The best players to play a year or less for the Colorado Rockies

The Colorado Rockies are, perhaps, one of the best teams to compile a roster of players that played one year (or less) with the team because they are one of the newest teams in the sport.

For this exercise, we considered anyone that played on the Rockies MLB team for one season or less. They could be players that were supposed to play more than one season with the team but due to injury or other reasons, only played one season on the MLB team. So that means that Craig Counsell, who had two plate appearances with the Rockies at the MLB level in a combined two seasons is not eligible for this list.

For the players that never even played with the Rockies at the MLB level, you may wonder how a player could be intertwined with the team if they never played for them. For this, there are three possibilities:

1. They were with the Rockies in Spring Training and then they never made it to the majors with the team or were released before the season started.
2. They played in the minors for the Rockies but saw success with another MLB team.
3. They were drafted by the Rockies in the draft but did not sign with the team. They later were drafted by another MLB team and became a successful MLB player.

The Colorado Rockies had some great players play with them for a short period of time

Overall, we considered nearly 60 players but to narrow it down to a 26-man roster, we considered their overall MLB career by length, WAR, and, least among them, their career with the Rockies.

We also aren’t considering any player currently on the Rockies roster so C.J. Cron is not eligible. If he was, he would be the team’s first baseman but we had to be more creative for a first baseman.

The 26-man roster is compiled of 14 position players and 12 pitchers as well as a DH. Why? The DH will be in all of baseball in 2021 and, as you will see, there is a surplus of good MLB players in one position so the DH was a way for us to get another player in the starting lineup. Also, there are more successful position players for the Rockies than pitchers.

Lastly, this team would have to be managed by one-year manager Jim Leyland just to fit in with the occasion.

So here’s the starting lineup and 26-man roster for the Colorado Rockies … who played one season or less with the team.

Hitting third for the Colorado Rockies, right fielder Dale Murphy

Dale Murphy won’t be the last player to be in the starting lineup to primarily play with the Atlanta Braves and, like Finley, Murphy wrapped up his career with the Rockies.

He played with the Rockies in their inaugural 1993 season and he had an OPS+ of 1 in 26 games before he was released in late May.

In his 18-year career, he was a seven-time All-Star, five-time Gold Glove winner, and four-time Silver Slugger winner. He won the NL MVP in both 1982 and 1983 and received MVP votes in five other seasons as well. He hit .265/.346/.469 with an OPS+ of 121 and a 162-game average of 30 homers and 94 RBI.

He had a career rWAR of 46.5 and was on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for all 15 years that he was eligible (1999 through 2013).

Hitting fourth for the Colorado Rockies, the DH Greg Vaughn

Like Finley and Murphy, Greg Vaughn wrapped up his long playing career with the Colorado Rockies, as he played in 22 games with the team in 2003.

Vaughn, who primarily played with the Brewers when they were in the AL, played 15 years in the majors and he was a four-time All-Star with one Silver Slugger award. His best two seasons came in 1998 and 1999 for the Padres and Reds when he combined for 95 homers and 237 RBI with an OPS+ of 136 and he had two straight fourth-place finishes in NL MVP voting.

He hit .242/.337/.470 with a career 113 OPS+ and a 30.9 rWAR.

Hitting fifth for the Colorado Rockies, left fielder Ron Gant

Ron Gant spent parts of 16 years playing in the majors from 1987 through 2003 and he played in 59 games for the Colorado Rockies in 2001. However, he spent his best years with the Atlanta  Braves in the late 80s and early 90s.

Gant is a two-time All-Star and a one-time Silver Slugger winner who also got MVP votes in four seasons. He had a 6th place finish in NL MVP voting for the NL Champion Braves in 1991 and a fifth-place finish for the NL MVP in 1993.

He hit .256/.336/.468 with a career of 112 OPS+ with seven seasons of 25+ homers and two 100+ RBI seasons.

Hitting sixth for the Colorado Rockies, catcher Javy López

You may not remember Javy López ever playing for the Colorado Rockies and that’s because he didn’t. However, he signed with the Rockies as an invite to Spring Training before the 2007 season. He didn’t make the team as he was released in mid-March and never played professionally again.

He spent 15 seasons in the majors (12 with the Braves) and was their primary catcher for their long playoff streak in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was a career .287/.337/.491 hitter with an OPS+ of 112. He was a three-time All-Star and a Silver Slugger Award winner.

His best season came in 2003 with the Braves when he had 43 homers, 109 RBI, a .328/.378/.687 slash line, an OPS+ of 169, and a WAR of 6.8 in 129 games. He came in 5th in NL MVP voting that year.

Hitting seventh for the Colorado Rockies, first baseman Todd Frazier

This may be a pick that surprises some people because you may not remember Todd Frazier playing for the Colorado Rockies. Well, it’s because he didn’t.

