Colorado Rockies: Ranking the 40-Man Roster: 21-25

Our countdown of the Colorado Rockies 40-man roster continues today. As a reminder, we compiled this list by asking each of our six contributors to Rox Pile to rank each member of Colorado’s 40-man roster from 1-40. To reach our final standings, we combined the points to see who fit where. The more points, the lower the ranking.

Number 25

Jason Motte: Relief Pitcher Points: 147 Highest Rank: 36 Lowest: 27

Mr. Motte is a 34-year-old reliever who has amassed 60 saves in his career. The Rockies signed Motte to a two-year contract prior to last season.

In 2016, Motte was expected to help anchor the back part of the Rockies bullpen as a key set-up man. Due to nagging injuries and ineffectiveness Motte only managed to pitch 23.2 innings. The lowest number of innings in his career. On that same note, Motte posted the highest ERA of his career at 4.94. The long ball seemed to plague Motte the most when he was able to get to the mound. Surrendering 6 home runs along with 28 hits on the season. On a positive note, strikeouts don’t seem to be an issue. In 2016 Motte struck out more batters than innings pitched for the four time in his career.

It is highly documented that the Rockies sported the worst bullpen in the Majors last season. As a response, the Rockies have added some high profile relievers to stop the bleeding. Prior to 2016, Motte was considered a contender for the closer role, but will certainly be on the outside looking in for 2017. Hopefully,  a fresh start and a full bill of health can help Motte provide much need pen depth.

As the Rockies head in 2017 with winning on their mind; Motte does own a World Series ring, so his leadership will be key for a young Rockies pitching staff.