Friends, we are just a week away from Major League Baseball returning in full force and the Colorado Rockies opening up the season in Miami on March 27. Camp is winding down, which means the team will have to start making decisions about who will be on that plane to Florida. So, without further ado, let’s predict what the Opening Day roster could look like. For a further exploration of each position, be sure to check out our State of the Position series.
Catcher: Hunter Goodman, Brett Sullivan
It’s no surprise that we can pencil in Hunter
Goodman as the Opening Day catcher for the Rockies. After a breakout All-Star season in 2025, Goodman more than earned his spot heading into the offseason. Yes, Goodman hasn’t had the best time in Cactus League play, slashing .147/.225/.324 with two home runs in 40 plate appearances, but he’s earned the benefit of the doubt for the time being. Can he replicate last season?
As for the backup catcher spot, I’m going with Brett Sullivan over Braxton Fulford. Sullivan has had a phenomenal time at the plate in camp and presents a left-handed alternative to Goodman. Additionally, much like Fulford, Sullivan isn’t too bad on the base paths, presenting the athleticism this team appears to be valuing. Despite having roughly the same number of big league games under their belt, Sullivan edges out Fulford as someone with plenty of professional experience and has shown a keen ability for game calling and working with the pitchers. Fulford would then get the chance to play nearly every day in Triple-A to continue developing.
First Base: T.J. Rumfield, Edouard Julien
T.J. Rumfield has made the most of the opportunity to win the first base job since coming over from the New York Yankees. His lengthy minor league experience back to 2021 has left him with nothing else to prove, and now he looks to finally get his shot at the big league level. His solid defense and contact-heavy bat with some power potential harkens back to a certain Hall of Famer for the Rockies.
There are a few other options worthy of a first base spot, but I’ll give it to Edouard Julien. Acquired in a trade with the Minnesota Twins, the Rockies seemed intent on bringing in Julien and using him in some capacity, and he is out of options. Julien has shown in the majors and the minors that he can be a good addition to the lineup, even though he has struggled at the plate over the last two seasons. High contact with some power mixed in against right-handers is great, and his ability to play second base rounds out some depth. Of course, Charlie Condon (No. 1 PuRP) and Troy Johnston are also right in the mix at the time of writing.
Second Base: Willi Castro
For a brief moment, it seemed that Willi Castro could be taking over third base while someone like Julien took over at second base. However, due to developments at the hot corner, Castro is poised to handle second base regularly. This is the best-case scenario, as the middle infield is more in line with Castro’s natural abilities, but he’ll still have his chances to show off his versatility around the diamond. He’s looked good at the plate in Cactus League play as well as in the World Baseball Classic, and could end up being an incredible first position player free agent signing by the Rockies’ front office.
Third Base: Kyle Karros
There were some questions about whether Kyle Karros would be able to make third base his own, and he has provided plenty of answers in spring training. There was no doubt he could handle the position defensively, but whether or not the bat would follow was an entirely different matter. Through his own determination and adjustments over the offseason, both mechanically and physically, Karros has left little doubt he is ready to take on a full season of Major League Baseball.
Shortstop: Ezequiel Tovar
Injuries hindered Ezequiel Tovar in 2025, preventing him from ever finding an offensive groove and doing anything close to what was done in 2024. Tovar has only played five games with the Rockies in spring training because he’s been part of Team Venezuela in the WBC. Tovar has looked like his old self in the atmosphere of the WBC, which will hopefully carry into the regular season. Gold Glove defense and the All-Star potential if he can refine some of his offensive follies could result in the best season yet of Tovar’s young career.
Outfield: Jake McCarthy, Brenton Doyle, Jordan Beck
At first, it was unclear exactly why the Rockies acquired Jake McCarthy from the Arizona Diamondbacks, but as spring training has progressed, it has become quite clear. The Rockies are hoping that McCarthy can tap back into the things that made him successful at times in Arizona and be a spark on offense. They want him to get on base by any means necessary, steal bases, and score runs. They are also banking on his center fielder pedigree to aid in covering the expanse of left field at home, while also serving as a more reliable back-up to Brenton Doyle in center field.
Doyle faced ups and downs in 2025, both on and off the field, but started to look like the breakout player from 2024 in the latter part of last season. He has battled a few things in camp already, namely a sprained wrist, but he has looked excellent in the games he has played. Of course, he’ll look to reclaim his Gold Glove title in center field after failing to become a finalist last season.
Jordan Beck will be making the move to right field on a more regular basis, at least while the Rockies are playing at home. Beck showed flashes of his potential in 2025 and will need to find more consistency at the plate this season to take the next step forward and prove to the Rockies he can be a long-term answer in the outfield corners.
Designated Hitter: Mickey Moniak
Mickey Moniak will get plenty of time in the outfield, but it looks like he’ll also get the majority of at-bats as the designated hitter. Moniak put up a career year last season with the Rockies and will get the chance to replicate and build upon it this season. The Rockies will also use the DH spot to cycle in other players to get them off their feet in the field and give other players chances to play.
Utility: Tyler Freeman, Ryan Ritter
Tyler Freeman took up quite a few games as the Rockies’ DH and right fielder in 2025, but looks to move around a bit more and perhaps use his infield abilities a bit more. He proved a lead-off revelation for the club last season, so manager Warren Schaeffer needs more options to plug him into the lineup.
Ryan Ritter showed some flashes during his big league stints last year and has impressed in spring training this year. Ritter has been learning the outfield in camp to go along with his infield experience. Two super utility players in Freeman and Ritter give the Rockies some versatility around the diamond to mix and match and try to put forth the best lineup each game.
Starting Rotation: Kyle Freeland, Michael Lorenzen, José Quintana, Tomoyuki Sugano, Chase Dollander
Kyle Freeland continues to be a rock in the rotation and will be the Opening Day starter once again. The free agent additions of Michael Lorenzen, José Quintana, and Tomoyuki Sugano bring much-needed experience, and all had some inspired outings in the WBC. The final rotation spot looks to be coming down to Ryan Feltner and Chase Dollander. I’ll go with Dollander since being around the other veteran pitchers could go a long way in helping his development, and he does have some excellent raw abilities; it just needs to be refined still. It’s also possible that Feltner could stay on the big league roster in the bullpen.
Bullpen: Jimmy Herget, Antonio Senzatela, Zach Agnos, Juan Mejia, Victor Vodnik, Seth Halvorsen, Brennan Bernardino, Parker Mushinski
There are plenty of options for the bullpen, so it’s a bit easy to pick and choose what arms to put into the mix. Senzatela will look to thrive as a long reliever, while Jimmy Herget, Victor Vodnik, and Seth Halvorsen will fill in the mix at the backend of the bullpen. Juan Mejia was excellent last season and has had some good moments with Team Dominican Republic in the WBC. Zach Agnos has looked excellent in spring training with a new sinker he’s been working on. Brennan Bernadino has quietly had a good spring with the Rockies and Team Mexico and represents the de facto lefty in the pen. I added Parker Mushinski since it would give the Rockies another lefty in the bullpen, and it feels like either him or fellow non-roster invite John Brebbia could make the roster.
Closing thoughts
We’ll start to hear more about roster decisions in the coming days, and there could always be more twists and turns and surprise moves before the 27th. Is there someone you think will make the roster instead? Be sure to carry on with your thoughts below!
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