Colorado Rockies Ranking the 40-Man Roster: 15-11

Number 13

Chad Bettis: Starting Pitcher Points: 70 Highest Rank: 6 Lowest: 15

Bettis has had a strange journey to the major leagues after being taken in the second round of the 2010 draft. He made his major league debut as a starting pitcher in 2013 with mixed results, provoking a move to the bullpen in 2014. He was less effective in a bullpen role that season with an ERA of 9.12 in 21 games.

More from Rox Pile

• A Colorado Rockies Thanksgiving
• Colorado Rockies: What if Todd Helton had played football instead?
• Colorado Rockies: Charlie Blackmon out for the season
• Colorado Rockies: Injuries shift look of roster ahead of Dodgers series
• Colorado Rockies: Has Sean Bouchard earned a second look in 2023?

Bettis then returned to the started rotation in 2015 and was a different pitcher. He was, arguably, the best pitcher for the Rockies that year started 20 games and accounting for 115 innings. His ERA of 4.23 was impressive, especially when spending time at Coors Field.

His success continued in 2016 where he was a key member of the Rockies’ best rotation in recent memory. Bettis led all pitchers in starts, innings pitched, and pitcher wins, throwing 186.0 innings over 32 starts on his way to 14 wins. His ERA of 4.79 was respectable and was actually better at Coors Field than on the road.

Another exciting stat for Bettis is that he seemed to really figure things out in the second half of the year. He battled through some early season struggles, where his ERA was 5.65, to become dominate in the second half. Over his last 14 starts, Bettis owned a 3.75 ERA, a stretch that included a complete game gem, shutting out the Giants while allowing only two hits.

After a scare with testicular cancer, Bettis is ready to go for the 2017 season. I expect him to build of the success of the second half last year and provide the Rockies with a stabilizing presence in the young rotation.