Colorado Rockies: the 2017 Winter Meetings wish list

The idea of the Rockies bringing in former Diamondbacks closer Fernando Rodney has been kicked around, as well as the idea of Carlos Estevez earning the promotion to the 9th inning.

The prospect of signing former Cubs closer Wade Davis has also gained traction the past couple of weeks. Davis is coming off of his third straight All-Star season, in which he posted a 2.30 ERA in 59 games, striking out 79 hitters and allowing 28 walks in 58.2 innings. He also converted 32 out of 33 save opportunities.

Rodney is coming off of a shaky 2017 season, posting a 4.23 ERA in 61 appearances. He struck out 65 hitters and walked 26 in 55.1 innings. He also converted 39 out of 45 save opportunities.

The X-Factor in this situation is current Rockies pitching coach Steve Foster, who also coached with the Kansas City Royals during Davis’ time with the club. A reunion with Foster may make the idea of coming to Colorado more attractive for Davis.

Estevez is a tricky one. He had an unsightly 5.57 ERA in 35 appearances, surrendering 39 hits and 14 walks in just 32.1 innings in 2017. Not what you want to see out of a potential closer.

The average speed of his fastball, though, was 96.93 mph in 2017, according to MLB.com. The velocity is there; if Estevez can develop better control and work at limiting hard contact, he can be a dangerous weapon out of the bullpen.

Another interesting move could be to acquire Lance Lynn from the Cardinals. Lynn had a 3.43 ERA in 33 starts with 153 strikeouts in 2017. Lynn could be a strong veteran presence in the rotation, which would give one of the Rockies’ standout rookie pitchers time to develop more in the bullpen.

We also discussed the possibility of the Rockies signing free agent starter Jake Arrieta nearly two weeks ago.

Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post noted a few days ago in this article that Rockies GM Jeff Bridich said that one of the Rockies’ young pitchers could be moved to the bullpen.