PHOENIX — Kyle Karros hit a two-run homer before leaving the game following a collision with a teammate, Tomoyuki Sugano threw six solid innings and the Colorado Rockies rallied for a 3-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night.

The D-backs fell to 64-57 as they fight for National League playoff position in a tight race. They’re currently in a three-way tie with the Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres for the final two wild-card spots.

Rockies recall Zac Veen as 2020 first-round pick returns to majors

Karros hit his game-tying shot in the sixth off D-backs lefty Mitch Bratt that made it 2-all. In the bottom of the inning, he had to exit the game after colliding with shortstop Ezequiel Tovar while both players were trying to field a ground ball.

Karros appeared to hit his head and looked dazed while he sat on the ground for a few minutes, but the third baseman was eventually able to walk off the field. Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said postgame that Karros was in concussion protocol.

Colorado’s Hunter Goodman led off the seventh with a triple to the right-center gap and Mickey Moniak brought him home on a sacrifice fly for a 3-2 lead.

Jordan Romano worked the ninth for his 11th save of the season in 14 chances, including five in seven chances while pitching for the Rockies.

The D-backs took a 2-0 lead in the first after Corbin Carroll and Ketel Marte both hit homers. Carroll’s long ball was his 17th of the season while it was Marte’s 21st.

Sugano gave up two runs on six hits, striking out five.

Bratt had a scoreless streak of 14 innings before Karros’ two-run homer. The left-handed rookie gave up two runs on four hits and a walk over six innings, striking out four.

Up next

The D-backs will start RHP Merrill Kelly (8-9, 4.88 ERA) on Wednesday vs. Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner (4-6, 5.71)

These are the 2026 Rockies.

They are not good, entering the weekend with a 45-70 record. But they are not awful, showing regular competence and offensive potency.

This team competes. This team cares. And it is why the final 47 games matter.

This collection of Rockies does not deserve to be forever stained by history. Colorado must win 18 times over the next six weeks to avoid becoming the first team to post four consecutive 100-loss seasons since the 1962-65 expansion New York Mets.

The ’65 Mets did not have a single player hit 20 home runs, but featured a pitcher with 24 losses. Even Hall of Famer Warren Spahn wore it, going 4-12 with a 4.36 ERA.

For a Colorado organization emphasizing “The Climb,” the incline is manageable. The Rockies must win at a 39% clip over the remainder of the season, the same pace they have performed for four months.

It is not a big ask.

Nobody on Blake Street will launch confetti canyons over 63 wins. But removing the yoke of a century of losses would lighten the burden moving forward.

“Progress is important — 100 losses is definitely something to avoid,” general manager Josh Byrnes told The Post on Friday. “But, big picture, 90-something losses is still not good enough. We have to keep making progress and build towards winning.”

With squinting, it is easy to see the offensive pieces falling into place. After somehow struggling to score the previous three seasons — imagine not being able to catch fish in a barrel — the Rockies are averaging 4.81 runs, while hitting .255 with 130 home runs.

The year-over-year jump is substantial enough — 3.68 runs, .237 average, 160 homers in 2025 — to create optimism. There are multiple players — Hunter Goodman, T.J. Rumfield, Jake McCarthy, Cole Carrigg, Mickey Moniak and Kyle Karros — who represent potential mainstays. And perhaps Ezequiel Tovar will figure out how to handle the high fastball — if not, Carrigg is a viable option at shortstop — and Charlie Condon will provide a September boost.

The lineup is lengthening, and making better swing decisions.

Pitching remains the problem.

The Rays broomed the Rockies earlier this week at Coors Field, showing the ground Colorado must cover to become a contender. There will be hiccups after trading away Antonio Senzatela and Victor Vodnik. But it is time for the young arms, like Nick Frasso, to prove they belong.

The rotation needs a bump.

The second half is about figuring out if Ryan Feltner is worthy of a spot — his stuff plays, but his inconsistency remains maddening. Is Gabriel Hughes’ cutter a sustainable weapon or a mirage? Will Mason Adams, acquired in the Brenton Doyle deal, make his case with a handful of starters over the next month? And can those three anchor the rotation in 2027 — if there is a season — before Chase Dollander returns around July?

The Rockies can always find a veteran bounce-back candidate for cheap, but there is no escape from the prison of the NL West basement or flirting with 100 losses without a young core of starters.

Colorado is projected to win 20 more games than last season. A 63-99 mark is nothing to boast about, but it represents an important baby step toward relevance.

Radio silence: The Columbus Blue Jackets eliminated their radio team, opting to simulcast their television audio feed. This is a horrible trend, depriving fans of a call that fills in the gap and provides color. If the Jackets are that broke, maybe they should cut a player instead of this corner.

