Will the Colorado Rockies do anything this trade deadline?

Will the Colorado Rockies do anything at the trade deadline? It’s a fair question.  Whether they’re winning or losing, this has never been a very active time of year for the Rockies’ front office.

For a team well below .500 with no chance of making the playoffs this season and an unfavorable outlook for the next season or two, this is a great opportunity to restock the farm system and improve the team’s future roster.

That being said, it is quite possible the Colorado Rockies do little or nothing at this deadline.

This will be Bill Schmidt’s first big test since replacing Jeff Bridich in the General Manager’s seat, but it is reasonable to assume that the Rockies will remain characteristically quiet at the deadline yet again.

The club has stated unequivocally that Germán Márquez will not be traded.  Jon Gray is on an expiring contract and has been the subject of several rumors but he has mentioned that he would like to stay in Denver and considering the mental coaching he has received with the Rockies, he might not have a huge desire to leave the familiarity of Coors Field or the staff of Bud Black and company.

Trevor Story, on the other hand, has been more ambiguous when asked about his future.  Based on his comments (though he never outright said it) it would be shocking if he re-signed with the team even if he does finish the season in Denver.

As much as I would love to see Story continue to serve as the Rockies shortstop and undisputed best player, if they are going to replenish their prospect pool and attempt to compete again any time soon, they likely need to move him. Considering he’s unlikely to return as a free agent, the Rockies can’t let him walk and receive nothing in return.

Márquez would bring a larger haul back than Story, but the Rockies front office is right not to entertain the idea of moving him. Not only do the Rockies have possibly the best group of starting pitchers in team history, they actually have one of the better rotations in baseball this season, depending on the metric you look at.

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The team’s best move from here on out should be to do everything they can to keep the rotation together. Don’t move Gray and try to re-sign him this offseason. Once the rotation is secure, build around that.

Moving Story is the first step. Potentially Charlie Blackmon is the next. I doubt that will happen as iconic as Chuck Nazty is across the state and considering the demand for him isn’t extraordinarily high at the moment.

But there are other pieces that likely will not factor into the roster by the time the team is competitive again that could be moved in smaller deals this deadline. C.J. Cron is the type of experienced power bat that would make a great deadline acquisition for a lot of playoff-bound teams.

Veteran reliever Mychal Givens is another great trade chip. Pitching to a 2.73 ERA with a 10.3 K/9, he would help bolster the back end of any bullpen he joined. Daniel Bard is another piece that should be moved.  In their absence, Justin Lawrence can get a chance to receive regular appearances in the late innings, hopefully as the club’s closer.

Even players like catcher Elias Diaz could be shopped around.  Diaz’s recent offensive surge would be attractive to a team looking for a suitable backup option.  However, he is under team control until 2023 and if he continues to play well could be a good option to keep around considering the Rockies’ lack of catching depth.

Unfortunately, it seems unlikely the Rockies will do much of anything this deadline.  A few moves for some offensive prospects to build around their pitching core could make this team start to look competitive again sometime in the not-too-distant future. But will the front office seize their opportunity? It seems unlikely.