TJ Rumfield has had a whirlwind spring.
First, he was traded from the New York Yankees to the Colorado Rockies in January in exchange for reliever Angel Chivilli. Then, he absolutely tore through spring training — hitting .286/.359/.554 with five home runs in 23 games. Additionally, he had more walks (5) than strikeouts (2). That was enough to earn him the Abby Greer Award for Rockies Spring Training MVP.
Now the regular season has started, and Rumfield shows no signs of slowing down. In nine games,
Rumfield is slashing .345/.406/.586 with two home runs — one in Miami and one in Colorado. His three walks are tied with Willi Castro for the Rockies’ lead.
We spoke with him right after he was named to the Opening Day roster, but how has he settled in now that he’s completed his first week in the big leagues?
“It was kind of a lot to take in,” Rumfield said of his first week. “It was a lot of things happening at one time, but just a lot of gratitude. And having the health to be there, and being able to be there playing a baseball game was pretty special. Being in the major leagues is even more special.”
And the highlight?
“Getting the first win,” he said. “You can do so well in a game, and you go 4-for-4, and you lose it doesn’t really matter. But you win a game, it’s the best thing ever.”
His family was on hand to celebrate, taking pictures on the field in Miami, but he said he’s “glad to get it out of the way.”
However, the thing that made him the most nervous wasn’t his first at-bat or taking the field for the first time. It happened before the Rockies exited the visiting clubhouse in Miami.
“Probably getting my jersey on for the first game was the most nerve-wracking,” he said. “Just making sure I had my glove, my bat, my hat, and that I had the right belt on – all the little stuff that I don’t worry about but making sure that I look good.”
In that first game, Rumfield went 1-for-3 with a single and a walk.
Naturally, Rumfield has gotten a lot of advice from other players about not only life in the major leagues, but taking care of his body at elevation.
“It’s a little more focused on just eating the right things, drinking the right things, making sure that you sleep just to be ready for the game the next day and maximize your performance,” he said.
The most profound advice, though, came from bench coach Jeff Pickler.
“[Pickler] did a good job of saying just, ‘If you think you belong here, you do,’” he said.
Warren Schaeffer also gave Rumfield some good advice ahead of his debut.
“[He said] just soak it all in,” Rumfield said. “You only get one debut; you only get one rookie year, so just take everything in stride and soak it in and be grateful for everything that’s happening.”
And so far, Schaeffer has been as impressed with Rumfield as everyone else.
“I think with TJ, it’s just natural in him to take balls and swing at strikes,” Schaeffer said on Saturday. “That’s what we saw all spring, and then you never know if it’s going to translate in a big-league game, and it has. So it just seems to be who he is. The quality of the at-bats is very high. He’s willing to take his walks, and he can do damage. So he’s a guy that is very valuable to our team, and we’re very happy he’s here.”
Schaeffer reiterated that on Sunday, after Rumfield hit a two-run homer in the first inning against the Phillies.
“Spring training stats are empty, I think that’s a good generalization,” he said after the game. “It’s the things within that: the ability to take his walks, the ability to fire at balls in the zone and take those out of the zone. He can’t take that for granted. We’re a big chase team – we have been historically for the past couple years – so a guy like that stands out in terms of his skillset. So when you see it in spring training, that’s what you know can translate.”
But what did Rumfield think of his Coors Field debut?
“Fantastic,” he said. “The result wasn’t what we wanted, but seeing all the fans and how much they care and how much they love the Rockies – even if we lose by nine runs – it was felt, even when the flyover was happening before the game. I have goosebumps thinking about that.”
Rumfield is young and has a ways to go in his development. But as long as he continues trending in the right direction, hopefully we will see him man first base for the foreseeable future.
On the Farm
Triple-A: Reno Aces 3, Albuquerque Isotopes 2
Every Topes starter except one had at least one hit in the game (Andrew Knizner had two, and Drew Avans had zero), but they came up short. Chad Stevens hit a double, and Knizer hit a solo homer. Four players had five total bases — Adael Amador, Cole Carrigg (No. 4 PuRP), Blaine Crim and Knizner. However, the Topes pitching was just out-dueled by the Aces pitching. Parker Mushiski tossed a scoreless inning with two strikeouts to open the game; Gabriel Hughes (No. 12 PuRP) threw 5.1 innings while allowing just one run (earned) on two hits with one walk and six strikeouts. Keegan Thompson ended up yielding the losing runs, as he allowed two (both solo homers) on five hits in 2.2 innings.
High-A: Spokane Indians 10, Everett AquaSox 9 (F/10)
It was a back and forth affair in Spokane. Ethan Hedges (No. 29 PuRP) was the star of the night, going 3-for-4 with three runs scored, three RBI and a walk. He also hit two solo home runs — one in the second inning to put the Indians on the board and one in the fifth. Robert Calaz (No. 6 PuRP) and Juan Castillo each had two hits — Calaz hit a solo homer in the fifth as well — but Max Belyeu (No. 15 PuRP) had the most to say, going 4-for-5 with two RBI and a strikeout. Caleb Hobson ended up being the hero, hitting a sacrifice bunt but an error by pitcher Calvin Schapira let Jacob Humphrey score the winning run in the 10th. On the pitching side, Jordy Vargas (No. 21 PuRP) pitched three innings and allowed just one run (earned), but he also struck out four and walked four.
Low-A: Fresno Grizzlies 7, Visalia Rawhide 3
The Fresno Grizzlies were down early, but they weren’t out. A home run to the Rawhide’s Carlos Virahonda put them in a two-run hole, but some team baseball in the fourth scored six unanswered runs. It got started with a three-run double by Matt Klein to score Wilder Dalis (No. 24 PuRP), Tanner Thach and Derek Bernard. A few batters later, Cameron Nelson hit a sacrifice fly to score Klein, and then Roldy Brito (No. 11 PuRP) singled to score Luis Mendez and Jack O’Dowd. Brito stole second and advanced to third on a balk, but he was ultimately caught out at home on a fielder’s choice. Bernard would homer in the seventh to put the Grizzlies up 7-3. On the pitching side, starter Austin Newton tossed five innings and allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits with one walk and four strikeouts. He was the only pitcher to allow any runs.
Rockies’ Ryan Feltner, unfazed by past trauma, ready for breakout season | Denver Post ($)
Ryan Feltner has had a tough few years. In 2023, he was hit in the back of the head with a comebacker that nearly ended his career (or worse). In 2024, he bounced back and had a great season but his 2025 season was derailed by early back and shoulder injuries. After a “stressful” spring, Feltner slotted into the fifth spot in the rotation and made his 2026 debut against the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday. But then he was hit with another comebacker — this time in his hip — and it looked dire for a moment. However, Feltner is scheduled to make his next start this evening and is confident this won’t spell bad luck for another season.
‘Hero of the game’ Bellozo an example of Rox low-profile area of team growth | MLB.com
The Rockies have had an up-and-down first week, and are gearing up for what could be a wildly up-and-down year (buckle up, everyone!). However, in what looked like a lost game on Friday was highlighted by an outstanding performance by offseason acquisition Valente Bellozo. Bellozo was initially optioned to start the season, but was brought up when José Quintana was placed on the 15-day IL with a hamstring injury. In his Rockies debut, Bellozo six innings in relief and allowed just one run — a solo homer — on the one hit with seven strikeouts and a walk. Hopefully they won’t need him to put up another performance like that in relief, but he’s proving he can early and could be someone to keep an eye on throughout the season.
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