He said what? New Purdue athletic director Tommy McClelland delivered one of the worst one-liners ever at an introductory presser. “We are here to win championships and if you don’t want to win championships, go to Indiana.” McClelland admitted his attempt at humor failed. He went off script, but this leak was so bizarre it raises questions about his judgment. Purdue hasn’t won a national championship since the women’s golf team in 2010.

Fresh off signing a seven-year, $65.3 million contract extension that foretold his status as the Rockies’ shortstop of the future, Tovar slashed .269/.295/.469 in 2024 with a .763 OPS, 26 homers, National League-best 45 doubles and 3.6 bWAR.

But amid that success, Tovar also struck out a dubious distinction that foretold his offensive struggles over the next couple seasons because of his inability to control the zone.

Tovar’s freefall last year and this one have become an unmissable blight, especially as the Rockies’ offense has demonstrated drastic overall improvement in 2026. By the traditional stats, the sabermetrics and the eye test, Tovar’s playing like a shell of his breakout self from two seasons ago.

While Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer has continually backed the shortstop, Tovar acknowledged his backslide.

“I’m not going to put my head down,” Tovar told The Denver Post through an interpreter. “I understand that a lot of people had high expectations for me, and I also had high expectations for myself. I had my goals and I’m not hitting them this year. But I’m going to continue to battle out there.

“I know I can (hit better), but I have to keep working. I have to keep improving. I have to get more out of myself. So believe me, I’m looking for a way out of this.”

�³󾱱�����last year’s dip  this summer’s continued struggles raise the question of whether the shortstop will ever be the caliber of player the Rockies expected when they inked that contract.

How much longer can Colorado afford to wait for Tovar to figure it out? It will surely be a question the front office reckons with this offseason, especially considering how the over the next four seasons. He’ll make $8.2 in 2027, $11.2 million in ’28, $14.2 million in ’29, $16.2 million in ’30 and then has a $23 million club option in ’31 that includes a $2.5 million buyout.

What initially looked like a team-friendly deal has now become a possible payroll albatross, especially given that trading the shortstop this offseason is probably not a realistic possibility due to the combination of his contract and his performance.

The most worrisome part is, it’s not just an extended slump that’s behind Tovar’s lack of offense this season. As that 200-K campaign in ’24 foretold, it’s Tovar’s total lack of command and undisciplined approach in his at-bats. Consider the following:

Tovar chases more than anyone in baseball, and he swings too much. Entering Friday’s series in St. Louis, his swing percentage on pitches outside the strike zone the worst in MLB. He also swings at more pitches inside the zone than anyone, too, at 83.0%. Of those in-zone swings, his contact rate is 84.5%, which ranks 28th-worst. So on top of unnecessarily expanding the zone, he’s also missing pitches in the zone at a well-above average rate. His total swing rate is 61.5%, 4% higher than the next most aggressive hitter, Toronto’s Ernie Clement at 57.5%. The end result has been dwindling average (.207, including .201 at home), power (9 homers) and value (-0.8 bWAR).

Tovar isn’t dictating his at-bats and is getting dominated by two pitches. Tovar’s 71.5% first-pitch strike percentage is the highest in MLB, so he’s falling behind quicker than any hitter in the game. Nearly 80% of the pitches he sees are either fastball (51.9%) or slider (26.9%). with the high fastball, and getting him to fish on sliders low and away. He ranks last in MLB in wFB (fastball runs above average) at -16.0, hitting just .185 against the pitch, and is 16th-worst in wSL (slider runs above average) at -4.1. All of this is contributing to another season with a high strikeout rate (25.4%, bottom fourth of baseball) and much lower barrel rates than he posted in 2024 (42 barrels that season, ranked 51st, as opposed to 17 so far this year, ranked 126th).

The bat isn’t the only concern — the glove’s fallen off a cliff, too. When Tovar won the NL Gold Glove Award in ’24, he was a wizard at shortstop who was one of the most valuable fielders in the game. But the sabermetrics don’t lie — his glove has been far from that level this season. He has -2 defensive runs saved this season, so below average, after posting 10 defensive runs saved in ’24. in the 44th percentile in range with 0 outs above average in ’26, just two seasons after he was in the 98th percentile in the metric with 15 outs above average.

With those three breakdowns in mind, the Rockies currently don’t have many options to replace Tovar.

Ryan Ritter and Chad Stevens are other shortstops who are in Triple-A; beyond that, Andy Perez is a promising 22-year-old in Double-A while top prospects Ethan Holliday (out for season ) and Tyler Bell (No. 10 overall pick this year, but out for the season with shoulder surgery) are still far off from arriving in LoDo.

