to a youthful Rockies roster this year, even as a medium-hitting (.239 average, seven homers) veteran who is a bit past his prime. Schmidt should do his best to move Profar, because like Grichuk, selling off those veterans opens the door for more playing time for promising young outfielders Nolan Jones and Brenton Doyle.
Brad Hand
Contract situation: $7 million club option for 2024 ($500k buyout); $1.5 million salary.
Market value: Medium
Following a strong 2022 with the Phillies, Hand hasn’t been quite as good this year, or as unflappable as Suter out of the Rockies’ bullpen. He has a 4.76 ERA in 38 games, and his metrics are only slightly better on the road than at home. Still, a team in need of a veteran reliever for the stretch run might be interested.
Daniel Bard
Contract situation: Under contract through 2024; $9.5 million salary.
Market value: Medium
Like Cron, the Rockies should’ve traded Bard at last year’s deadline, when the righty was one of the NL’s best relievers. Bard finished with a 1.79 ERA in 48 games with 34 saves, and the Rockies re-upped with him on a two-year deal. But he’s regressed slightly. First, he started the season on the IL due to anxiety issues. He has a 2.02 ERA in 34 games, so he’s clearly still got the stuff when he’s on. But when he’s off, he’s way off, as he showed again in Wednesday’s yip-fueled implosion at Nationals Park in which he walked four batters and hit another. Yet even with the yips in play, there’s upside in Bard’s arm and another year on his deal, so he’s more than a half-season rental. At 38, he ranks in the 94th percentile in fastball spin and knows how to pitch when he can find the zone.
Charlie Blackmon
Contract situation: Unrestricted free agent at the end of this year; $15.3M salary.
Market value: Low
The 37-year-old all-time Rockie has been on the injured list with a fractured right hand since June 11, and he had only five homers in the 56 games before getting hurt. He has a no-trade clause. Considering that and his hand, he might not even be tradable. When he returns, the stretch of 2023 very well might be Blackmon’s final MLB hurrah. As sentimental as Colorado owner Dick Monfort can be about his players, it’s hard to see the Rockies trading Blackmon even if they did find a suitor.
Friday’s pitching matchup
A’s LHP JP Sears (1-7, 4.19 ERA) at Rockies LHP Kyle Freeland (4-10, 4.72)
6:40 p.m. Friday, Coors Field
TV: AT&T SportsNet
Radio: 850 AM/94.1 FM
Freeland is making his return from the injured list after getting sidelined by a right shoulder subluxation on July 14. The southpaw was up-and-down before getting hurt, with a 6.49 ERA across five June starts before trending upward with a 3.55 ERA across a couple July outings. He’ll need to get back into the groove he was early in the season for the Rockies to re-gain momentum in the homestand opener. Meanwhile, Sears leads the majors with 11 hit batters but is pitching better on the road, where he has a lower ERA, more strikeouts and recorded his one win on the season.
Pitching probables
ٳܰ岹:A’s RHP Paul Blackburn (1-2, 5.06) at Rockies RHP Chase Anderson (0-4, 5.06), 6:10 p.m., ATTRM
ܲԻ岹:A’s RHP Luis Medina (3-7, 5.50) at Rockies LHP Austin Gomber (8-8, 5.83), 1:10 p.m., ATTRM
ѴDzԻ岹:Padres RHP Seth Lugo (4-5, 3.62) at Rockies RHP Peter Lambert (0-0, 4.76), 6:40 p.m., ATTRM
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