Colorado Rockies: The 5 Best Storylines So Far This Season

Prospects

We all know the Rockies farm system is just as important as the major league team if we want to get into the playoffs anytime soon. There was a great deal of praise for the system in the preseason rankings and the Rockies have had many prospects continue to impress. I will just name a few who have really stuck out to me today and we will get more into it down the road.

• David Dahl: He was named to the Futures Game yesterday and made one of the best defensive plays of the game, nailing a guy at home from center field. He was recently promoted to Triple-A where he has done nothing but hit .500 in six games. He also has two home runs for the Isotopes. He could be ready for the major leagues sooner than originally expected.

• Jeff Hoffman: I went in-depth for why I think Jeff should be in the majors last week. He followed that up with his worst performance, giving up eight runs on 10 hits over 4.2 innings, so maybe he isn’t quite ready. Hoffman was also selected to the Futures Game where he provided a scoreless inning of work, giving up only one hit and getting fellow Rockies prospect, Raimel Tapia, to ground out. So he may not be ready yet … but he’s close.

• Raimel Tapia: He also represented the Rockies in the Futures Game after hitting the ball well for the Yard Goats. He has an average of .337 through the first half and seems able to hit just about everything. One of the coolest things about Tapia is his two-strike approach where he enters a deep squat to shrink the zone. He profiles as a left fielder who could compete for some batting titles if all goes well in the final stages of his development.

• Ryan Castellani: Castellani was Colorado’s second-round pick in 2014 and has done nothing but impress in his first taste of pro ball. So far this year, he has an ERA of 3.86 for the Modesto Nuts. He is averaging almost a strikeout per inning and is not allowing very many walks. He is definitely a pitcher we could see at 20^th and Blake down the road.

• German Marquez: Based on how McGee has played, Marquez could be the best part of the Corey Dickerson trade for the Rockies. He has an ERA of 2.63 for the Yard Goats over 106 innings and a K:BB ratio of 2.96. He has a fastball can reach 96 mph and sits at 92-94 and is accompanied with a nice curveball and change up all of which he commands well.

Next: Do These 3 Pitchers Have a Spot with the Rockies?

Obviously, there are other prospects having great years and we will dive into the prospect talk more after the season is over, or if the Rockies leave us no choice in the second half. For now, there are a lot of questions facing the team in the second half. Who will we trade? Will Walt Weiss still be the manager next year? Will Jeff Hoffman get called up? The list goes on, but for the next couple days, lets just enjoy CarGo’s sweet, sweet swing in the Derby and cheer for him and Nolan tomorrow night in the All-Star Game.