Colorado Rockies: “What if” and the starting pitcher free agents

Jake Arrieta

Why: Jake Arrieta is one of the top free agents this year and many expected him to already be signed. Arrieta had a decent year. It wasn’t his best, but most definitely not his worst either. He had a 3.53 ERA with 163 strikeouts in 168.1 innings.

If you look past the high ERA, you have got a solid veteran pitcher who could lead the rotation. One repetitive notation with Arrieta is his workhorse mentality. That could come in handy for the Rockies. And don’t even get me started on the amount of postseason experience this man has. To be able to have a guy that’s his age (31) and put up100+ innings is something the Rockies could certainly use. The Rockies need veteran stability and perhaps Jake Arrieta is the key to that.

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Spot in the rotation: Ace. It may be an incentive for not fully meeting his asking price.

Price: Let me start by saying Arrieta’s agent is none other than Scott Boras. It’s obvious Boras has probably told Arrieta that he could get a $200 million contract. Obviously the Rockies aren’t going to shell out anything close to that amount with the regular season so close. So how much could they give him and for how many years? Maybe going with a short-term contract with the max price being around $15 million a year for two to three years is good. He’d be there the same amount of time as the relievers the Rockies signed this offseason and it’s not high risk. However, he just reportedly scoffed at a higher offer from Philadelphia.

The best thing is that Arrieta pitched at Wrigley Field, another hitter-friendly park, so he understands the importance of pitching well at home.