The Colorado Rockies are known for playing their home games in the most notoriously hitter-friendly environment in Major League Baseball, Coors Field. Despite the introduction of the humidor in 2002 reducing the number of home runs hit there, Coors Field has sat atop park factors leaderboards since its opening in 1995.
What’s more, in their first few games back at sea level after having played in Denver, hitters are known to suffer from a reduction in offensive performance, colloquially known as the “Coors
Field Hangover.” This can largely be attributed to the flight path of the ball leaving a pitcher’s hand behaving differently in the two environments, and the human brain needing repetitions to adjust its expectations. This has long been the bane of Rockies hitters who have generally performed much better at home than they have on the road.
This season, however, the Rockies are doing something they have never done before in the entire history of the franchise: Scoring just as many runs on the road as they do at home.
- In 40 home games, the Rockies have scored 181 runs.
- In 41 away games, they’ve scored 187 runs.
In every previous season of their existence, the Colorado Rockies scored many more runs at home than on the road. They have never come particularly close to breaking even. In 2009, the Rockies scored 75 more runs at home than they did on the road, which is the only non-shortened season where that number was less than 95.
Let’s put this another way.
The only season in Rockies history that they scored less than a full run more per game at home versus away was the aforementioned 2009. That year, they managed a measly 0.93 more runs per game at home.
Halfway through the 2026 season, the Rockies are scoring 0.01 fewer runs per game at home than they are on the road. That’s essentially dead even.
The Rockies are scoring the third most road runs per game but, it hasn’t come with the expected relationship to runs at hitter-friendly Coors Field. What’s accounting for this difference is a bit hard to pin down. On the surface, Rockies hitters appear to still be producing better at home with a triple slash of .265/.334/.423 compared to .242/.313/.398 on the road.
The shape of that production, however, is composed differently. At Coors the Rockies are hitting more doubles and triples but significantly fewer home runs (39) than they are when on the road (47). Unlike overall runs scored, this road homer dominance is not entirely unprecedented since the 2006 Rockies ended the season with seven more homers on the road than they had at home.
No hitter has contributed more to these strange splits than Hunter Goodman. Coming into Wednesday’s game Goodman had hit .198/.279/.405 at Coors compared to .282/.340/.604 elsewhere, good for a 96 point swing in his wRC+ between the two. Among the teams other regulars, both TJ Rumfield and Troy Johnston are also hitting a bit better on the road, but no one comes close to matching Goodman’s splits.
Conclusions
Ultimately, what folks will want to know is why has this happened so far and is it likely continue? Sadly, the best answers to those questions I’ve been able to come up with are an unconvincing “luck” and a non-committal “probably not.”
It’s not as if Coors Field has suddenly turned into a pitcher’s park. The Rockies are still allowing more runs at home (6.07) than they are on the road (5.27). Taking a look at Baseball Savant’s Park Factors leaderboards for specifically 2026 shows that Coors Field has been slightly overtaken by the Athletics Sutter Health Park, but it is still near enough to the top that the sample size of a half season isn’t enough to draw real conclusions from.
Part of the answer can be attributed to the Rockies having gotten the opportunity to play three away games in the open air minor league Las Vegas Ballpark. If we removed all three of the Las Vegas games, the Rockies road scoring would no longer slightly outpace their home scoring, but it would still be by far the smallest gap in franchise history at only 0.471 more runs per game scored at home.
At the time of writing this, I have not found a convincing answer as to what, if anything, has changed to cause this shift. Unless Warren Schaeffer reveals some heretofore unknown road batting preparation method new to 2026, changes to the way the ball is moving are discovered, or (knock on wood) some new gambling scandal is uncovered, all previous precedent indicates that these home/road splits will not continue into the second half.
If they do, this will almost certainly go down as the most abnormal offensive season in Rockies history.
On the Farm
Triple-A: Salt Lake Bees 9, Albuquerque Isotopes 1
In a reversal of the first game of the series on Tuesday, the Bees (LAA) walloped the Isotopes.
What began as a close one run game for the first six innings descended into a blowout with a seven run implosion during Luke Adams’ second inning of work in the sixth. That poor outing overshadowed four shutout innings from Tanner Gordon in his first rehab start since being sidelined with a hip injury at the end of May.
While the Isotopes lineup wasn’t able to get across many runs in the end they did manage to work the count quite a bit against the Bee’s pitching staff. Each of Adael Amador and Sterlin Thompson (No. 13 PuRP) earned two walks and Jordan Beck (on a rehab assignment) drew another three. The problem was a lack of contact as the entire order only managed four singles while doubling that number of strikeouts.
