Kyle Freeland expected to return to the Rockies’ rotation on Saturday | Mile High Sports
Starting pitcher Kyle Freeland is scheduled to make his return to the Colorado Rockies this evening. Freeland produced an ERA of 7.13 in 12 starts for the Rockies to begin 2019 and was then optioned to Triple-A. In six starts for the Albuquerque Isotopes, Freeland collected an 8.80 ERA and struggled with nearly five walks per nine innings. The club seems to believe Freeland worked on the right things in Triple-A regardless of the outcome. Rockies fans can only hope they will see a Freeland that looks closer to his 2018 form than his early 2019 form. Nate Lundy of Mile High Sports has more.
‘We need to get way better’: Nolan Arenado knows the Rockies have ground to cover in the National League | The Athletic ($)
There are aspects of the Rockies trending up, while others are trending down, writes Nick Groke of The Athletic. Groke likens the Rockies’ struggles to a bullpen which finds its success coming in waves, while also opining that playing at Coors Field has proved to be a net negative for the Rox. It should be noted that Rockies’ Manager Bud Black has said in the past that “Coors” will never be an excuse while he’s at the helm.
As MLB gets younger—fast—its salary system only looks more broken | The Washington Post
The game is getting younger, but the financial component of the game makes it so that baseball players still don’t get paid the big bucks until hitting free agency. Teams are also becoming smarter and realizing that they shouldn’t be paying aging players. What can be done about this? Barry Svrluga suggests beginning the arbitration process earlier. Whether this is the solution or not, something will have to change for the players once the current collective bargaining agreement expires following the 2021 season.
On the Farm
Sam Hilliard drove in six (two homers, one of which was a grand slam), Jeff Hoffman struck out seven over five innings of one-run ball and Yonder Alonso picked up two more hits as the Isotopes ran roughshod over the Chihuahuas.
Triple-A: Albuquerque Isotopes 13, El Paso Chihuahuas 1
Double-A: New Hampshire Fisher Cats 4, Hartford Yard Goats 2
High-A: Lancaster JetHawks 5, Stockton Ports 2
Single-A: Asheville Tourists 3, Augusta GreenJackets 1
Short-Season A: Hillsboro Hops 12, Boise Hawks 3