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Rockies Starters Enormous Struggles are Evident Early On

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports
By Keith Brunner Jr | Last updated 4/15/24

The Colorado Rockies have gotten off to a terrible start putting up a 4-12 record through their first 16 games. It was clear coming into the season that the Rockies had perhaps the worst starting rotation in all of baseball. Their starter’s struggles have been revealing more after each start. It’s been a key reason why Colorado has put up one of the worst records behind teams like the Miami Marlins and the Chicago White Sox. Over the weekend, Ryan Feltner recorded the first win out of any of the five Colorado starters. Now, the Rockies starters have a 1-9 record, proving that they need a reliable arm in the rotation. If one of the starters can’t come around and pitch consistently well on the mound, the Rockies may have a worse season than the year prior.

Rockies Starters and the Struggles in Their First Five Series

Kyle Freeland

Colorado’s Opening Day starter Kyle Freeland has gotten out to an awful start on the mound. Through four starts he has an 0-3 record. Also, through 15 and two third innings pitched, Freeland has an appalling ERA of 13.21. He’s given up 32 hits while only striking out nine batters. Every batter at the plate that faces Freeland seems to be having a field day. With batters having a .750 batting average off Freeland’s changeup, a .600 batting average off his slider, and a .471 batting average off of the left-handed pitcher’s fastball.

#BlueJays load up their lineup with 8 RHB vs. Rockies lefty Kyle Freeland, who allowed a .900 OPS in 529 PA vs. RHB last year (1.223 so far in ’24).

— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) April 14, 2024

In addition to these pitches, Colorado’s ace’s best pitch thus far has been his curveball. Freeland has a strikeout rate of 22 percent with his curveball, putting away batters with that pitch nearly a fifth of the time. On Opening Day, Freeland gave up ten runs off of ten hits in a 16-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. This left-handed pitcher needs to find success, and quickly. The ace of the team has had four bad starts as he continues to set a bad example to the other four guys in the rotation. If he cannot turn things around on the mound, it will be a long season for the seven-year Rockies starter.

Cal Quantrill

Next, we have Cal Quantrill who’s playing in his first season with the Rockies. So far, Quantrill has put a 0-2 record through three starts in 15 innings pitched. The five-year starter has recorded a 7.20 ERA. He’s given up 21 hits, four of those hits being home runs while only striking out ten batters. His two least affected pitches thus far have been his cutter and curveball. Batters have put up a .556 and a .667 batting average against these two respective pitches. Quantrill’s best pitch of the early part of this 2024 season has been his split-finger. With 75 pitches thrown, batters have a .174 batting average against the 29-year-old starter’s split-finger. His best start of the season thus far was back on April 9. Quantrill pitched six innings allowing three runs on eight hits with six strikeouts during a 3-2 loss.

Dakota Hudson

Finally, we have Dakota Hudson, who signed a one-year deal with the Rockies back in the offseason. Hudson has a 0-3 record through three starts with a 4.15 ERA through 17 and one-third innings pitched. He’s given up 16 hits while striking out 11 batters. Hudson’s most problematic pitch during this 2024 season has been his changeup. Batters have a .400 batting average through 26 changeups thrown. His best start of the season was on April 7th in a matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Don’t look at the final line when trying to grade Dakota Hudson’s start. After giving up five runs in the first, he settled in nicely to give the #Rockies six innings. His final line- 6 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 5 K on 102 pitches. He exits with Colorado trailing the #BlueJays 5-3. pic.twitter.com/hO6lKlNsVc

— Kelsey Wingert-Linch (@KelsWingert) April 13, 2024

The former St. Louis Cardinal allowed six innings allowing three runs on seven hits, and a walk while striking out four batters during a 3-2 loss. While Colorado’s offense has been a problem, the starters need to find a way to pull it all together on the mound. Perhaps, one of the Rockies newest starters can help turn the team’s struggles around.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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