The most obvious solution could already be on the active roster: rookie Cole Carrigg. Colorado has beta-tested Carrigg at shortstop, where he’s played four games and had one start in addition to his duties in center field. Carrigg says he’s ready to play there more, if called upon. It’s a position he played sparingly in college and the minors.

“It’s definitely pretty wild to be playing short in the big leagues,” Carrigg said. “I think you’ve just got to play with confidence and just believe in yourself, no matter where it is, and playing everywhere is something I’ve always done. But whatever (Schaeffer) needs, I’m going to do it, and do it to the best of my ability.”

If Carrigg got more starts at shortstop down the stretch, Jake McCarthy would become the de facto starting center fielder in the post-Brenton Doyle era, with utilityman Tyler Freeman capable of also seeing more time out there to help keep McCarthy fresh.

Whatever the case, the final couple months of the season would be a good time for the Rockies to see if Carrigg, whose bat has been potent through his first 47 career games, could warrant more time at shortstop. Meanwhile, Colorado will surely keep plugging Tovar into the lineup; the 25-year-old has been hitting better lately, including a .333 average over the past couple of weeks.

“I look at every aspect of the game, not just my chase (rate), that I need to improve on,” Tovar said. “…  That’s something that every coach out here and everyone (in the organization) is trying to help me with. And that’s something that we are collectively trying to answer.”

Tovar will have all offseason to dig into his issues, make changes, and attempt to bring a fresh approach into 2027. Barring a big surprise, he’ll remain the starting shortstop going into next season. But the clock is now ticking. If the Rockies are going to truly turn the corner into contenders over the next few years, a weak-hitting shortstop can’t be part of the plan.

Junior Caminero hit two home runs, Jonathan Aranda had four hits and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Colorado Rockies 13-9 on Monday night.

Ian Seymour (8-3) allowed two runs on seven hits in six innings for the win. He struck out nine and walked none.

Tampa Bay was busy at acquiring catcher Liam Hicks from Miami and reliever Tyler Wells from Baltimore. The Rays dealt catcher Hunter Feduccia to the Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing Kenny Piper to make his major league debut behind the plate.

Rockies trade deadline analysis: How the moves Colorado didn’t make signal the direction of club

Piper walked and scored in the second inning and singled in the ninth for his first career hit.

Tampa Bay scored in each of the first four innings to take control. Caminero hit a two-run homer in the first and a solo shot in the fourth. Taylor Walls drove in a pair in a four-run second.

It was Caminero’s third multihomer game this season. He leads the team with 32 homers.

Colorado, which traded outfielder Brenton Doyle and pitchers Victor Vodnik and Antonio Senzatela in separate deals, had its three-game winning streak snapped. Michael Lorenzen (3-10) was roughed up for seven runs on seven hits in three innings and left trailing 7-0.

Ezequiel Tovar, who entered batting .198, led off the bottom of the third with a homer and singled in his next three trips to the plate. He started a four-run ninth with a single.

Tampa Bay scored two runs in the seventh and one in the eighth before Richie Palacios hit a two-run homer in the ninth to answer Mickey Moniak’s 447-foot leadoff shot in the eighth.

Up next

RHP Freddy Peralta (5-9, 4.99 ERA), will make his Rays debut Tuesday night. Rockies rookie RHP Gabriel Hughes (0-3, 3.33) is slated to make his fifth start of the season.

Tatis became the first major leaguer with five singles in a game this season and the first Padres player to do it since Adrián González on Aug. 11, 2009.

Manny Machado had three hits for the Padres, including an eighth-inning single that was misplayed by right fielder Jake McCarthy for an error — allowing Jake Cronenworth to score the tying run.

San Diego loaded the bases against Jimmy Herget (0-4) with nobody out in the ninth on Jackson Merrill’s leadoff single and two walks. Merrill scored on Bogaerts’ fly to center field, giving the Padres (54-53) their fourth straight win.

Mason Miller (3-1) struck out all three batters in the top of the ninth to keep it tied at 7.

Padres manager Craig Stammen was ejected in the fourth after arguing with plate umpire Jeremie Rehak, who did not grant Bogaerts an ABS challenge.

San Diego scored twice in the second on Luis Campusano’s run-scoring double and Tatis’ RBI single. Machado had an RBI single in the fifth to pull San Diego within one, and Tatis tied it at 4 with another run-scoring single in the sixth.

Ezequiel Tovar and Mickey Moniak each had an RBI double in the seventh to give the Rockies a 6-4 lead.

San Diego evened it in the bottom half when Merrill singled home a run and Ty France scored on a fielding error by third baseman Willi Castro.

Tovar drew a bases-loaded walk from Adrian Morejon in the eighth to put Colorado in front 7-6.

