The Colorado Rockies, on a five-game losing skid, needed a boost last Friday night, and they got one, albeit from an unexpected source.
Earlier in the day, they had recalled first baseman Blaine Crim from Triple-A Albuquerque, sending down Michael Toglia just two days after he’d returned to the MLB roster.
The Rockies defeated the San Diego Padres largely due
to Crim’s three-run homer. Not bad.
Now that Crim has made his Rockies debut, it’s worth taking a moment to consider who he is, what he brings to the team, and his possible future with the Rockies.
Since you all haven’t really written about him before, can you provide some background?
Absolutely.
The Rockies claimed him off waivers from the Texas Rangers on August 3.
There was nothing remarkable on Crim’s Baseball Reference page — or at least there wasn’t in early August when he joined the Rockies organization. He’d seen limited time with the Rangers and had yet to get his first MLB hit. It appeared to be another signing to provide the Rockies with inexpensive infield depth.
A native of Mobile, Alabama, the 28-year-old infielder attended Mississippi College. During his 189 games there, Crim amassed a .350 batting average and .585 slugging percentage. He also drove in 196 runs.
During the 2019 MLB Draft, he was picked by the Texas Rangers in the 19th round. He then began making his way through their farm system. However, his minor-league career was unremarkable.
Over six minor-league seasons with the Rangers, he had 2,480 at-bats and earned a career slashline of .293/.372/.372 with an .877 OPS. Notable is that he also hit 121 home runs.
Crim’s MLB career with the Rangers was brief. Earlier in 2025, he spent eight days with the Rangers and appeared in five games. He went 0-for-11 with a walk and HPB. He also scored one run.
Following that, the Rangers optioned him to their Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock before he was DFA’d on July 31 to make room for the Rangers‘ trade deadline acquisitions. That’s when he became a member of the Rockies organization.
Crim has played first, third base, and left field. Mostly, though, he has been used as a first baseman and designated hitter.
Stellar defense has not been his hallmark; rather, Crim is a bat with power potential.
But he’s off to a good start with the Rockies?
He is so far.
Crim got his first MLB hit — a three-run homer, no less — in his Rockies debut.
“Yeah, it was a big weight off the shoulders,” Crim said of the moment. “You know, I think the last couple months I was thinking that maybe I was going to go hitless in my career, so it was definitely a good feeling. And for it to be a home run was cool.”
As he explained, “Runners on second and third, two outs, I thought he was just going to kind of attack me early — (JP Sears) struck me out the at-bat before. So I just tried to be on time for a heater up, and I saw spin out and was able to put a good swing on it.”
He followed that up on Saturday with an RBI double.
Of his approach, Crim said, “I’m just trying to hit the ball hard forward, to be honest. I’m just trying to put good swings on it, and, thankfully, the hits have come with runners on base.”
Crim’s numbers with the Rockies are firmly in small-sample-size territory. In 12 plate appearances, he has two hits and five RBI while striking out six times.
Go back for a minute. Why did the Rockies sign another first baseman?
One thing has become clear this season: The Rockies lack sufficient infield depth. (Remember their acquisition of Alan Trejo back in May?) And if the Rockies are short in the infield, they are especially short at first. (Don’t forget: Warming Bernabel is a converted third baseman. His going on the Concussion Protocol IL, again, stressed the Rockies’ infield depth.)
Then there’s Michael Toglia question.
The Rockies’ 2019 first-round draft pick has struggled in 2025. This season, he’s slashing .190/.258/.353 with a .611 OPS. In Albuquerque, he’s done better (.336/.412/.627 with a 1.039 OPS including nine homers in 134 at-bats).
However, after returning to the Rockies on September 10, Toglia was ineffective. He struck out six times in eight plate appearances. (He has a 39.2% K% with the Rockies. Oneil Cruz currently has the highest K% in MLB with 32.0%.)
A key question the Rockies will need to answer in the offseason is what will happen at first. Will they return to Bernabel, who’s been sold in the position, or hope for a revived Toglia in 2026? Or will Charlie Condon be ready?
Despite his solid Rockies debut, picking up Crim fits in with the Rockies’ decisions to sign Keston Hiura and Owen Miller: He’s helping staff a Triple-A club that lacks sufficient personnel in addition to giving the Rockies another player who could be promoted and DFA’d should they need to do so.
Or perhaps there’s a place for him after this season until Condon arrives. There’s only one way to find out.
As for Crim, he’s living in the present moment and hoping he can contribute to a Rockies team intent on injecting some playoff chaos.
“Hopefully, we get hot and ruin some people’s playoff hopes down the stretch,” Crim said.
That would be great.
However, Crim’s future is uncertain as a ragged Rockies team tries to finish out a hard season with an eye to the future.
“We’re going to take a look at Crim and see what he looks like these last two weeks,” general manager Bill Schmidt told Kevin Henry. “Hopefully we’ll get Bernabel back and we’ll be taking a look at those two guys the rest of the way.
“I like to think Charlie Condon is going to be the guy here in the near future. He’s finished up Double-A this weekend, and then he will go to the Arizona Fall League. We’ll evaluate where he’s at from that standpoint.”
The contest to be the Colorado Rockies’ first baseman in 2026 has started.
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