However, as we discussed in this article last week, he was drafted by the Rockies in the 2004 Draft. He did not sign with the Rockies, though.

He’s also not a primary first baseman but the only first baseman who has been with the Rockies who has only played one season with the team (as of now) is C.J. Cron. But since he has another two contracted years with Colorado and still on the team, we had to turn to someone else and that’s Todd Frazier.

Frazier has spent 11 seasons in the majors and he is a two-time All-Star and a Home Run Derby Champ. He has hit .241/.318/.445 with an OPS+ of 108 and a 25.2 rWAR in his career.

Hitting eighth for the Colorado Rockies, the third baseman Melvin Mora

Melvin Mora spent 13 seasons in the majors from 1999 through 2011 but he spent the 2010 season with the Rockies, where he played in 112 games.

Mora is a two-time All-Star and a Silver Slugger Award winner. His best seasons came in the mid- to late-2000s with Baltimore, where he had two 25+ homer seasons and two seasons with 100+ RBI.

In his career, he hit .277/.350/.431 with an OPS+ of 105 and a 28.3 rWAR.

Hitting ninth for the Colorado Rockies, second baseman Chone Figgins

Chone Figgins was drafted by the Colorado Rockies and played in the minors for them for parts of five seasons.

In 2001, he was traded to the Anaheim Angels and his career took off.

He spent parts of 12 seasons in the majors and hit .276/.349/.363. He was an All-Star for the Angels in 2009 and received MVP votes in four seasons, including a 10th place finish in ’09. He had a 22.0 career rWAR.

Now, on to the bench for the one-year (or less) Rockies:

Catcher Ramon Hernandez: 15-year career, 52 games for the 2012 Colorado Rockies, one-time All-Star, .263/.327/.417 career slash line, 96 OPS+, 22.0 rWAR

Corner infielder/catcher Todd Zeile: 16-year career, 144 games with the 2002 Rockies, .265/.346/.423 career slash line, 104 OPS+, 19.3 rWAR

Infielder Howard Johnson: 14-year career, 93 games with the 1994 Rockies, two-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger winner, three top 10 NL MVP finishes, .249/.340/.446 career slash line, 118 OPS+, 22.2 rWAR

Outfielder Jermaine Dye: 14-year career, 0 games played with the Rockies (traded to COL in his 6th season but the Rockies flipped him to Oakland on the same day in 2001), two-time All-Star, Gold Glove winner, Silver Slugger winner, 2005 World Series MVP, 5th in 2006 AL MVP voting, .274/.338/.488 slash line, 20.3 rWAR

Outfielder Jeromy Burnitz: 14-year career, 150 games played with the 2004 Rockies, one-time All-Star, received MVP votes three times (including in his season with the Rockies), five seasons with 98 or more RBI, six 30+ homer seasons, .253/.345/.481 slash line, 112 OPS+, 19.9 rWAR

Honorable mentions: Paul Lo Duca, Jonathan Lucroy, Brad Ausmus, Sandy Alomar, Jr., Ronnie Belliard, Dansby Swanson, Royce Clayton, Matt Kemp, Jose Guillen

Now, on to the starting pitchers.

The ace of the Colorado Rockies: Chris Sale

If you’re reading this, you probably know that Chris Sale has never played a game for the Colorado Rockies but they did draft him back in the 2007 Draft. However, he didn’t sign.

Sale is a seven-time All-Star and from 2012 through 2018, he finished each season in the top six in AL Cy Young Award voting. He also received MVP votes four times.

He has a career 46.5 rWAR in 11 seasons in the majors.

The no. 2 starter for the Colorado Rockies: Bret Saberhagen

Bret Saberhagen was supposed to play more than one season with the Colorado Rockies but due to injury, he missed the entire 1996 season so he only appeared in nine starts for them in 1995.

Saberhagen played in parts of 16 seasons in the majors between 1984 and 2001. He played with Kansas City the most (eight seasons) and overall, he was a three-time All-Star, two Cy Young Award winner (1985, 1989). He also came in 3rd in NL Cy Young Award voting in 1994, the season before he joined the Rockies.

He had a career 58.9 rWAR.

The no. 3 starter for the Colorado Rockies: SP Roy Oswalt

Roy Oswalt spent 13 seasons in the majors, including 10 with the Houston Astros but he wrapped up his MLB career in 2013 with the Colorado Rockies, when he made nine appearances (six starts).

Oswalt was a three-time All-Star who finished in the top six in NL Cy Young Award voting six times.

He had a career 50.0 rWAR in his career.

The no. 4 starter for the Colorado Rockies: Jamie Moyer

Jamie Moyer spent 25 years in the majors from 1986 through 2012. He ended his career with the Colorado Rockies with 10 starts at the age of 49 in 2012.

