What comes next for Rockies bullpen after Seth Halvorsen injury

DENVER — The Colorado Rockies received good news on the injury front  with Seth Halvorsen on Monday. Now it's about what comes next in the closer's absence.

Halvorsen, who left Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the middle of his outing with an arm injury, was placed on the injured list on Sunday with what was called a right elbow strain. On Monday, that injury was officially changed to a mild flexor strain.

"It's a good report from the MRI," Rockies interim manager Warren Schaeffer said. "He doesn't necessarily need surgery and could potentially pitch again this season with such an injury. That's positive news."

Halvorsen leads the Rockies with 11 saves this season, but has been hit hard over his last seven outings, posting a 10.80 ERA while giving up six runs and six hits in 5.0 innings.

With the Rockies now knowing that Halvorsen will not require Tommy John surgery, the focus becomes what the new-look Colorado bullpen will look like after a week of transformation.

Colorado dealt away relievers Jake Bird (to the New York Yankees) and Tyler Kinley (to the Atlanta Braves) prior to the MLB trade deadline while also losing Halvorsen and Zach Agnos (placed on the injured list with a right flexor strain on July 27). Of Colorado's 20 saves this season, Halvorsen, Agnos and Kinley have 18 of them.

The remaining two belong to Victor Vodnik, who will slide into the closer role in Halvorsen's absence. Schaeffer also said that Juan Mejia and Jimmy Herget would have larger roles in the late innings as well.

How Vodnik adjusts to the role will be interesting to watch as he has a 9.64 ERA in save opportunities this season, going just 2-for-6 in those opportunities. In all other outings, he has a 2.54 ERA.

With the Rockies entering Monday with a 30-81 mark, being able to close out games will be a key part of Colorado trying to avoid accumulating the most losses in MLB's modern era. The Rockies need to win just 12 of their final 51 games to avoid matching the 121 defeats posted by the Chicago White Sox last season.