Castro and Moniak both homered in the third as the Rockies scored four times to take a 4-2 lead. McCarthy hit an RBI single and came around on Moniak’s two-run shot.

Up next

Rockies RHP Gabriel Hughes (0-2, 2.79 ERA) takes the mound Wednesday. The Padres had not announced a scheduled starter for the series finale.

As Colorado dropped the series on Sunday at American Family Field in an 11-2 loss, Misiorowski was nearly unhittable through five innings. The Brewers right-handed ace set a Milwaukee record with seven strikeouts to begin the game, two K’s short of tying the MLB record. The All-Star struck out 12 of the first 13 hitters he faced.

topped his own record in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008) for the most 100-plus mph pitches in a game (all 66 fastballs) and most 102-plus mph pitches in a game (54). His heater averaged 102.8 mph and topped out and he was the first pitcher in the divisional era (since 1969) with 11 K’s and no hits through the first four innings of a game.

Rookie outfielder Cole Carrigg was the lone Colorado player to dent Misiorowski’s masterful afternoon. With two outs in the fifth, Carrigg homered 361 feet to left field on a two-strike, 101.9 mph fastball, the fastest pitch a Colorado player has ever homered off in the pitch-tracking era.

It was yet another performance that underscored Misiorowski’s generational talent — and served as a reminder of the type of dynamic pitching talent the Rockies need to find and develop in their homegrown rotation in order to become competitive again. Misiorowski was a second-round pick out of Crowder College in 2022, meaning every other team passed on him before the Brewers saw enough potential in the junior college pitcher at No. 63 overall.

It’s those type of finds that make the Brewers, MLB’s small-market darlings, perennially competitive. They’ve made the playoffs seven of the last eight years, including the National League Championship Series last season. Meanwhile, the Rockies — usually with a higher payroll — haven’t been to the postseason since 2018.

While Misiorowski dominated, Kyle Freeland had a rough first inning. The Brewers plated three runs as Freeland had a throwing error on a bunt and another run scored on a wild pitch. In the fifth, Andrew Vaughn homered off Freeland to make it 4-1, then Colorado’s bullpen unraveled as Jimmy Herget gave up four runs and Victor Vodnik gave up two runs.

Rally comes up short in Game 2

The Rockies were undone by a four-run Brewers sixth inning in Saturday’s 8-5 loss in Game 2, but the offense showed fight in the final inning that’s indicative of how much better the club’s swung it on the road this year.

After averaging a measly 2.81 runs per game on the road during the 119-loss 2025 season, the Rockies are averaging 4.44 runs per game on the road in ’26. Colorado fought until the end on Saturday, scoring three runs and forcing the Brewers to bring in closer Trevor Megill to get the final out.

Down 8-2, TJ Rumfield led off the ninth with a walk by Lance McCullers Jr. The Rockies took advantage of an error, then Ezequiel Tovar walked and Jake McCarthy roped a two-RBI single to end McCullers’ night. Kyle Karros then singled off Megill to make it 8-5, bring the tying run to the plate in Carrigg. But Megill K’d Carrigg to end the game with Hunter Goodman standing in the on-deck circle.

That ninth-inning effort was too little, too late, but it underscored Colorado’s offensive improvement on the road across all categories this year. After batting .203 away from Coors Field in ’25, the Rockies were hitting .239 this season entering Sunday, with a .707 OPS compared to .589 last year.

Tomoyuki Sugano gets 10 wins

In the 5-2 win in the series opener, Sugano spun a second straight strong start to open his second half. He threw five-plus innings of two-run ball in Colorado’s wire-to-wire win. Pitching on a one year, $5.1 million deal, the 36-year-old’s been a solid veteran addition to prop up a thin rotation — better than Michael Lorenzen (6.53 ERA) and the bust of a signing in Jose Quintana, who has been on the injured list since May with a left elbow sprain.

In his 10 wins out of his 18 starts, the right-hander’s been stellar, with a 3.46 ERA. He’s the first Rockies starter with 10 wins since Germán Márquez in 2021, and one of four Rockies pitchers all-time with 10 wins over his first 18 starts with the club.

He’s certainly made a strong case to be trade bait ahead of the Aug. 3 deadline, although Colorado could also re-sign him to another one-year deal for a rotation that is going to need some holes filled in for ’27. At 36, he’s not a long-term solution, but could be an effective bridge to younger, homegrown starters if the Rockies don’t get a decent offer at the deadline.

Whatever happens with Sugano, his performance over the last couple games is a reminder of the team that Colorado — with a revived offense — can be with decent starting pitching. Colorado starters have thrown at least five innings in 34 of Colorado’s 42 wins this year, and the team is 30-14 when starters throw at least five innings and allow three or fewer earned runs.

