Denver Post sports writer Patrick Saunders with the latest installment of his Rockies Mailbag.
Pose a Rockies — or MLB — related question for the Rockies Mailbag.
We kick off this Rockies Mailbag with two similar questions regarding the Rockies’ trade of first baseman C.J. Cron and outfielder Randal Grichuk to the Angels for pitching prospects Jake Madden and Mason Albright.
Long-time reader and fan of your writing and coverage of the Rockies. Can you explain why the Rockies gave $2 million to the Angels for a recent All-Star first basemen (C.J. Cron) and a power-hitting, all-around outfielder (Randal Grichuck) when they only received two minor-league pitching prospects in return? It gives me a little PTSD (Re: the Nolan Arenado trade). Is this a good trade for the Rockies? Thanks.
— Kevin, Denver
Patrick, was trading C.J. Cron and Randal Grichuk to the Angels the best move we could’ve made at the deadline? I mean, giving up those two bats, plus $2 million, for a pair of mid-tier pitching prospects doesn’t seem like the most prudent move for the team. We couldn’t have landed some better prospects? Or more prospects?
— Mike, Denver
Guys, time will tell if this was a good trade for the Rockies — or the Angels. At this point and time, however, I think it was a win-win.
Here’s what you have to consider:
• The Rockies desperately need starting pitching in their system and both Madden (a right-hander) and Albright (a lefty) at least have the potential to become big-leaguers. Reports are that both players, who will begin their Rockies careers at Low-A Fresno, have solid stuff. The task for the Rockies is to develop their young pitchers, something the organization has not done very well in recent years.
• Cron and Grichuk will become free agents after this season, meaning that they are “rental” players for the Angels as they attempt to make a run for the postseason. The Rockies aren’t going anywhere near the postseason, so at least they get something for the two veterans, as opposed to letting them walk away and getting nothing in return.
• This trade is not in the same ballpark — not the same universe — as the Arenado deal. They are totally different scenarios.
• The $2 million the Rockies sent to the Angels is not an excessive amount of money. Essentially, to make the deal fly, the Rockies had to pay part of Cron and Grichuk’s remaining salaries. Cron is still owed about $2.42 million this season, while Grichuk is owed $3.11 million. In the big picture, the Rockies actually saved money.
• Cash considerations are often part of deals such as these. You have to remember that when the Rockies obtained Grichuk in a trade from Toronto in the spring of 2022, the Blue Jays sent $9.7 million to Colorado in exchange for outfielder Raimel Tapia and minor league infielder Adrian Pinto. The cash the Blue Jays sent the Rockies offset a little more than half the $18.7 million Grichuk was still owed over the final two seasons of his $52 million, five-year contract.
Bottom line: I think it was savvy trade by the Rockies, and much, much better than if they had done nothing.
Hey Patrick, did Jurickson Profar draw any interest? You’d think he would. He’s an on-base machine.
— Landon, Aurora
Landon, some teams did express some interest in Profar. Honestly, I thought he would be traded, but I’m not sure how strong the interest was for the left fielder. General manager Bill Schmidt declined to talk about that.
As I write this, Profar is slashing .244/.326/.371 with seven home runs and 36 RBIs. He’s a serviceable outfielder but certainly not an elite defender. Contending teams likely viewed him as a fourth outfielder, which is why he wasn’t a hot commodity. The Rockies signed him for one year at $7.75 million.
In the 1950s and ’60s, team pitching staff personnel were comprised of players with various pitch specialties (e.g. fastball, knuckleball, curveball, forkball) to disrupt batter timing and plate discipline on a daily basis during a home stand. That led to success rates like that of Rockies reliever Bret Sutter. It doesn’t seem like the approach is used in today’s game. If not, then why not? High spin rates and velocities do nothing to disrupt batters but instead increase pitchers’ injuries. Feedback from you and or Bud Black would be interesting. Thanks.
— John P., Arvada
John, Black still admires old-school pitching such as the five-inning start he got from Ty Blach on Sunday. But there can be no denying that teams covet hard-throwing pitchers. It’s easier to have a young pitcher throw heat than take the time to develop them as pitchers.
This is a hot topic but there are many inside baseball who believe that the quest for a 100 mph fastball has become a detriment to the game. I don’t have the time or space to get into the topic here, so I suggest you read this story from Sports Illustrated’s excellent senior writer Tom Verducci.
As he writes: “With athletes becoming stronger and better trained, the rise in pitching velocity began as a gradual evolution. But there has been a stunning leap forward in the past four years.”
Greetings. With the trades in the past week, one has to think the emphasis will be on 2025. Where are the pitchers in the pipeline, besides the ones out with Tommy John surgeries? Where are a couple of homegrown bats, as Elehuris Montero and Michael Toglia don’t seem ready to play significant roles yet? Thanks for covering another tough season. Cheers!
— Robert Emmerling, Limon
Hey Robert, thanks for reading and for the interaction on Twitter. Given the trades the Rockies have made, the 2025 season might be a possibility for a postseason run, though 2026 seems more realistic.
To recap, the Rockies recently lost three of their top pitching prospects to Tommy John surgery: Double-A right-hander Gabriel Hughes (No. 6 prospect according to MLB Pipeline); Single-A Fresno righty Jordy Vargas (No. 11); and Fresno righty Jackson Cox (No. 12).
That leaves only right-hander Jaden Hill (No. 9), a second-round draft pick in 2021, in good health. But Hill has struggled at High-A Spokane this season, going 0-8 with a 9.07 ERA in 15 starts. Little wonder that Rockies general manager Bill Schmidt stockpiled young pitchers at the trade deadline.
As for Montero and Toglia, with C.J. Cron now playing for the Angels, they will get their chance to prove they are big-league players. Toglia is fine in the field but he has a lot of work to do at the plate (.185/.254/.308 slash line with a 34.4% strikeout rate in the majors). Montero is still raw at first base but he’s made some significant strides there and looks more comfortable. If Montero (.220/.248/.364, 39.2% strikeout rate) can learn how to handle breaking balls, he has a chance. Time will tell.
I have noticed that an unusually inordinate number of Rockies pitchers, young and veteran, are having Tommy John surgery. Why is this trend happening?
— Judy, Denver
Judy, it’s not just the Rockies who are facing this epidemic. I recently talked to head trainer Keith Dugger about this and he said that many young pitchers, in an attempt to impress colleges, scouts and agents, are throwing the ball so hard and so often that Tommy John injuries are bound to happen.
As USA Today national baseball writer Bob Nightengale wrote in June: “There have been 31 pitchers who have undergone Tommy John surgery this year – 12 in May alone – involving everyone from Cy Young winners Jacob deGrom and Robbie Ray to first-round prized prospect Kumar Rocker to young star Luis Garcia to Colorado Rockies veteran German Marquez.”
Also, according to a recent story in Baseball Prospectus, elbow and shoulder injuries have increased 44% from just a year ago, and the pitch clock could be to blame.
Hi Patrick. If the Cardinals trade Nolan Arenado, does that void the Rockies’ obligation of having to pay him or does that transfer along with Arenado to the new team?
— Victor, Alameda, Calif.
Victor, Arenado did not get traded, to the Dodgers or anyone else. But to answer your question, the Rockies are still on the hook for part of Arenado’s contract.
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