Colorado Rockies roster news: C.J. Cron active, Antonio Santos optioned

Hoping to put a jolt into its road offense, the Colorado Rockies activated first baseman C.J. Cron from the 10-day injured list on Tuesday afternoon.

The move will put Cron into the Colorado Rockies starting lineup (batting fourth) for Tuesday’s night game in San Diego against the Padres. Colorado, sitting at a National League-worst 15-27 after dropping a 7-0 decision to San Diego on Monday night, is just 2-15 on the road this season.

Cron, signed by the Rockies this offseason to a minor league contract, claimed the starting first base job coming out of spring training and has become one of Colorado’s biggest threats at the plate. In the 15 games before being sidelined by a lower back strain (the 31-year-old Cron was placed on the injured list on May 10), Cron slashed .388/.474/.714 with five homers and 12 RBI.

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Colorado manager Bud Black said earlier in the day that Cron likely would have been activated in time for Monday’s game in San Diego had the Rockies not needed to keep another arm in the bullpen. Colorado is in the midst of a 13-day stretch without a scheduled off day and the bullpen has been stretched mightily with four high-scoring games in Denver against the Cincinnati Reds before heading to San Diego.

To make room on the roster for Cron, the Rockies optioned right-handed reliever Antonio Santos to Triple-A Albuquerque. In two games since being called up on May 15, Santos has allowed three hits and one earned run in 3.2 innings while striking out one and walking one.

Now, with Cron activated, Colorado now begins a roster shuffle that will impact its infield.

With Cron at first base, the Rockies will look to see where Connor Joe (9-for-33 in 11 games, including time at first base in 10 of those games) will fit into the immediate future plans. The infield will also become a little more crowded soon as Brendan Rodgers, currently playing at Triple-A Albuquerque, works his way back from a hamstring injury suffered in mid-March.

Tuesday’s game between the Padres and Rockies is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. (Mountain time)