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3 takeaways from the Rockies first week of Spring Training

We are through just a week of baseball this spring, but there are certainly some headlines to look at.

By Tanner Vogt |
2024 Colorado Rockies Spring Training
2024 Colorado Rockies Spring Training / Kyle Cooper/Colorado Rockies/GettyImages
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The Rockies squad has been in Arizona plugging away and grinding to get ready for the 2024 season. They have been surprising and playing pretty well, I know it's spring, but it's nice to see the purple in the win column a little more often. Even with the small sample size this spring, there have been a few storylines and takeaways that we really need to highlight that could play a big factor in the 2024 season.

Elehuris Montero is ready to breakout

Coming into this spring, there seemed to be a bit of a battle for the bench role or backup role at first base and DH. Elehuris Montero and Michael Toglia seemed like the likely candidates to duke it out. Both have had a good spring, but Montero has been scorching hot!

At the time of this writing, Montero is tied with Toglia for the team lead in home runs, with two. He leads the team and is tied for second in spring training with seven RBIs. Four of his five hits have been extra base hits, spending a lot of time at first base.

Perhaps the biggest positive for Montero has been the cut back on strikeouts. After running nearly a 37% strikeout rate in 2023, it was important for Montero to get this under control (strikeouts have never really been an issue for him). If Montero can keep up his ability to limit strikeouts, his immense power and hit tool could result in a really big breakout 2024 season.

The Rockies youth movement has begun!

We knew coming into this spring that there would be a lot of young prospects and players that were going to get an extended look. They invited a solid group of non-roster invitees that included some of the Rockies top prospects like Jordan Beck, Adael Amador, Drew Romo, Carson Palmquist, Jaden Hill, Benny Montgomery, Zac Veen, Julio Carreras, Yanquiel Fernandez and Sterlin Thompson.

All of these prospects are not too far off from the major leagues and a few of them have popped off this spring. Beck has gone 5/10 with a double and two RBIs; Yanquiel Fernandez is 3/10 including an absolute bomb; Romo is 3/10 with two doubles and has gotten really good reviews from the pitchers. Zac Veen is tied for the spring lead with three stolen bases, while pitching prospect, Carson Palmquist, has struck out five batters in just three innings, surrendering just two hits and one walk. Julio Carreras has flashed some power and glove (actually in the same day).

The Rockies have really had a solid spring and have shown that they could be an exciting team to watch this spring. While a lot of eyes will be focused on the major league roster, the young guys in the minor leagues may be just as exciting to watch, proving that the Rockies youth movement is in full swing!

The pitching staff may produce more strikeouts in 2024

One of the most frustrating things that the Rockies have seemingly repeatedly done, is find pitchers that have low strikeout rates, low 90's fastball and attempt to keep the ball on the ground. That sounds like a great plan, especially considering the Rockies solid defense, but playing at Coors Field makes that extremely difficult to accomplish.

Things look to have shifted this year, at least so far. The Rockies are actually ranked sixth this spring in total strikeouts. While a few starters have shown some solid strikeout ability, like Palmquist striking out five in three innings, and Noah Davis with four over four innings, the relievers have really dominated in the strikeout department. Some guys have really stepped up with Matt Koch striking out six in three innings, Anthony Molina with five in 3.2 innings and flamethrower Jaden Hill with four in just two innings.

The Rockies have a very different group of pitchers, especially in the bullpen and 2024 could be a season where we see a little more excitement. The Rockies bullpen could have some really interesting arms that could surprise some people this year. Hopefully that change in philosophy, results in a more effective bullpen.

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