That is what the shirt, worn by some Rockies teammates, reads. It is a lie.

Hunter is great, man.

With the trade deadline looming on Aug. 3, vultures are circling and trade rumors are surfacing over what it would take for the Rockies to move Hunter Goodman.

Goodman tied his career-high with 31 home runs on Tuesday, dropping to his back knee to launch an 87-mph slider over the left-field fence. He remains on pace to tie the single-season club record of 49.

He has more power in his bat than his former high school football teammate Kenneth Walker III has in his legs.

Only seven catchers have hit 40 homers in a season, leaving Goodman stalking Johnny Bench’s National League high-water mark of 45 set in 1970.

Goodman is a big deal, an All-Star. But he is not bigger than the Rockies.

He is great. But he is not greater than the Rockies need for starting pitching.

The easiest way for the Rockies to rebuild is by dealing Goodman.

And that is exactly what should NOT happen.

There is more than one way for the Rockies to climb back to relevance. They can execute multiple moves, including trading Mickey Moniak, Jake McCarthy, Antonio Senzatela, Brennan Bernardino, Kyle Freeland, Michael Lorenzen and others.

Shipping out their 26-year-old catcher is the fastest path forward. It is not the best. The Rockies can afford to be patient with this chess piece.

The idea of trading Goodman sounds nuts to Rockies fans who are slowly warming back up to the franchise after nearly a decade of incompetence and arrogance.

People familiar with the Rockies’ thinking say the front office would have to be overwhelmed to deal Goodman.

Two agents suggested Wednesday it would take four of an organization’s top 30 prospects, including one in the top three and a second in the top 10.

A former big league GM believes the Rockies could only land three players because a pair of other catchers are on the market, Oakland’s Shea Langeliers and Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman.

One-time Reds and Nationals GM Jim Bowden proposed a blockbuster with the Red Sox: Goodman in exchange for big league starter Connelly Early, middle infielder Marcelo Mayer, defensive catcher Carlos Narvaez and No. 4 pitching prospect Kyson Witherspoon.

That is not the Herschel Walker deal, but it represents a dramatic overpay.

That is why the Rockies must pick up the phone if Boston, the Yankees or Rays call. Any team making this move will view Goodman as a long-term solution and believe it can win the World Series.

Desperation is the world’s worst cologne, and if somebody wants to swing a deal that requires pinching their nose, the Rockies have to consider it.

Remember, they are under new management. No longer are they trotting out tired excuses — we love our players, we did not get any offers, we want to hold onto our guys until they have no value — that produced the annual Snoozapalooza at the trade deadline.

There is actually a good explanation for keeping Goodman, whom ESPN ranks as MLB’s eighth best trade candidate.

First are the finances. Goodman remains under team control through the 2029 season.

There has been no movement on a long-term deal — when shortstop Ezequiel Tovar got his extension in 2024, he approached the Rockies and signed what, at the time, was a team-friendly, seven-year, $63.5 million contract. However, the Rockies can follow Goodman through the arbitration process without breaking their budget.

For now, he is the most cost-controlled big bat in the big leagues.

Secondly, Goodman has evolved into a serviceable catcher, improving enough to silence talk of a position switch or becoming a full-time DH. He is also a trusted pitch framer and ranks fourth in successful ABS challenges this season.

As the Rockies assess who will be part of their core when the team contends again, Goodman is penciled on the list because of his power, position and paycheck.

It would be cool if Colorado kept Moniak and McCarthy, players easy to root for because of their energy and production. But the Rockies desperately need rotation help, knowing prized free agents are never going to line up to pitch at Coors Field.

Colorado’s top pitching prospects — JB Middleton, Brody Brecht, Griffin Herring — are all struggling this season, and Sean Sullivan did not look like a future starter in his three-game big league cameo this summer.

The Rockies can never fear trading position players for arms, and they have a battery of capable outfielders on the big league roster and in Triple-A.

Moniak has resurrected his career in Colorado. He could pull a top 20 pitching prospect and a second player in the top 30. You have to trade him.

McCarthy profiles so well for the Rockies with his speed and positional versatility that it would hurt to ship him out. But with the Phillies and Astros making calls, DePodesta and Byrnes cannot be blamed if they take multiple pitchers for the leadoff hitter.

And if a contender wants a defensive whiz in Brenton Doyle for a first-round draft pick — that is what the Giants got for all-glove, no-hit catcher Patrick Bailey in May — do it.

Why deal Moniak, McCarthy or Doyle? Internal options. Cole Carrigg needs to play every day. Charlie Condon is thisclose to a promotion as he boasts 20 home runs and a .408 on-base percentage at Albuquerque. He strikes out 24.6 % of the time, countered by a 13.8% walk rate.