Moyer primarily played with Seattle (11 seasons) and overall in his career, he was a one-time All-Star, came in the top six in Cy Young Award voting three times, and a career 49.8 rWAR.

The no. 5 starter for the Colorado Rockies: Bruce Hurst

Bruce Hurst spent parts of 15 seasons in the majors from 1980 through 1994, primarily with the Boston Red Sox. He made three starts (8 2/3 innings) for the Rockies in 1993.

Hurst was a one-time All-Star with a 5th place finish in 1988 AL Cy Young voting and a career 34.1 rWAR.

Honorable mentions: Livan Hernández, Shawn Estes, Andy Ashby, Pete Harnisch, Jon Garland, Aaron Harang, Marco Gonzales, Kevin Millwood

Colorado Rockies long reliever Darren Oliver

Left-handed reliever Darren Oliver spent parts of 20 seasons in the majors from 1993 through 2013 both as a starter and a reliever. However, he was a starting pitcher for his lone season in a Rockies uniform as he made 33 appearances (32 starts) for the Rockies in 2003.

Oliver made 766 MLB appearances (229 starts) with a 4.51 career ERA, a 104 ERA+, and 22.2 rWAR.

Colorado Rockies middle reliever Jeff Fassero

Left-handed reliever Jeff Fassero primarily pitched with Montreal in his 16 MLB seasons and he spent most of the 2004 season with the Colorado Rockies. Like Oliver, he was a starter and reliever but he did both frequently for the Rockies as he made 40 appearances (12 starts).

Fassero made 720 career MLB appearances with 242 starts with a 4.11 ERA, a 107 ERA+, and a career 23.7 rWAR. He also came in 6th in NL Cy Young voting in 1996 with Montreal.

Fassero is the “middle reliever” for the Rockies here since Oliver made more starts with the Rockies but both would really be “long relievers.”

Colorado Rockies middle reliever Kent Mercker

Left-handed reliever Kent Mercker spent 18 seasons in the majors from 1989 through 2008 as both a starter and reliever. However, when he was with the Rockies in 2002 and he was used exclusively in relief in his 58 appearances.

He made 692 appearances (150 starts) in the majors with a 4.16 ERA, a 104 ERA+, and a career 12.0 rWAR.

Colorado Rockies middle reliever Mike Timlin

Right-handed reliever Mike Timlin spent parts of 18 seasons in the majors from 1991 through 2008. He never pitched in the majors with the Rockies but made six minor league appearances with them in the span of 2 1/2 weeks in late July and early August of 2009 before he called it a career.

Timlin is 8th all-time in games pitched with 1058 MLB appearances with a 3.63 ERA, a 125 ERA+, and a 19.0 career rWAR. Timlin has the distinction of never playing with the New York Yankees but still being on four World Series-winning teams (1992-1993, 2004, 2007).

Colorado Rockies set-up man Jose Mesa

Jose Mesa is right behind Timlin in appearances as he is 12th on the all-time list with 1022. He spent parts of 19 seasons in the majors from 1987 through 2007. He was a set-up man for the Colorado Rockies in 2006 (79 appearances, 3.86 ERA).

In his career, he had a 4.36 ERA (100 ERA+) but once he became a full-time reliever in 1994, he had a 3.97 ERA (114 ERA+). In 1995 for Cleveland, he had a 1.13 ERA with an MLB-leading 46 saves for the AL Champs. He was an All-Star, came in 2nd in Cy Young Award voting, and 4th in MVP voting. He was an All-Star in 1996 as well.

He had a career 11.4 rWAR.

Colorado Rockies set-up man Octavio Dotel

After Octavio Dotel retired after the end of the 2013 season, he was the all-time leader in teams played for in his career with 13 teams.

Dotel appeared in 758 games in 15 MLB seasons and he played with the Colorado Rockies in 2010 for eight games as the Rockies acquired him from the Dodgers on September 18 … for one reason: a compensation draft pick.

The Rockies used that draft pick in the 2011 Draft on a player by the name of Trevor Story. So that was a good trade for the Rockies.

Colorado Rockies closer Greg Holland

Greg Holland has spent parts of 11 seasons in the majors (eight with Kansas City) but he was with the Colorado Rockies in 2017 as their closer. He was an All-Star that year and led in the NL in saves with 41.

In his career, he is a three-time All-Star and has two top 10 Cy Young Award finishes and he has a career 3.10 ERA, a 140 ERA+, 220 saves, and 551 MLB appearances.

Honorable mentions: José Contreras, Pedro Strop, Ross Stripling, Ron Villone

There it is. A 26-man roster comprised of Colorado Rockies players who played with the team for one season or less. Not a bad team, if you look at the peak career of each player but, unfortunately for the Rockies, most of the best seasons for these players came with another team.