Colorado Rockies: Who could benefit the most from a 29-man roster?

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DENVER, CO – APRIL 23: Jeff Hoffman #34 of the Colorado Rockies pitches against the Washington Nationals in the first inning of a game at Coors Field on April 23, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /

An increase from a 26-man roster to a 29-man roster could impact a few Colorado Rockies players for the better.

On Friday morning, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported that MLB will likely allow the 30 MLB teams, including the Colorado Rockies, to carry 29 players on their roster for the first month of the season, whenever it returns.

That would be beneficial for a few Rockies players to try to establish themselves on the roster. Let’s take a look at some of them

Jeff Hoffman

There’s really not a nice way to say this: Jeff Hoffman had an awful 2019 season. In the majors, he pitched to a 2-6 record with a 6.56 ERA in 15 starts. His FIP was even worse, as it was 6.80. He made 17 appearances (16 starts) for Triple-A Albuquerque and he pitched to a 6-8 record with an ERA of 7.70 so, combined between the majors and minors, he pitched to a 7.18 ERA.

He also didn’t pitch well in 2018 when he pitched to a 4.94 ERA in 21 starts in Albuquerque and a 9.35 ERA in six games (one start) at the major league level.

In Spring Training, he pitched to a 6.35 ERA in three games (one start) before games were halted. In 5 2/3 innings pitched, he allowed 10 hits, seven runs (four earned), and three walks.

He is out of minor league options so the Rockies either have to carry him on their MLB roster or designate him for assignment, which would either mean that he would have to be traded, claimed by another team, or taken off the 40-man roster and optioned to Albuquerque.

If the Rockies end up playing a lot of games early in their schedule and a lot of doubleheaders, in particular, Hoffman could be the beneficiary of the Rockies needing more pitchers on the roster.

Yency Almonte

Like Hoffman, Yency Almonte‘s time with the Rockies may be close to reaching a crossroads.

In 2019, at the MLB level, Almonte pitched to a 5.56 ERA in 28 appearances (all out of the bullpen). His FIP of 5.51 didn’t paint a better picture either. Out of the bullpen for Albuquerque, Almonte pitched to a 4.20 in 30 games (30 innings).

His main issue in 2019 was his control. In Albuquerque, his walk rate nearly tripled from 2.9 to 7.8 per nine innings. It also increased from 2.5 to 3.7 per nine innings at the major league level.

He struggled in Albuquerque in 2018 as he pitched to a 5.56 ERA in 18 games (10 starts) but he did pitch well in his rookie major league campaign in 2018 as he pitched to a 1.84 ERA (2.96 FIP) in 14 appearances in relief (14 2/3 innings).

Thus far in Spring Training, Almonte pitched to a ghastly 15.19 in six games. In 5 1/3 innings, he allowed nine hits, nine runs (all earned), three home runs, and two walks.

Like Hoffman, Almonte does not have any remaining minor league options. Given that the Rockies would likely need extra pitchers, Almonte would likely be one of those.

Josh Fuentes

The Rockies won’t only need some extra pitchers but also some position players. Josh Fuentes is one that would be toward the top of the list, if not the top man.

Fuentes made his MLB debut last season for the Rockies and struggled a bit. He hit .218/.232/.400 in 56 plate appearances.

He played better in Albuquerque, though, as he hit .254/.298/.448 with 17 home runs and 64 RBI in 101 games. He won the Pacific Coast League’s MVP award in 2018 when in 135 games, he hit 14 homers, 95 RBI, 39 doubles, 12 triples, and he hit .327/.354/.517.

Fuentes can help back up in the infield as he can play third and first base. He wouldn’t necessarily be a backup for the middle infield positions but Daniel Murphy, Garrett Hampson, Tony Wolters, and our next candidate could also help out.

Chris Owings

Chris Owings was a non-roster invitee to spring training for the Rockies this season and particularly with the expanded rosters, he may find himself on the Rockies roster on Opening Day.

In 2019, he split the season with the Kansas City Royals and Boston Red Sox and he really struggled at the plate. He hit .139/.209/.233 with an OPS+ of 17.

Obviously, that would not be a good reason for making the team and he has never been a great offensive player (71 OPS+ in parts of 7 seasons).

In short, he’s versatile. He played every position besides catcher and first base last season and the Royals, in spring training, played him at first base. The Rockies also played him at first base in Spring Training as well. In 10 games (25 plate appearances), he hit .360/.429/.560 with a home run, three RBI, and two doubles.

Elias Diaz

Rockies manager Bud Black loves to have three catchers on his roster. Part of the reason why that has happened before is the versatility of Tony Wolters, who can also play shortstop and second base.

Even when there was a 25-man roster last season and 13 pitchers on that roster, the Rockies, on occasion, carried three catchers (a combination of Wolters, Drew Butera, Chris Iannetta, or Dom Nunez) so it definitely isn’t out of the realm of possibility on a 26-man roster or, especially, a 29-man roster.

Wolters and Butera are likely to be the main catchers but non-roster invitee Elias Diaz could find himself on the roster as well.

For Pittsburgh in 2019, he hit .241/.296/.307 with two home runs, 28 RBI, and an OPS+ of 61 in 101 games (332 plate appearances). He also had -21 bDRS. However, in 2018, in 82 games (277 plate appearances), he hit 10 home runs, 34 RBI, with a slash line of .286/.339/.452 and an OPS+ of 116. He also had -1 bDRS.

That’s what the Rockies are hoping heading into 2020.

Prediction

We don’t know how many pitchers will be on the roster with the three extra players but if I had to guess, it would be a maximum of two.

Depending on the rest of the spring training performances (when it returns) and if the pitcher limit will be one or two, I think that the two most likely scenarios would be Hoffman, Almonte, and Owings or Almonte, Owings, and Diaz.

Next. Fans: No postseason or all postseason games on the road?. dark

Why three of those four and not Fuentes? Simple. Fuentes has options, the other four do not. It will be a hard enough decision for the Rockies to make for 29 players but when 26 comes, it may be even harder.

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