His bat is ready for the bigs.

“With Charlie, first of all, he’s getting used to playing first base and the outfield. Second of all, as he has evolved as a hitter, he is showing he is smart, structured and disciplined,” Byrnes said. “He is learning to strike that balance with getting to a spot to do damage. He has done that really well.”

The Rockies also have Jordan Beck hitting the reset button at the plate with the Isotopes, Zac Veen, a work in progress defensively, with 48 extra-base hits and the athletic Sterlin Thompson in the mix.

“We have real depth there,” Byrnes said. “And that’s a good thing as we think through our best roster moving forward.”

Senzatela, rejuvenated as a reliever, has to go. Same with the lefty Bernardino. The idea is to get younger and better, eventually.

The new front office, which impressed agents with its accurate draft valuations, is starting to inspire confidence that it can deliver a productive trade deadline.

It should not include Goodman. But clearly on the mound, the Rockies need a lot more good men.

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Avoid four straight 100-loss seasons

Only four MLB franchises have lost 100-plus games four seasons in a row, and it would be an important moral victory for the Rockies to avoid joining this dubious club that features the Boston Doves/Braves (current Atlanta Braves) from 1909-12, the Phillies (who hold the record with five consecutive from 1938-42), the Washington Senators (current Rangers) from 1961-64, and the New York Mets from 1962-65.

At 39-59 (.398) entering Friday, the Rockies need to go 24-40 (.375) to finish 63-99.

To finish with 99 losses would be a huge leap from last year’s historically inept 119-toss campaign. It would also be an obvious sign that Colorado’s first-year front office, led by president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta and general manager Josh Byrnes, has some traction.

Can the 2027 Rockies be the White Sox, who are in first place in the AL Central this season, two years after setting a modern record with 121 losses? Probably not, considering the Rockies’ division is much tougher, but look at what Chicago did last season. The White Sox cut their defeats by 19 to 102. They let young talent flourish while adding some big names around them, i.e., signing all-star first baseman Munetaka Murakami this year.

Make impactful trade-deadline moves

The Rockies need to start winning the trade deadline and break the habits under past GMs Bill Schmidt and Jeff Bridich that simply weren’t working — no matter if Colorado was a buyer or a seller. This year’s deadline is August 3.

A quick recent history lesson of Colorado trade deadlines gone wrong: Recall how Schmidt didn’t move Elias Diaz at the 2023 trade deadline, when the catcher’s market value peaked with his All-Star selection and subsequent MVP in the Midsummer Classic. Instead, the Rockies hung onto Diaz into 2024, didn’t trade him again, and then released him that August and got nothing for him.

Even when the Rockies made an aggressive selling move last season, sending third baseman Ryan McMahon in exchange for minor-league pitchers Griffin Herring and Josh Grosz, that was an empty trade for Colorado until DePodesta salvaged it with a deft deal in January. Herring has an 8.06 ERA in Hartford this year, and Grosz was dealt to the Diamondbacks in an offseason trade that brought outfielder Jake McCarthy to Colorado.

Going back even further, the Rockies’ trade-deadline record is mediocre at best.

See: Not trading shortstop Trevor Story at the 2021 deadline (Story declined Colorado’s qualifying offer that offseason, and the Rockies got a comp pick for that, which they used on recently-debuted outfielder Sterlin Thompson). And in 2017 and ’18, the Rockies didn’t do enough to bolster playoff teams. That was especially true in ’18, when Colorado had its first division title within its sights, but its only significant deal was for right-handed reliever Seunghwan Oh with the Blue Jays. Oh was a valuable bullpen piece, but the Rockies needed more.

So this deadline, it’s clear Colorado needs to sell high on both right-hander Antonio Senzatela (who has a club option next season) and outfielder Mickey Moniak (under club control through 2027).

Senzatela has been the Rockies’ best bullpen arm this season, with a 3.31 ERA in 30 appearances and 1.4 WAR; after being converted from a starter, his market value has never been �󾱲�������and will probably come back down to earth next season. As for Moniak, he’s having another solid season, batting .278 with 15 homers, and in a crowded Colorado outfield, it’s hard to see the 28-year-old in Colorado’s long-term rebuilding plans.

DePodesta should also field offers for the team’s two veteran starters who could bring return value in the form of controllable minor-league arms. Those two possibilities are right-handers Michael Lorenzen (who has a club option for 2027 that includes a $250,000 buyout) and Tomoyuki Sugano (who is on a one-year deal; he’s currently on the IL for a back spasm issue that Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said isn’t serious).

