3 Position battles that will define Rockies spring training and who wins them

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It was a long offseason, full of crazy contracts (Ohtani and his deferred money), multiple big trades, pretty much every team dealing with some sort of RSN issue. Alas, baseball has begun, and we can look forward to the 2024 season.

For Rockies fans this gives us a chance to look at a long of young talent that will hopefully impact the franchise for years to come. We get to see a lot of young talent this spring, hopefully we will get to see more of later in the year, and with that comes position battles. Guys will be fighting for roster spots and even starting jobs all spring and throughout this year. Today we take a look at three (maybe four?) spots that are up for grabs and who we think will win those jobs.

These four will battle it out for the last 2 spots in the starting rotation

The Rockies rotation was one of the biggest question marks coming into the 2024 season. With two of their top three pitchers (German Marquez and Antonio Senzatela) likely on the shelf for a majority, if not all, of the 2024 season, there were a lot of questions about who would fill their shoes.

Bud Black came out and stated that the first three spots in the rotation were set; Kyle Freeland, Austin Gomber and Cal Quantrill were given the managers vote of confidence to start the year in the rotation. The final two spots would come down to a veteran and three youngsters eager to prove themselves. Dakota Hudson, Ryan Feltner, Peter Lambert and Noah Davis would all four be battling for two rotation spots.

Hudson seems like a shoo-in after the veteran inked a one-year deal and comes with a certain pedigree (and no club options). Lambert and Feltner both received quite a bit of time in 2023, while Feltner missed a lot of time due to an injury and Lambert filled the role of a long reliever that made some spot starts. Noah Davis has, at times, shown some solid strikeout ability, but seems to be on the outside looking in.

Final Prediction: Dakota Hudson and Ryan Feltner earn the final 2 rotation spots

These 3 power hitters will slug it out for 2 roster spots

The Rockies have a lack of middle of the order thump; they have a few guys that could provide that production, but just haven't proven that they can do it consistently yet. This spring we will see a battle for a spot that will most likely fill multiple positions and it will come down to who makes the team, for what those positions are.

This spring, former first round pick, Michael Toglia, will battle it out with former top prospect, Elehuris Montero and one of the biggest sluggers in the Rockies farm system, Hunter Goodman. They each come with a crazy amount of power and could very well touch 30 bombs in any given season, it's just a matter of dialing in their swing and putting it all together.

Michael Toglia has had nearly 450 plate appearances at Triple-A, and has dominted the competition with 23 home runs. Toglia issue in 2023, when making his major league debut, was strikeouts. He struck out nearly 30% of the time and really struggled from the right side of the plate. He will need to prove the strikeouts are not an issue this spring to make the opening day roster (so far he is at six strikeouts in 17 plate appearances, a 35% strikeout rate).

Elehuris Montero is probably the favorite to make the opening day roster, as he has done nothing short of obliterate Triple-A pitching, with impressive walk and strikeout numbers. he got a good look at the major leagues in 2023, playing 85 games, hitting 11 home runs, but a whopping 36.16% strikeout rate. Montero has looked to gotten this under control this spring, though its early (two strikeouts in 16 plate appearances, a 12.5% strikeout rate).

Hunter Goodman might be the odd man out here, but he has proven an ability to dominate Triple-A pitching. In just 15 Triple-A games, he hit nine home runs, slugging .903, those are some video game numbers! Goodman can fill in at catcher, play some right field and rotate in at first base, though his bat will be what proves he can make this team.

Final Prediction: Elehuris Montero and Michael Toglia make the team

The starting right fielder job is wide open

The Rockies have an extremely talented outfield group, with budding superstar, Nolan Jones, manning the left field portion and Gold Glove centerfielder, Brenton Doyle, covering the largest portion of grass in all of baseball.

With Kris Bryant moving to first base, in an effort to keep him healthy, there is an opening for the starting right fielder. Sean Bouchard, the 27-year-old UCLA product is the favorite to take that spot, but there will certainly be a battle this spring, and it could become one of the most heated battles of any position in camp.

Sean Bouchard has destroyed minor league pitching, yet only has 140 major league plate appearances at the age of 27. It is pretty mind boggling if you ask me. In 43 plate appearances in 2023, Bouchard had an OPS+ of 165 with four home runs and a .316 batting average. Bouchard has shown his ability to hit for a high average and some solid power. Even in a small sample size, he has proven that he is deserving of a shot to showcase what he can do at the major league level.

The biggest contender for the starting right field job is someone we just talked about, Hunter Goodman. Goodman is one of the most prolific power hitters in the system, slugging 70 home runs over the last two years, proving that he is ready to take advantage of that thin Colorado air. He struggled in a limited sample size in 2023, hitting just .200 with a 31.17% strikeout rate. Goodman, without a doubt possesses true middle of the order thump but may need some time in Triple-A to get the strikeouts under control.

Final Prediction: Sean Bouchard earns the starting RF job

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