Welcome to the 2026 edition of Ranking the Rockies, where we take a look back at every player to log playing time for the
Rockies in 2026. 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. 24, Nick Frasso (0.2 rWAR)
On July 20, the Colorado Rockies traded right-handed relief pitcher
Seth Halvorsen to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for fellow right-handed pitcher Nick Frasso and outfielder Landyn Vidourek.
Until that point, Frasso had spent the previous six seasons in the Toronto Blue Jays and Dodgers minor league systems after having been drafted in the fourth round in 2020. Originally thought of as a potential starting pitcher, Frasso reached as high as the number 68 overall prospect in baseball per MLB Pipeline in 2023. From that prospect ranking high, however, Frasso went on to miss the entire 2024 season recovering from shoulder surgery.
Having never managed to amass more than 93 innings in a season previously, he was quickly moved to the bullpen upon his return to action in 2025.
Frasso came to the Rockies having put up great strikeout numbers (14.59 K/9) for the Dodgers Triple-A affiliate in 2026 paired with abysmal walk totals (6.20 BB/9). That lack of command had prevented Frasso from being able to break into the Dodgers stacked Major League roster. As a 27 year old, Frasso was running out of time to translate his raw stuff and 91st percentile extension into the sort of finished product that would lead to a notable MLB career.
After entering the Rockies organization, however, Frasso did not need to wait long before being given a shot in the big leagues. Just a week after being traded, with only five (admittedly impressive) appearances for the Albuquerque Isotopes on his résumé, Frasso was called up to the Rockies to make his Major League debut.
For his first assignment, Frasso took the ball in the 11th inning of a tie game against the Tampa Bay Rays in what manager Warren Schaeffer would later characterize as “Probably the most difficult position you can be in (for) your Major League debut.”
His first opponent, Taylor Walls, moved the extra-innings automatic-runner from second to third on a sacrifice bunt attempt. The next batter he faced was the ever-intimidating Yandy Diaz, against whom he bounced a ball in the dirt allowing the go-ahead run to score.
With what would ultimately be the winning run already scored, Frasso finished the inning after allowing another run on a couple of hits. While his first taste of the big leagues may not have gone exactly as he would have liked, Frasso managed to muddle through a full inning and look to the future.
Frasso remained on the Major League roster for the remainder of the 2026 season. His results throughout his 20 appearances for the Rockies were a mixed bag.
The chase percentage that he saw as a prospect was still present during his first stint against Major League hitters, but he was not able to translate that into the sort of strikeout numbers he had become accustomed to.
His two best stretches, encompassing a total of ten scoreless innings over nine outings, was interrupted by a brutal four game streak in early September in which he allowed nine runs in just 3.2 innings. If not for that brief swoon, Frasso’s overall line in his rookie season would look sparkling and it’s notable that he was able to course correct and throw four scoreless outings to finish off his season.
Overall, the lanky 6’5” right-hander’s rookie season gave enough positive indications that he is one of the lone bullpen arms that you can feel confident in being a part of the teams plans for the forseeable future. He finished the season with 21.2 innings in the Majors with an ugly 5.82 ERA but a much better 4.38 FIP and just a 3.99 expected ERA.
The most encouraging aspect of his final line is that his walk rate, which had been his largest problem area throughout his minor-league career, dropped from 9.4% in his debut month of August all the way down to 4.3% in September. With his combination of stuff and extension, a walk rate like he showed in September would allow him to become a high-leverage reliever for years to come.
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