Colorado Rockies: The top 25 players under 25 years old

13 Sam Howard

Added to the 40-man roster this winter and starting at Triple-A, Howard is MLB depth already. He has more potential than Jemiola but less than some of the arms to follow. Either way, the 25-year-old is pretty solid.

The 2014 third-round pick from Georgia Southern spent the last half of 2016 and the first half of 2017 at Hartford. He jumped to Triple-A midseason and, overall, his 2017 between the two levels amounted to a 5-8 record with a 3.32 ERA in 127.1 innings. He needs to work on a walk rate that ballooned on him from 1.9 per nine to 3.7 per nine after jumping levels.

The left-handed throwing and right-handed hitting Howard could be a spot starter this year if injuries take their toll to an extreme. The good news is that the Rockies have the depth where a young starter like Howard would not have his development stunted by such a situaion. He’s a well-polished lefty that most franchises would kill to say is their 10th option on the depth chart.