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. 28, Austin Nola (-0.2 rWAR)
When the catching situation was still undetermined heading into 2025, the Colorado Rockies hoped to procure a cheap backup plan in case Jacob Stallings or Hunter Goodman truly struggled. They signed veteran backstop Austin Nola to a minor league deal with a big league invitation to spring training. Nola, brother of star pitcher Aaron Nola, hadn’t appeared in the big leagues since playing 52 games with the San Diego Padres in 2023. He had spent the 2024 season with the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, slashing a meager .174/.260/.298 over 191 plate appearances. It was a full-circle moment as the Rockies had initially drafted Nola out of high school in the 48th round back in 2008, but he instead opted for college ball at LSU.
Nola showed well in spring training with the club, batting .355/.412/.419 over 31 plate appearances in 17 games. He split his time between catching and first base, giving the Rockies at least something to think about with some limited versatility. He was sent to Triple-A Albuquerque, perhaps with the hope that he could serve as a valuable mentor to prospect catchers Drew Romo and Braxton Fulford.
Nola spent some time on the injured list while in Albuquerque, but when healthy, he managed to continue the offensive production he showed off in spring training. In 26 Triple-A games, he slashed .347/.411/.474 in 106 trips to the plate with one home run and 19 RBI. Additionally, he had 14 strikeouts against 10 walks, showcasing his history of quality plate discipline.
With Stallings long gone and Goodman playing well, the Rockies decided to call up Nola in early July, sending Fulford back down to Triple-A so that he could get consistent playing time. There was also a sense that interim manager Warren Schaeffer wanted a veteran backstop to help continue mentoring Goodman and help an increasingly younger pitching staff navigate the big leagues.
Perhaps that experience was on best display on July 23 when Nola helped starting pitcher Tanner Gordon navigate six scoreless innings against the St. Louis Cardinals, and the rest of the pitching staff secured the first shutout of the season for the Rockies, ending a Modern Era record of 220 consecutive games without a shutout.
Nola was servicable behind the plate, but even backup catchers need to prove they can hit a little bit. Unfortunately, the bat that showed up in spring training and Triple-A was nowhere to be found. He made 41 plate appearances over 15 games with the Rockies and batted .184/.225/.211 with a double and an RBI.
He also managed to get on the mound, but it just so happened to be in one of the worst games of the season when the Toronto Blue Jays put the beatdown on the Rockies. Nola pitched just a single inning, but gave up eight runs on eight hits, including two home runs. To put a silver lining on it, his brother Aaron happened to pitch on the same day for the Phillies, though to much better results.
After the trade deadline passed, the Rockies recalled Fulford and cut Nola loose on August 11, and tried to outright him back to Albuquerque. He instead opted for free agency, where he finished the season. However, he has since managed to find another team, signing a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves on October 20 and being assigned to their Triple-A team.
Nola was just another footnote in the 2025 season. He was nothing more than a typical depth signing that played well enough in the minors to earn a cup of coffee with the big league team desperate for players. Once there was no further harm in having a rookie gain more big league experience on the roster, he was set free to find opportunity elsewhere as a journeyman. Those 15 games in purple were enough to get the full experience of what a backup player like Nola brings to the table for a major league roster, and it just wasn’t something that moved the needle at all for the 119-loss Rockies.
