“What we’re doing is wrong. We’re not winning baseball games. It’s as clear as day. We’re playing a bad brand of baseball, all around — pitching, fielding, hitting. It’s bad.”
It’s hard to believe it’s only been a few weeks since Denver native an Colorado Rockies left-handed pitcher Kyle Freeland stood at a podium in the Rockies media room. His voice was breaking and he seemed physically on the verge of tears.
“Keep believing in us,” he implored of the Rockies faithful. “Keep riding.”
The Rockies clubhouse has been caught up in a whirlwind since then.
Embattled manager Bud Black and his right-hand man and bench coach Mike Redmond were relieved of their duties. Young third base coach Warren Schaeffer was named the interim manager and fellow younger coaches Jordan Pacheco and Nic Wilson were given the call to fill in his staff. There have also been more rookie debuts by way of Ryan Rolison and Carson Palmquist, and potentially more to come.
One thing, however, has not changed.
The Rockies are still losing.
The Rockies are 3-13 since Freeland took the podium, and 2-11 since Schaeffer took over. There’s been a lot of low scoring and sloppy affairs by the Rockies in that stretch as the team set the modern era record for the worst 50-game start in the modern era. A young team getting younger is doing their best to trudge forward and find a path through the losing.
“We have a lot of young guys who are starting or playing every single day, and probably struggling a little bit with that pressure,” Freeland said. “It’s being a young guy up in the big leagues on a team that is not performing well and trying to do more than you should.
At 32-years-old, Freeland is no longer a young guy, but he knows all about trying to put the team on his shoulders and trying to do more than he should.
Freeland’s 2025 so far has been a tale of two pitchers.
Kyle Freeland leads the team in strikeouts, innings pitched per game started, and Quality Starts. He attacks the strike zone, has only given up four home runs, and has some of the fewest walks given up among MLB qualified starting pitchers. He also tries to support his younger teammates through what can be a demoralizing process.
“You’ve got to make sure, as a veteran, you’re letting them know that we’re going to continue to work and we’re going to continue to get better,” Freeland said. “One game isn’t going to decide your entire career. It’s how you go about your work on a day-to-day basis, in a game. It’s about improving yourself, little by little.”
Freeland also has a less than pleasant 5.86 ERA over 11 starts, has given up the second most hits in the league—behind teammate Antonio Senzatela—and has the fourth most earned runs allowed behind Senzatela and Germán Márquez.
He has also more than once let his emotions and temper get the better of him via his body language, angry looks, or shouted expletives. Sometimes this is directed at his teammates after one of the Rockies’ MLB-leading errors.
While this is definitely something he needs to work on, it can be hard not to empathize with Freeland. When he’s on the mound, he simply isn’t getting on-field support from his teammates.
Freeland may lead the league in total runs allowed, but ten of those runs are unearned. The Rockies as a whole lead the league in unearned runs, as also does Kyle Freeland.
Even more frustrating is that the run support simply isn’t there for Freeland.
The Rockies have struggled offensively as a whole. They’ve scored the second fewest runs in the league, strike out more than any other team, and don’t really hit home runs.
Freeland is frequently on the receiving end of that struggling offense. He is currently tied for the second worst runs of support per game at 2.3, and the Rockies have scored more than two runs during one of his starts just three times in 2025.
This is the third consecutive season where Freeland has ranked towards the bottom of the league in run support. In 2024 he was tied for the 11th fewest runs of support per game at 4.1, and in 2023 he was tied for eighth fewest at 3.9 runs of support.
Freeland’s frustration is also often directed at himself. After a difficult outing against the Detroit Tigers, his body language said it all.
“I was frustrated with myself,” Freeland said. “Wasn’t making pitches. Stuff was up in the zone — easy stuff for them to pick up and hit.”
Kyle Freeland could definitely be pitching better—which could be said for the entire Rockies rotation—and he needs to keep his temper in check. However, his 3.43 FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching), 7.2 SO/9—his highest since 2021 and lower only to rookie Chase Dollander—and low walk rate indicate his pitching isn’t exclusively the problem with his season so far.
Freeland could be doing more on the mound and to uplift and support his teammates, but on the field his teammates could be doing much more to uplift and support Freeland.
★ ★ ★
On the Farm
Triple-A: Albuquerque Isotopes 14, Reno Aces 0
The Albuquerque Isotopes tore down the Reno Aces (Arizona Diamondbacks) in a much needed decisive victory that included an eight run fifth inning. Connor Van Scoyoc took over for an injured Jack O’Loughlin in the first inning and pitched 3 1⁄3 scoreless innings of long relief before giving way to the rest of the bullpen. The Isotopes offense, led by Ryan Ritter, took care of the rest. Ritter went 3-for-6 with three home runs, including the first hit of the game. Trevor Boone and Keston Hiura hit two home runs each.
Double-A: Hartford Yard Goats 3, Erie Sea Wolves 0
Lefty Sean Sullivan spun 5 2⁄3 scoreless innings in his third start since returning to Hartford. He gave up just two hits and two walks against the Sea Wolves (Detroit Tigers) while striking out six batters. Victor Vodnik worked a scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout in a rehab appearance, and Sam Weatherly earned a two inning save. Juan Guerrero went 2-for-4 and crossed the plate for two of the Yard Goats’ three runs, while Zach Kokoska hit a solo home run for the third.
High-A: Spokane Indians 2, Tri-City Dust Devils 1
Michael Prosecky worked a seven inning Quality Start against the Dust Devils (Los Angeles Angels, giving up just one earned run on four hits and a walk. The Indians bullpen kept the small lead in hand as Davis Palermo earned his third save of the season and lowered his ERA to just 1.17 so far. Jared Thomas went 2-for-4 with a double and plated one of the Indians’ two runs, while Skyler Messinger drove in the other.
Low-A: San Jose Giants 2, Fresno Grizzlies 1
The Grizzlies offense sputtered despite a well pitched game against the Giants (San Francisco Giants), scoring just one run on five hits and leaving eight men stranded. Shortstop Kelvin Hidalgo went 2-for-4 and drove in the Grizzlies’ only run with an RBI double. Catcher Juan Castillo went 2-for-4 and Jacob Hinderleider was the only other Fresno batter with a hit.
★ ★ ★
Herget’s success providing stability in Rockies’ bullpen | MLB.com
We’ve discussed Rockies reliever Jimmy Herget before, and he continues to be a solid contributor out of the Rockies’ bullpen. “The Human Glitch” enjoyed the humidity after Sunday’s rain delay and worked 2 1⁄3 scoreless innings with three strikeouts to keep the Yankees in check.
Tovar keeping his chin up through struggles: ‘We’re going to get there’ | MLB.com
Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar has recorded a hit in eight of the nine games he’s appeared in since returning from the injured list. The Rockies’ star shortstop is fighting the urge to take more onto his shoulders than he is capable of delivering, but also understands his importance in helping the struggling Rockies find their way.
“There are times when you think about it, that you want to do more for this team, but I think that’s when you find issues,” Tovar said. “I have to trust the guy that’s hitting behind me and the guys who are hitting in front of me. I have to trust this team.”
★ ★ ★
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