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

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.