Colorado Rockies Starter Chase Dollander Ready To Prove Himself in 2026

Overall, Dollander's rookie year numbers aren't pretty. With a 2-12 record, the 23-year-old has a 6.52 ERA in 98 innings. He's striking out batters at a 7.5 per nine rate, which is way down compared to the rest of his career.

Dollander's first full season came in 2024, where he started 23 games while pitching to a 2.59 ERA and 12.9 K/9. That is more in line with the kind of pitcher he is, someone with overpowering stuff who strikes out the world.

That hasn't been the case most of the season, but he's found a groove lately and is coming off his best performance in the big leagues.

In a road loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Dollander threw five strong innings, allowing just one run on one hit to go along with five strikeouts. He'll now hit the injured list, effectively ending his season, but he ended his rookie year on a high note.

"I'm the best pitcher in the world. I'm going to go out there and believe and have the confidence that I am. I truly think I have the mentality, the stuff -- the everything -- to be the best pitcher in the world," Dollander said on Thursday.

Any team would take that kind of confidence from their young star. He's got the stuff to go along with it, but he's not a finished product.

The biggest adjustment that Dollander will have to make is one that every Rockies pitcher deals with - how to pitch at Coors Field.

Coors Field Has Been House of Horrors for Chase Dollander

In 11 home starts, the right-hander has a 9.98 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 46 innings. On the road, it's a different story. In ten starts on the road, his ERA drops to 3.46 in 52 innings with 47 strikeouts. His road WHIP is 1.173 compared to 1.978 at home.

"For him, it's determining how he wants his arsenal to play at home as opposed to on the road. There have been adjustments made in season trying to discover that -- looking at the analytic data," manager Warren Schaeffer stated.

According to MLB.com's Thomas Harding, Dollander's slider, one of his best pitches, has become an issue at Coors. He's given up 12 home runs throwing that pitch at home compared to just six on the road.

Not only that, but he's had trouble locating his fastball, which he uses to great success high in the zone. However, that hasn't happened this year, as batters are hitting .296 against it and he's getting only whiffs 20 percent of the time throwing it, according to Baseball Savant.

"I'm not sure where it went. It could have been that early in the season I was trying to get the ball down at Coors. It could've been a multitude of things. But I'm pretty freaking confident going into the offseason that I'm going to get it back," Dollander said of his main offering.

Will there be a lot of adjustments for the young right-hander going forward? Yes, that will always be the case when pitching in a place like Coors Field. But maybe more so than any Rockies pitcher in a long time, he has the stuff to get it done. That is why Colorado and its fans should be so excited about Dollander's future.

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