Colorado Rockies: The first roster cuts of Spring Training

Today, after their return from their two-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks from Monterrey, Mexico, the Colorado Rockies have announced their first round of cuts from Major League Spring Training camp.

The Rockies made their first round of cuts today and there were plenty of them.

Per the Rockies PR team, the Rockies have sent right-handed pitchers Ryan Castellani, Rayan Gonzalez, Jesus Tinoco, infielder Josh Fuentes, an

d outfielders Yonathan Daza and Sam Hilliard to Triple-A Albuquerque and right-handed pitcher Justin Lawrence to Double-A Hartford.

In addition, infielders Tyler Nevin, Rockies #3 prospect Colton Welker, right-handed pitcher Rico Garcia, left-handed pitcher Evan Grills, and catcher Brian Serven to minor league camp.

Those 12 players were 20 percent of the Rockies spring roster of 60 players so, now, the roster is down to 48. None of the 12 were projected to make the Rockies roster but some did well and some did not.

Castellani, who turns 22 in a little more than 2 weeks, went 0-1 in major league camp with a 3.00 ERA in 3 appearances. He pitched in 6 innings and struck out four.

Gonzalez, 28, went 0-1 with a 21.60 ERA in 3 appearances. He pitched in 1 2/3 innings and struck out four.

The soon-to-be 24 year old Tinoco will transition to a bullpen role this year in the minor leagues, as we discussed in this article last week. He pitched well in 5 appearances in major league spring training. He didn’t have a record but he pitched to a 2.45 ERA with a save in 3 2/3 innings. He also struck out 4.

Fuentes, the 26-year-old cousin of Nolan Arenado and the 2018 Pacific Coast League MVP, did not make an appearance in Spring Training due to a broken hamate bone, as Kyle Newman of The Denver Post noted in this article at the beginning of March.

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Daza, 25, struggled in his 23 major league spring training at-bats as he only hit .130/.259/.390 with 3 hits, one RBI, and a stolen base. With the Rockies outfield pretty much set and Daza’s struggles, it’s easy to see why he was sent back.

Hilliard, also 25, played well in his 25 at-bats as he hit .280/.308/.788 with a home run and 4 RBI.

The lefty Lawrence, 24, had an ERA of 1.80 in five games. He pitched a total of 5 innings with 6 punchouts.

Nevin was a non-roster invitee for the Rockies but he played very well in his limited spring training action. The 21-year-old hit .385/.467/1.005 with five hits and one RBI in 13 at-bats.

Welker, who is 21 and a non-roster invitee like Nevin, hit .556/.556/1.500 in 18 at-bats with 2 home runs and 7 RBI. He had a walk-off single on Friday against the Rangers, in which the Rockies won 11-10.

Garcia was the starter for that game on Friday and he struggled in his 3 spring appearances as he had an ERA of 11.12 in 5 2/3 innings.

Grills, 27, pitched to a 5.40 ERA in 3 spring appearances and a total of 5 innings.

Serven, 23, saw very limited action in spring as he was hitless in 2 at-bats.

Final Thoughts

With the Rockies opening the season in a little more than 2 weeks and the roster to be nearly cut in half by then, there will likely be a dozen or so more cuts next week.

While there weren’t any surprises in this bunch, there will likely be some more surprises and bigger names next week.