Cameron Maclennan | July 29, 2025
It’s not ordinary to be looking ahead to next season with over 50 games remaining, but then again, the 2025 Colorado Rockies aren’t ordinary. There is no need to continue discussing the black hole that this season has been. That being said, some young guys seem to be finding their footing in the big leagues, which has us thinking about what the 2026 Colorado Rockies lineup could look like.
The Position Battles
Catcher: Hunter Goodman
Barring a shock change in the interim, Hunter Goodman will be manning home plate for the foreseeable future. The emergence of Goodman’s game this year has been a pleasant surprise to Rockies fans.
After really struggling in 2023 and 2024, most had given up on the idea of him being a consistent MLB player, myself included. Boy, was I wrong. Goodman has been the Rockies’ most consistent player all year in a season lacking consistency from almost everyone else.
Off the back of not hitting above .200 in his first two seasons, Goodman figured something out. He has slashed .283/.329/.517 with an OPS+ (takes into account ballpark and league context) of 124 (100 is MLB average) while leading the club in home runs, runs batted in, hits, and on-base percentage.
Having a catcher who is also your best offensive player is rare. Now the Rockies will aim to build around Goodman to take some pressure off him.
Shortstop: Ezequiel Tovar
Nearly every single contending team has its star shortstop. The Rockies are set there as well with Ezequiel Tovar. Though it’s been an injury-riddled season for Tovar, he is the Rockies’ shortstop.
Second base: Estrada, Ritter or Amador?
Tovar’s double play partner for 2026 is up in the air. Thairo Estrada is on a one-year deal that has a mutual option for 2026. If he stays, he will be the Rockies’ starting 2nd baseman.
Consequently, if the Rockies want to continue to get younger and rely on their youth, they should go in another direction.
Ryan Ritter is getting his opportunity this season to prove if he can be an everyday big leaguer and has shown glimpses of his potential. He has proven everything there is to prove at the minor league level, now he just needs more at-bats.
If he doesn’t work out, Adeal Amador has been up and down since making his debut in 2024. In his latest stint with Colorado, he appeared to be figuring something out before getting sent back down as Estrada came back from injury.
And if the Rockies don’t want to use any of these options, super utility option Tyler Freeman, who has played 2nd just a handful of times this season, can slot in there if needed.
Third base: Karros
Continuing around the infield, third base is now much harder to predict after the Rockies traded Ryan McMahon to the Yankees this past week. For the rest of the 2025 season, the Rockies will most likely handle it by committee.
But for 2026 and beyond, the hot corner is now up for grabs. Ethan Holliday is poised to man third at some point for the Rockies; however, to begin 2026, Kyle Karros should get the first opportunity.
BSB’s #10 prospect coming into the season, Karros, is a candidate to be a September call-up and get his feet wet in the big leagues. Karros, a MiLB gold glove winner at third, has been known for his glove but has the potential to be an above-average hitter in the big leagues as well.
He’s played the majority of the season in Double-A Hartford but was recently promoted to Triple-A Albuquerque. In his 55 games in Hartford, he hit .294 with an OBP of .399. Without McMahon in the picture now, the door is open for Karros to get his shot to be the Rockies’ third baseman.
First Base: Charlie Condon
Closing out the infield is first base, which is intriguing. Michael Toglia has been the Rockies’ first baseman for the last couple of seasons but has not been able to find consistency at the plate in the major leagues. Unless he has a dramatic turnaround in the final parts of 2025, he won’t be on the Rockies to begin 2026. So, who takes his place? Charlie Condon.
The 3rd overall pick in 2024 and the Rockies’ top prospect, Condon, was injured to start 2025, which delayed his rise through the Rockies’ system. In 35 games in High-A Spokane this year, he hit over .300 with an OPS of .851.
Since being promoted to Hartford, Condon is still finding his footing through 17 games. The talent is there, and the hope is that the combination of Condon and Holliday will be the face of the Rockies return to contention.
