
Miami Marlins first baseman Garrett Cooper could also help the Colorado Rockies
Miami Marlins first baseman Garrett Cooper has been more of a bench bat in his career or he has been injured (as he was in 2021) but he could be a versatile, power bat that the Colorado Rockies are looking for on their bench.
Cooper, 31, only played in 71 games in 2021 as he tore his UCL in his elbow in July and had to have Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing elbow. As a result, his recovery time shouldn’t be as long as a regular time would be for a) a pitcher and b) on his throwing elbow. In 2021, though, he hit .284/.380/.465 with nine homers and 33 RBI. He had an OPS+ of 129.
In 2020, he hit .283/.353/.500 with six homers, 20 RBI, and an OPS+ of 127 in 34 games. He played the most games in his MLB career in 2019 when, in 107 games, Cooper had 15 homers and 50 RBI with a slash line of .281/.344/.446 and an OPS+ of 108.
Cooper can play first base as well as both left and right field. He played a handful of games at third base in the minor leagues as well so he is fairly versatile.
He is entering the second year of arbitration so he would have the same amount of control that Anderson would have.