Decide on a starting pitching plan for 2027

Speaking of starting pitching, Colorado should use the trade deadline and the second half to narrow its focus on a blueprint to address the team’s Achilles heel going forward. The Rockies must identify which current rotational arms could be options for the future, and who in the minors could realistically be projected to step up and fill gaps over the next couple of seasons.

Ryan Feltner, who is under club control for two more seasons and has a 4.55 ERA in 13 starts in 2026, is a safe bet to be part of the rotation again in 2027. Prized young pitcher Chase Dollander, whose 2026 season was ended by on his right elbow last month, is in the club’s future plans. But it’s unlikely he’ll be ready for a full starter’s workload in 2027.

Beyond those two, there are many questions and very few answers.

Longtime rotational mainstay Kyle Freeland has a 7.36 ERA in 17 starts; he has a that vests with 170 innings pitched this year. He’s currently at 88 innings and has only hit 170 innings once in his career, in 2022. The Colorado kid’s time in LoDo could be in its final chapter.

The second half will be a good chance for Colorado to evaluate some unproven arms — especially 2022 first-round pick Gabriel Hughes, and possibly southpaw Sean Sullivan, who is currently back in Triple-A — while formulating a rotational plan for 2027.

There’s not a ton of help on the immediate horizon on the farm, so DePodesta will have to get creative to continue to fill in the starting pitching gaps. Bringing back Lorenzen, who has trade value as discussed above, and signing a veteran or two off the scrap heap could be the course. While there are glimmers of light at the end of the tunnel in every other facet of the club, starting pitching depth remains the central issue that the Rockies must solve.

Figure out if Ezequiel Tovar is in the long-term plans

Ezequiel Tovar signed a at the end of spring training in 2024 and immediately made that deal look like a bargain for Colorado. That season, Tovar won his first Gold Glove Award and accumulated 3.4 WAR while hitting .269 with 26 homers and an NL-best 45 doubles.

But over the past two seasons, the falloff has been steep and undeniable, especially on offense.

Tovar had an injury-riddled 2025, limiting him to 95 games while sapping his power and diminishing his defensive wizardry. His hitting this season has been bad — he’s accumulated -0.7 bWAR while batting just .200 with eight homers in the first half. His bat at home, where he’s hitting .190 at Coors Field, has been especially concerning.

The Rockies’ next-in-line at shortstop, No. 1 prospect Ethan Holliday, was showing promise in his first full season of pro ball with Low-A Fresno. But a stress fracture in his left foot Drafted out of high school at No. 4 overall, Holliday is still several years away from the big leagues. Colorado also just used its most recent first-round pick this year on another shortstop, Kentucky switch-hitter Tyler Bell at No. 10 overall, though Bell is projected as a player who could change positions.

Colorado’s only other shortstop option on the 40-man roster is Ryan Ritter, who is currently in Triple-A.

So what will the Rockies do, considering Tovar has five more years left on his deal? They’ve been patient so far, but Tovar’s lack of production should make his role a talking point internally going forward.

… and same question with Brenton Doyle

The Rockies have also seen an alarming drop-off from center fielder Brenton Doyle.

Like Tovar, Doyle has also been sub-replacement level this season with -0.4 bWAR. Doyle, who won consecutive Gold Glove Awards in 2023 and ’24, is under club control for three more seasons. After slugging 23 homers with a .260 average in ’24, he regressed last season before nosediving in this one. Slowed by injuries in 2026 — he’s been on the injured list with an oblique contusion for almost two months — he’s batting just .207 with one homer in 43 games.

This season has been nothing short of a disaster for Doyle, and the production of Jake McCarthy (batting .301) as well as the arrival of promising rookie Cole Carrigg has created the possibility that Doyle is now expendable in center field.

SAN FRANCISCO — Kyle Karros hit a broken-bat, two-run single during a three-run ninth inning and the Colorado Rockies held on to beat the San Francisco Giants 4-3 on Friday night.

The Rockies trailed 2-1 when Mickey Moniak opened the ninth with a single off Caleb Kilian (2-5), who then walked pinch-hitter Troy Johnston.

Jake McCarthy followed with a bunt single to load the bases, setting up Karros for a base hit to center that brought home Moniak and Johnston. McCarthy moved to third and Kilian departed in favor of lefty Erik Miller.

Cole Carrigg greeted Miller with a sacrifice fly to left to bring home McCarthy and make it 4-2.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Giants got a sacrifice fly from Rafael Devers off Jordan Romano to make it 4-3. Romano then walked Willy Adames to load the bases with two outs.

Juan Mejia replaced Romano and got Bryce Eldridge to ground out to second to end the game. Mejia earned his fourth save.

Antonio Senzatela (9-1) worked a perfect eighth inning to pick up the win.

Devers drove in all of the Giants’ runs.

