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Breaking Down Rockies' Biggest Question Heading into Spring Training

Originally posted on Colorado Rockies on SI
By Scott Roche | Last updated Feb 15, 2026 9:00 PM ET

After losing 100 games for the third straight season, there was a change for the Colorado Rockies this offseason. They hired Paul DePodesta as their next president of baseball operations and he brought Josh Byrnes on board as his general manager. The hiring of DePodesta was late, not being announced until after the World Series in November.

It's not just that the Rockies endured another 100-loss season, but it was a 119-loss season that they suffered through. DePodesta doesn't have an easy job in front of him to turn things around and he knows that. It's going to take some time and that is evident even more by the offseason Colorado had.

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Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report had one question for each MLB team going into spring training. His question for the Rockies was: How much worse can it get?

Breaking Down Rockies' Biggest Question Entering 2026

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Rymer does ask a legitimate question. Just how much worse can it get for Colorado and manager Warren Schaeffer?

"The Rockies have topped 100 losses in three straight seasons, and they only narrowly avoided all-time infamy in losing 119 games last year. It can't get much worse than that. Or can it? The Rockies haven't exactly moved the ball forward since the end of 2025, after all, and the NL West isn't going to go easy on them,'' wrote Rymer.

First of all, it wasn't surprising that they didn't do a lot in terms of moves and shake-ups going into 2026. DePodesta didn't rush into any trades of younger players and it is going to take time to see what he has and who he sees as part of the future and who might be moved at some point.

Colorado has brought in some veterans, including pitcher Michael Lorenzen. He is someone who can slot in behind Kyle Freeland at the top of the rotation and possibly provide a trade chip at the deadline. DePodesta brought in veteran position players, Willi Castro through free agency and he acquired outfielder Jake McCarthy from the Arizona Diamondbacks. He also added relief pitcher Brennan Bernardino from the Boston Red Sox.

As Rymer stated, the National League West is going to be a gauntlet. The two-time World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers might be better than last year, while the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres are going to be better. As are the Diamondbacks. Making the playoffs is not a goal this year, but improving on 119 losses should be the first goal in terms of steps of a rebuild that is going to take time to undergo.