Welcome to the 2025 edition of Ranking the Rockies, where we take a look back at every player to log playing time for the Rockies in 2025. The purpose of this list is to provide a snapshot of the player in context. The “Ranking” is an organizing principle that’s drawn from Baseball Reference’s WAR (rWAR). It’s not something the staff debated. We’ll begin with the player with the lowest rWAR and end up with the player with the highest.
No. 26, Drew Romo (-0.1 rWAR)
When the Colorado Rockies selected Drew Romo 35th overall in the 2020
draft, hopes were high that they may have finally found a franchise catcher for the future. Solid behind the dish with a decent hitting pedigree as a switch-hitter, Romo steadily made progress through the minors until he finally made his big league debut late in 2024.
Romo’s first big league stint wasn’t the best as he ended up hitting .177/.208/.235 in 51 plate appearances over 16 games. He managed three doubles and six RBI but also struck out 18 times against two walks. He certainly showed some glimpses of his hitting prowess, but the strikeouts left and some of his defensive tendencies seemed to have left a bad taste in the mouth of Bud Black and the rest of the Rockies front office. Romo saw his playing time practically disappear in September last season as Hunter Goodman returned to the roster and hit a hot streak at the plate.
Goodman’s bat was hard to ignore, but the matter of Romo’s throws from behind the plate, specifically back to the pitcher, became a hot-button issue.
Romo’s throws back to the pitcher became more of a shot put throw that arched, something that big league base runners took notice of and could take advantage of. The issue of the “yips” had its origins in the minors.
“I was trying to throw the ball back to the pitcher, and he kept turning his head away,” Romo said to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. “So it made me very tentative. I didn’t want to hit the guy, didn’t want to hurt him or have the ball get away and an error and runs score, whatever.”
Then-manager Bud Black and then-bench coach/catching instructor Mike Redmond told him in the issue needed to be addressed. The Rockies planned on entering the season with Jacob Stallings and Goodman as the tandem behind the plate, leaving Romo to head to Triple-A Albuquerque after a 2-for-17 spring training and continue to work on things.
Unfortunately, Romo suffered a broken pinkie diving into third base after hitting a triple. He wasn’t able to join the Isotopes until late May, losing precious development time that made his bid to rejoin the Rockies roster even tougher.
While he was injured, Goodman became just the second Rockies All-Star catcher in franchise history, winning a Silver Slugger and putting up the best offensive season by a catcher in Rockies history. He also continued to make massive strides behind the plate defensively. Additionally, the team liked the promise of Braxton Fulford on both sides of the ball, giving him multiple opportunities throughout the season to fill in as the backup catcher.
So, the only thing Romo could do was to play like usual in Albuquerque and force his name back into the conversation. In 60 games with the Isotopes, he slashed .264/.329/.409 with 11 doubles and seven home runs, along with 23 RBI. Considering how much of an effect a broken pinkie can have on an offensive player even after it has healed, it was a solid year for Romo that mirrored his other productive years in the minors.
More importantly, Romo’s throws to the pitcher appear to have been sorted out. While rehabbing his injury in Arizona, Romo worked diligently to address the simple issue. That time in Albuquerque also proved fruitful for the young 24-year-old as he continues to build confidence as the leader behind the plate while working with pitchers.
“I never caught that much in my life,” Romo said. “It really helped me catching. And my hitting was much-improved. Playing every day, getting into a rhythm, seeing pitches and then being behind the plate was taxing. But my body felt good and my mind felt good.”
When rosters expanded in September, the Rockies recalled Romo to the big league roster. However, his stay was going to be strictly a learning experience rather than a playing one. Interim manager Warren Schaeffer had explained that the desire was for Goodman and Fulford to continue in a regular rotation, leaving practically no time for Romo to play much at all in the final month of a lost season.
He made just three appearances in 2025, twice as a pinch hitter in the ninth and once as a defensive sub in the latter innings of an eventual 11-3 loss to the San Diego Padres. In all three plate appearances, Romo struck out, and he wasn’t challenged defensively behind the plate.
Romo’s future and role with the Rockies is now in the air more than ever. Goodman’s 2025 season has cemented the starting role behind the plate in 2026. Romo is certainly the better all-around defender behind the plate, but it’s tough to overtake a 30-home run guy. With the throwing issue sorted out, hopefully, there is less pressure and more confidence that can be placed in Romo’s ability as a player. At the very least, he can compete for the backup role heading into 2026 if he can continue to develop over the offseason and perform well in spring training.
Personally, I still have high hopes for Romo’s potential and confidence in his abilities. It’s easy to just write him off as a bust and move on. But in reality, he can still be a valuable big leaguer and useful asset, but he needs to be given the same type of opportunities that were awarded to Goodman and Fulford to figure things out on the job at the big league level.
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