Colorado Rockies announce spring training non-roster invitees

The Colorado Rockies announced their list of 22 non-roster players who will be invited to Major League spring training. Pitchers and catchers will get spring training underway Monday, February 13. The first full team workout will come on Monday, February 20, though players competing in the World Baseball Classic will likely report earlier in order to prepare for the tournament.

Headlining the list is infielder Ryan McMahon (No. 7 PuRP). McMahon struggled for most of the year with Double-A Hartford, hitting .242/.325/.399 with 12 home runs and 11 stolen bases over 534 plate appearances, good for about league average in the Eastern League. He joined the Salt River Rafters in the Arizona Fall League and hit just .247/.348/.338 in 89 plate appearances. He’ll likely see time both at third base and first base in big league camp.

Several PuRPs will be making their way to Major League camp, as well. Kyle Freeland (No. 8 PuRP) split time between Double-A Hartford and Triple-A Albuquerque last season, putting up a combined 3.89 ERA in 162 innings across both levels. Harrison Musgrave (No. 25 PuRP) also split time between Hartford and Albuquerque with a 3.87 ERA in 153 ¹⁄₃ innings with 109 strikeouts. Ryan Castellani (No. 9 PuRP) will be in big league camp as well after being named the top prospect out of the California League in 2016. He finished with a 3.81 ERA, 142 strikeouts, and 50 walks in 168 innings.

Catcher Dom Nunez (No. 14 PuRP) earned rave reviews for his talent and work ethic after his time at major league spring training last year. Though drafted as an infielder in the sixth round of the 2013 draft, he is currently slated to be part of the future of the catcher position for the Rockies. Last year in High-A Modesto he slashed .241/.321/.362 in 450 plate appearances.

Also returning to major league spring training as NRIs for the second year in a row are Freeland, Musgrave, McMahon, pitcher Matt Carasiti, and outfielders Noel Cuevas and Rosell Herrera.

Last month, we tried to predict who might receive an NRI, and did pretty well. Of course, we missed Mark Reynolds, who signed a MiLB deal recently, and James Farris, who was acquired on February 2. You can see the full list of non-roster invitees below.

Left-handed pitchers (4)

Kyle Freeland (No. 8 PuRP)

Sam Howard (No. 20 PuRP)

Harrison Musgrave (No. 25 PuRP)

Jerry Vasto

Right-handed pitchers (5)

Matt Carasiti

Ryan Castellani (No. 9 PuRP)

James Farris

Johendi Jiminian

C.C. Lee

Catchers (4)

Anthony Bemboom

Dom Nunez (No. 14 PuRP)

Chris Rabago

Jan Vazquez

Outfielders (4)

Chris Denorfia

Noel Cuevas

Rosell Herrera

Michael Tauchman

Infielders (5)

Stephen Cardullo

Daniel Castro

Mark Reynolds

Ryan McMahon (No. 7 PuRP)

Rafael Ynoa