Colorado Rockies: Jairo Diaz, Noel Cuevas added to 40-man roster

Jairo Diaz and Noel  Cuevas were recently added to the Colorado Rockies’ 40-man roster as announced by the Rockies PR department. The Rockies now have 33 players on their roster as the offseason begins to heat up.

Diaz was recently removed off of the 60-day disabled list due to an elbow issue. Diaz has seen some major league action, including four games with the Rockies over the past season.

His previous experience came with the Los Angeles Angels in 2014 and with the Rockies in 2015 when he saw action in 21 games. Diaz was only able to play in 22 minor league games this year across various levels due to the injury.

Hopefully, this will be a positive step for Diaz as he works his way back for the beginning of the 2018 season. Diaz will be with the Rox for at least the next few years, as he is not arbitration eligible until the 2020 season and would not become a free agent until the 2023 season. We talked about some of his potential to help Colorado’s bullpen in this article.

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Cuevas was recently added to the major league roster for the first time in his career. He was originally drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 21st round of the 2010 draft before being traded to the Rox in 2015.

While with the Rockies, Cuevas has hovered around AA and AAA, playing well and hitting around .300 across all levels during the past few seasons. Cuevas is a versatile player, capable of playing all three outfield positions.

Cuevas had a solid year for the AAA Albuquerque Isotopes this year, hitting .312 with 79 RBI and 15 home runs. It will be interesting to see how well Cuevas performs in Spring Training in 2018 and if he will earn a spot on the Opening Day Roster.

Nonetheless, earning a spot on the 40-man roster during the offseason is a solid first step for Cuevas in his 2018 campaign.

Next: 5 players the Rockies should target in the offseason

With 33 spots filled, the Colorado Rockies will still have to work to fill seven more spots in the coming months.