San Francisco grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second when Devers took Tanner Gordon deep to right. It was Devers’ 19th home run of the season. He hit two off Gordon in the Rockies’ 7-6 win over the Giants in Denver on Sunday.

Devers gave the Giants a 2-1 lead with an RBI single with two outs in the seventh.

The Rockies tied it 1-1 in the fifth on consecutive two-out doubles by Ezequiel Tovar and McCarthy.

The Giants had won in each of starter Robbie Ray’s previous eight outings and had won 19 of their previous 20 home games against Colorado.

Up next

Colorado LHP Kyle Freeland (2-7, 7.46 ERA) faces San Francisco RHP Tyler Mahle (1-8, 5.70) on Saturday.

The Dodgers found that out this week. For the third consecutive game, the Rockies made an early Dodgers’ lead disappear, forcing the Dodgers to put together a game-winning rally in the eighth inning to beat them, 4-3, on Wednesday night.

The Dodgers took two of three in the series but all three games were one-run decisions, .

“I think that catching a lead, letting teams hang around and kind of nip their way back, and then you kind of leave it for chance – we did that,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “And to those guys’ credit – they’re young, they’re excitable, they want to make their mark, so they’re competing. But yeah, we did that. Didn’t feel great, but you know, fortunately, we won a series, But that����ap not the way you want to do it.”

Making his first major-league start (second appearance), the 10th pick in the 2022 MLB draft, right-hander Gabriel Hughes got off to a shaky start.

He gave up a one-out single to Tommy Edman and a double to Freddie Freeman. Back-to-back walks forced in a run and .

Hughes struck out Alex Call – – to end the inning.

Hughes is a quick learner – he got his degree in biology from Gonzaga in just three years. He course-corrected after that rough first inning and struck out five of the next seven Dodger batters after Tucker’s single and retired 15 in a row before the Dodgers had another hit.

By then, the Rockies had erased the three-run getaway in a mixed bag of a start from Roki Sasaki.

Sasaki came in on a four-start stretch during which he had a 10.66 ERA, was hit for a .300 average and completed five innings just once .

This was better than that. He made it through six innings and retired the last nine batters he faced.

But he also gave up solo home runs to and in the second inning and walked the No. 9 hitter, Brett Sullivan, to start the third inning. A wild pitch, a ground out and a sacrifice fly turned that into the tying run.

It looked like Sasaki’s night might go further south when he gave up a single to TJ Rumfield to start the fourth inning and Karros bounced a double down the third-base line. But Sasaki struck out Troy Johnston and Julien, then got Ezequiel Tovar to fly out. He didn’t give up another hit in his six innings.

“It was good to see him just bow his neck and go compete,” Roberts said. “He had given up three runs at that point, and there was some stress, and second and third, nobody out, and he found a way to get some punchouts and a fly ball, and get out of that inning. And you can see the demeanor walking off the mound, the confidence.”

Sasaki walked off with a 5.33 ERA for the first half of the season with the Dodgers left to point at his May performance (a 3.18 ERA in five starts) for signs of progress.

“When you look at the numbers, I’m not satisfied with that,” Sasaki said through his interpreter. “But I was able to keep (in) the rotation and the velocity has kind of gotten a little bit up. So I’m kind of happy with it.”

Roberts acknowledged the “inconsistent” character of Sasaki’s first half and acknowledged there is “room for growth.”

“Certainly, the month of May was fantastic,” Roberts said. “I think he’s just continuing to get better and to learn himself. … I think there’s improvement. I do think that from the outset of the season to as we sit here on July 8, he’s a grade and a half better than what he was when he started the season.”

The Dodgers’ bullpen kept the score tied in the eighth inning despite a throwing error by third baseman Max Muncy and a double by Jake McCarthy to start the inning and an intentional walk to load the bases with one out. Alex Vesia and Edgardo Henriquez combined to strand all three.

In the bottom of the inning, the Dodgers didn’t waste their opportunity. Singles by Edman and Freeman put runners at the corners with one out against Rockies reliever Antonio Senzatela. Betts fell behind in the count, 1-and-2, but fouled off three pitches, worked the count full and stroked the ninth pitch of the at-bat into center field to drive in the go-ahead run.

“I was just trying to drive it to start,” Betts said. “And once I got down, I don’t know, I just had this calmness, to just kind of relax. Can’t force it. You can’t hit a bad pitch. You still have to get something decent to get the job done. And I think kind of relaxing actually helped me a lot.”

There wasn’t a whole lot of calmness or that kind of confidence to Betts’ game for the first couple of months of the season. But he has turned things around since mid-June.

“He’s got some confidence again,” Roberts said. “He feels good where he’s at physically. … I’m happy with what he’s done over the last month. And he’s come a ways.”

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