Double-A: Portland Sea Dogs 10, Hartford Yard Goats 4
A second rough outing in a row from Jackson Cox (No. 16 PuRP) let the Sea Dogs (BOS) jump out to a lead in the fourth inning that the Yard Goats were never able to come back from.
Cox, in his third start at Double-A, struck out five over his first three scoreless innings. In the fourth he hit the first batter he faced, walked the next, tossed a wild pitch to let the runners advance, and then proceeded to allow four hits and another walk before being pulled having only recorded a single out in the inning. Cox would be followed up by Cade Denton and Michael Prosecky (No. 25 PuRP) combining for three and a third innings of five-run ball. Eventually Carlos Torres would come in to finish out the final two and a third innings without allowing a run but enough damage had already been done by that point.
At the plate Andy Perez, Dyan Jorge, and GJ Hill collected two hits apiece. Otherwise the most notable performance was from the catcher, Bryant Betancourt, who reached base three times including on a single that drove in Roc Riggio (No. 14 PuRP) in the fifth.
High-A: Spokane Indians 11, Tri-City Dust Devils 9
A back and forth affair where both Spokane and the Dust Devils (LAA) would not stop answering lead changes with runs of their own.
It took Spokane five pitchers to make it through the full nine innings and the only one who had a scoreless outing was Justin Loer who tossed a single frame. Yujanyer Herrera (No. 22 PuRP) started off the game going three innings and allowing four runs (3 earned) with four strikeouts but did so on 64 pitches and was pulled before facing a batter in the fourth.
The Spokane bats, however, were a different story. The lineup combined for ten hits and nine walks which was enough to mean they did not have to come back out for the bottom of the ninth. Jack O’Dowd continued to do nothing but impress in High-A by reaching base three times and coming around to score twice. Robert Calaz (No. 6 PuRP) and Tevin Tucker both drew three walk. Unlike every other level of the farm system on Wednesday, the Indians were able to capitalize on all those baserunners thanks to home runs from each of Tommy Hopfe, Ethan Hedges (No. 29 PuRP), and Kelvin Hidalgo.
Low-A: Lake Elsinore Storm 4, Fresno Grizzlies 2
While the Grizzlies scored the first and final runs of the game they were unable to keep pace with the Storm (SDP) in the interim.
On the mound Luke Hansel and Bryson Van Sickle combined with nearly identical lines to pitch the full game for Fresno. They each went four innings and allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out four. The only real difference between the two performances was efficiency as Van Sickle finished his four innings with thirteen fewer pitches than Hansel.
The Grizzlies lineup had a fair share of baserunners, scattering nine hits and three walks almost evenly throughout the order. They failed, however, to provide much in the way of thump to drive those runners in. Tanner Thach’s double to lead of the second inning was the only extra base hit of the night for Fresno.
DSL: DSL Marlins 10, DSL Rockies 0
A forgettable day for the DSL Rockies who allowed at least one run in every inning other than the fourth and had committed three errors by the third. The best pitching performance belongs to Francisco Perez who took over in the third and threw three innings while only allowing two runs, one earned, on just two hits.
At the plate the DSL Rockies were able to work six walks, but failed to drive any of those baserunners in. The only player with multiple hits was Hector Barroso who was three for three, including a double, with a walk. All told, a game to take some lessons from and move on.
A really lovely little piece from Eli Whitney chronicling Jimmy Herget and Brennan Bernadino’s paths to Colorado. The two started in the Reds minor league system together where they were roomates for a while and have apparently kept in touch since. A quick and free read that is incredibly wholesome. My personal favorite quote from Bernadino in the piece: “I’m just trying to be the left-handed Jimmy”.
The Pain of Trading a Unicorn | Baseball Prospectus ($)
Just as Renee Dechart did for Purple Row last week, Mario Delgado Genzor dissects whether it would be the right move for the organization to entertain trading Hunter Goodman. The piece leaves no stone unturned in it’s dissection of the topic ranging from what type of player Goodman has been, the Rockies history of poor catchers, the state of the organization as a whole, and what other catchers would be available to buyers at the deadline. A wonderfully thorough piece that is worth every Rockies fan reading while we await the flurry of moves coming at the end of July.
Patrick Saunders talks with Hunter Goodman about the changes he’s seen in the big league club since his callup in 2023. Goodman, and Warren Schaeffer, detail how the tone has shifted from one where people “were just happy to be here” to where “Now, it feels like we can beat anybody, any night.”. The piece gives a real sense of how Goodman has been integral to the step forward the club has made this year.
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