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3 Rockies pitchers who need to step up with the Kyle Freeland injury news
It's time to step up for these 3
The biggest weakness on this Rockies team was dealt a huge blow when the Colorado native, Kyle Freeland, was diagnosed with a left elbow strain. Now, the team isn't expected to compete, so it's not like this really changes the trajectory of the season. In fact, trying to keep the positive vibes, it could give the Rockies an opportunity to look at some other starting pitchers to see if they have a potential arm beyond this year. With guys like Dakota Hudson and Cal Quantrill on short term deals, this could be very valuable.
Losing a leader in the clubhouse and fan favorite is going to be really hard to deal with. Hopefully Freeland's injury is just the month to six weeks like Bud Black stated and not a significant injury like the Spencer Strider or Shane Beiber injury. Today we want to look at what this opportunity might provide and who needs to take advantage of this for however long it will be (please only be the four to six weeks...fingers crossed).
Peter Lambert
The obvious one here is Lambert. The righty made 11 starts in 2023 and was the teams swing man on the 2024 roster, and he was really good at it. Lambert has made six appearances, throwing 11.2 innings, giving Bud Black a solid bridge to the bullpen. He only struck out 7.7 per nine and his walk rate increased to 4.6 per nine so far. But Lambert's been able to produce a 94th percentile ground ball rate that has allowed him to really limit the damage against him.
Lambert is still under club control through next year, but this could be about as good of an opportunity as any to prove that he should have a long-term spot in this rotation. The Rockies really lack talent in their rotation and while they are certainly acquiring and developing young pitching talent, they need some solid guys right now. Lambert is a good fill-in option for Freeland, but he could show that he has the ability to become a starter that gets 25+ starts a year.
Austin Gomber
The most upside of anyone on this list, Austin Gomber was supposed to become a very solid pitcher for the Rockies. He had a very good 2020 season before being traded to the Rockies and he has yet to really live up to the expectations that the Rockies and fans placed on him. He has been better this year with a strikeout rate back over eight, the first time since 2021 and his last two starts have been very good after a tough first two starts.
This team already lacked the front-end starter after losing German Marquez and Antonio Senzatela, so losing Freeland, even if it is only for a month, really hurts. Gomber is certainly going to be in the rotation throughout this year and barring a surprising trade, will be here through next year as well. But he really has the opportunity to step up and show that he can be the higher strikeout pitcher that this team has been missing. He also has the opportunity to step up and lead this rotation, as arguably the most talented pitcher when looking at their stuff and experience.
Anthony Molina
This one is more of a trickle down effect. As Lambert moves into the bullpen, the Rockies will be looking for a swingman to step up and fill that role. Noah Davis was brought up to give Bud Black another solid option that can fill multiple innings. But it is a Rule 5 draft pick, in Anthony Molina, that needs to step up and showcase his talent.
Molina is a very talented and interesting arm that the Rockies were able to snag in the rule 5 draft this offseason. The right-handed pitcher is just 22 years-old, so expectations should be tempered as he is still young, and this is just his fifth season playing professional baseball. Molina has a solid fastball and slider but just hasn't been able to produce results. Molina may not be thought about much as having a big opportunity with the Freeland injury, but with over 120 innings last year, he has a solid shot to be the swingman if he can get better results than what he's gotten so far.
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