Outfield: Beck, Doyle, Moniak, Veen, Fernandez, Carrigg
Transitioning to the outfield, things could start to get crowded coming in 2026 and beyond, with loads of talent coming up through the minors.
At the moment, left field is the easiest to predict. It’s Jordan Beck’s spot to lose. After a tough debut in 2024 and a slow start in 2025, things weren’t looking all that bright for the Tennessee product. However, after being sent down for a brief stint in Triple-A, Beck came back and flipped things around.
Even with his slow start, Beck has an OPS+ of 108 compared to his 2024 season in which he posted a 40 OPS+. As Beck continues to find consistency, one can expect him to just keep getting better the more experience he gets. He has earned the everyday left field spot for the Rockies in 2026.
Moving to center field, what started as an uncontested spot to start the 2025 season has turned a little more complicated. After Brenton Doyle’s stellar 2024 season, all Rockies fans expected the same coming into 2025. It has not been that.
Dealing with some tragic off-the-field issues to begin 2025, Doyle has been off the entire year. Hitting just .216 for the year with only 7 home runs has not been the season Doyle or anyone wanted.
Though he has been playing better recently. In his last 15 games, his average is at .348 with a .435 slugging percentage. Hopefully, this trend can continue and he can refind his footing for the 2026 season.
It’s hard to see the Rockies not giving Doyle the opening day start in center field in 2026. He should get another shot, but some guys have earned a look as well.
Mickey Moniak has been perhaps the most interesting story the Rockies have had this year. After being released before the start of the season and signing with the Rockies, not much was expected of the former #1 overall pick.
He has shattered expectations this year. When Doyle took a leave from the team, Moniak’s starts began to go way up, and his production took off. Moniak possesses an OPS+ of 128, which leads the Rockies.
And throughout his last 30 games, he has been one of the best hitters in baseball. Hitting .347 with 9 home runs and a slugging percentage of .723, which is absurd.
Moniak is only on a one-year deal, but is elgible for arbitration the next two seasons. He would be an intriguing option for the Rockies to re-sign, considering that he can play all three outfield positions. But given the youth of their outfield and who’s coming up, my prediction would be we don’t see him in a Rockies uniform next year. I wouldn’t mind being wrong, though.
The right field position is in an odd spot right now for the Rockies. It has been primarily occupied by Mickey Moniak and Tyler Freeman this year. But there is a logjam of prospects waiting to get their shot that will complicate things.
The youngster getting his shot right now is Yanquiel Fernandez, and he has looked decent thus far in his Major League career. While saying that, if he pans out as a hitter, I see him being primarily a DH.
So then you start naming guys like Zac Veen and Cole Carrigg, who are both waiting. Both are electrifying players to watch and would make the Rockies a whole lot more entertaining to watch.
Veen was called up to the Rockies early in 2025 but struggled and was sent back down. He has an immense amount of talent and is just trying to put it together. Veen getting another shot in the bigs is a matter of when, not if.
Carrigg is a Swiss Army knife. He does a little bit of everything on the field. He’s a five-tool guy who can hit from both sides of the plate and doesn’t strike out a lot, which is a trait the Rockies desperately need.
He has played mostly center field in the minors, as he has one of the best arms in the sport already. There is a flexibility of where he can play that will be valuable when he gets his chance. He and Veen will be the first to get their shot if something goes wrong, and are both candidates to be September call-ups.
I’ve thrown a lot of names in this article, a lot more than nine, that’s for sure. A lot of things can change from now until next March.
If I were to give an early prediction of what the Opening Day lineup will look like for Colorado in 2026, it would look something like this:
- Tyler Freeman (DH)
- Ezequiel Tovar (SS)
- Hunter Goodman (C)
- Charlie Condon (1B)
- Jordan Beck (LF)
- Brenton Doyle (CF)
- Kyle Karros (3B)
- Ryan Ritter (2B)
- Zac Veen (RF)
Written by Cameron Maclennan.
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