Colorado Rockies: 3 big questions that will shape the 2019 season

The offseason poses many questions for the Colorado Rockies. Specific questions about personnel and the futures of players such as DJ LeMahieu, Adam Ottavino, Gerardo Parra and Carlos Gonzalez will swirl, but there are some more general philosophies that the Rockies must address as the foundation for these more specific decisions.

It was another solid season for the Colorado Rockies, who fought the Los Angeles Dodgers to the final day of the regular season for the National League West title and downed the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field to advance past the Wild Card round. Still, a disappointing showing against the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Division Series has left a bitter taste to the end of the campaign.

So what can the Rockies do to move forward and not only make the playoffs for the third consecutive season but also advance even further in the postseason? We talked about that a lot in this article. However, today, let’s look at some of the biggest decisions to be made in the offseason that will have a far-reaching impact on the franchise’s near- and far-term future.

As always, we would love to hear your comments, suggestions and ideas. Just leave them in the comments section below.

Will Colorado’s youth movement finally be allowed to play?

One of the biggest frustrations last season was the lack of time given to players like David Dahl and Ryan McMahon when veterans players like Gerardo Parra and Ian Desmond were struggling. Colorado manager Bud Black talked to me in San Francisco about why he liked to have veterans in the lineup but the lack of playing time for some of his younger talent was a bit puzzling at times.

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?

Now that there will likely be holes in the Rockies lineup to fill, will Colorado’s next generation of homegrown talent be given the change to step in and play? McMahon at first base makes sense and Garrett Hampson or Brendan Rodgers at second base will be a likely scenario. With Trevor Story at shortstop, that means that Nolan Arenado could be the oldest player on the Colorado infield in 2018.

If McMahon is at first, would Desmond take over a corner outfield position? It is thought that Dahl could move to center field on a permanent basis next year with Charlie Blackmon sliding over to right. That leaves left field for Desmond, which would open up first base for McMahon.

Why Desmond in left field, you ask? Don’t forget how much the Rockies are paying him. Combine that with Black’s love for his versatility and you can be guaranteed his playing time won’t diminish in 2019.

So what of players like Mike Tauchman, Raimel Tapia, Jordan Patterson and others? It could be another season of only playing when needed for this group of young talent.

How will they spend their money?

Will we see Colorado save its dollars to put toward a mega-contract for Nolan Arenado to combat his potential free agency after the season or will the club continue to spend to build around him? That’s a massive question.

Colorado Rockies

With Adam Ottavino’s free agency, the Rockies have a question in the bullpen. Mike Dunn, Bryan Shaw and Jake McGee must have bounceback seasons next year. Seunghwan Oh was solid but will he be back? Closer Wade Davis was too, but his home run rate was alarming and cost the Rockies some games.

Let’s face it, there aren’t a lot of options for the Rockies out of the bullpen who were extremely competent last season and are guaranteed to come back in 2019. Will the Rockies re-invest in Ottavino or spend money to bring in another quality arm? Will they count on Harrison Musgrave, Yency Almonte and other young relievers to step up and fill those holes?

And what about LeMahieu? I talked in this article about what he brought to Colorado for seven seasons. Will he be back in a Rockies uniform? Can the franchise spend the money to keep him and Arenado?

There are a lot of financial decisions facing general manager Jeff Bridich and the franchise this offseason. How they answer those will determine much about the future direction of where the Rockies are heading.