3 Rockies players we'll be glad are gone in 2024 and 2 we wish stayed

Rockies fans might look back on this offseason and lament at the fact that the Rockies didn't do much of anything. Many fans wish this team would at least try and add a few solid free agents but in the toughest division in baseball, you have to do so many things right in order to contend and the Rockies weren't in a good position to do that.

The Rockies 2024 roster will be filled with a lot less major league "regulars" like Randal Grichuk, C.J. Crone or Jurickson Profar, in lieu of some young, up and coming prospects. The Rockies needed to approach the 2023-24 offseason in this manner; they needed to make sure they didn't block any prospects or guys needing to prove that they can play at the major league level (Elehuris Montero and Michael Toglia).

While the Rockies certainly had to let some veterans go, whether it was in the offseason or the middle of last year, there were a couple of guys that left that Rockies fans will be upset at letting go. They were either a fan favorite, one of the better players at a position of need, or they got replaced by someone similar in what is at best a lateral move.

Rockies player fans wish stayed: Brent Suter

There are so many reasons to like Brent Suter. Suter comes from a school that isn't typically known for producing solid baseball talent, Harvard University, but he showed that he is a very good pitcher. He also made his way to the big leagues as a 31st round pick, something that he should be commended for.

Suter is not just a good story, however, as he was one of the Rockies best pitchers in 2023. He figured out how to beat the thin Colorado air, with his funky delivery, throwing 69.1 innings with just a 3.38 ERA. Suter was one of the few bright spots in a rather gloomy 2023 season and many fans were pretty upset when it seemed that the Rockies showed virtually no interest in bringing him back (especially after not trading him at the deadline last year).

Suter also just seems like one of the glue guys in the clubhouse; he had a quirky, goofy personality that had to have been very important for a club that put together the worst season in franchise history. The Rockies bullpen will surely miss the tall lefty and his eccentric attitude both on the mound an in the dugout. Fans will miss his effectiveness and especially his Jim Carrey impersonations.

Rockies player fans are thrilled to see gone: Jurickson Profar

Profar signed really late in the offseason last year, signing after the team was at spring training. He was coming off a solid year with the Padres, but Colorado offered him a on a one-year deal that provided him a solid position to prove it again in hopes of becoming a free agent the next year and earning a bigger payday.

Profar made a lot of sense for the Rockies when they signed him. The team needed some outfield depth (similar to this year), little did they know that they would have two breakout players in Brenton Doyle and Nolan Jones, but no one faulted them for taking a chance on the former top prospect. Profar brought a skill set that was different than what most of the Rockies had; he didn't strike out a ton, he walked quite a bit, he didn't have a ton of power, but could play multiple positions.

It was not a great time for Profar in Colorado as the former top overall prospect. The 30-year-old switch-hitter struggled to make solid contact, hitting just .236 and slugging a dreadful .364 (especially considering the friendly confines of Coors Field). He hit just eight home runs in 111 games, before the Rockies released him in August.

Luckily for Rockies fans, the emergence of Nolan Jones made Profar expendable, and they weren't forced to see that experiment through. The Rockies have stated that they would like to bring back another outfielder, but fans will be very happy that Profar will not be that guy. His absence will give way to opportunities for guys like Sean Bouchard and Hunter Goodman to make their mark.

Rockies player fans wish stayed: Brian Serven

Don't look now, but Brian Servin is leading all of MLB in RBI's this spring. I know, Serven isn't going to become the All-Star catcher like Elias Diaz was, but the 28-year-old, former fifth round pick in the 2016 draft, was hardly given a fair chance to earn his keep at the major league level.

Serven received just 228 plate appearances at the major league level before being DFA'd this offseason. Serven didn't impress at the plate in 2023, but was decent behind the plate, throwing out a whopping 42% of attempted base stealers. Serven had always hit pretty well, especially for a catcher, yet the Rockies were quick to let the former fifth round catcher leave, in favor of signing a veteran like Jacob Stallings.

That's the part that is confusing; Serven was a fifth-round pick, that is a fairly high investment, yet was only given 73 games at the big-league level before they decided it wasn't going to work. Stallings is a 34-year-old journeyman catcher that is a glove first guy and hasn't been able to figure things out offensively. I just don't see the benefit in bringing in a veteran with virtually no upside, on a one-year deal, when there is a 28-year-old catcher that has hit all but this year, with at least some upside.

Serven certainly isn't going to be an elite level catcher but letting him go and turning to a more expensive, older catcher with less upside just doesn't make sense. Serven could very well have the Rockies kicking themselves when he shows that he has the ability to be an average backup catcher, something that is hard to find in the game today.

Rockies player fans are thrilled to see gone: C.J. Cron

I'll admit, C.J. Cron was a pretty fun player to watch for a team that really lacked excitement over the last couple years. He took advantage of the thin Colorado air and hit some absolutely majestic home runs in the nicest ballpark in baseball. He is tied with Giancarlo Stanton for the further ball hit at Coors Field, and it was absolutely smashed!

Cron seemed like a great guy and filled in well for the Rockies at first base, hitting nearly 30 home runs in back-to-back seasons with the Rockies. Surprisingly, the Rockies actually traded the first baseman at the deadline; he was on an expiring contract, and we know how the Rockies have seemed to botch that situation in the past.

Cron's production would be welcome in the Rockies lineup as it is pretty bereft of thump in the middle of the lineup. The 34-year-old doesn't really match up with where the Rockies are at, timeline wise. His absence could give guys like Michael Toglia, Elehuris Montero or even Hunter Goodman more playing time as potential options at first base.

Perhaps the biggest reason why fans should be excited to see him gone, is that it will allow the $26 million dollar man, Kris Bryant, a better chance to stay healthy and spend a majority of his time at first base. Keeping Bryant at first base, and healthy enough to play 120+ games, should be more than enough to make Rockies fans happy and see Bryant more than replace Cron's production.

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