Under the leadership of president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta and general manager Josh Byrnes, the Colorado Rockies played better baseball in 2026.
The record doesn't necessarily show that, but the Rockies won 58 games, well above the 43 games they won in 2025 when they were nearly the worst team in baseball history.
DePodesta and Byrnes have spent the 2026 season pruning the roster, looking for young talent and trying to build a pathway back to the Rockies to find the respectability they had a decade ago. Some of that means making critical decisions financially.
Here are the critical contract decisions they have to make for 2027.
Colorado Rockies pitcher Kyle Freeland. Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Rockies have four free agents to think about but two loom large. Both are pitchers.
Kyle Freeland, the long-time Rockies right-hander, is finally a free agent. His long-term arbitration deal expired after the season and he's coming off a 4-12 campaign with a 6.65 ERA. Notably, for the first time since 2019 he had a negative bWAR (-0.4). He only struck out 108 but he walked 29 and started 26 games.
Now 32 years old, the Rockies must decide if they want to pursue the Denver native and keep him for the back half of his career.
The other is pitcher Jordan Romano. Picked up during the season, the former All-Star closer for the Toronto Blue Jays had a solid 27 outings for the Rockies, as he went 0-2 with a 4.21 ERA and 11 saves. He struck out 27 and walked 13 in 25.2 innings. He's 33 years old and the Rockies could use a veteran option in the ninth inning. The question is how hot will his market be?
Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman. Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Rockies only have six players facing salary arbitration. For most teams the decision comes down to cost. For two players - catcher Hunter Goodman and outfielder Jake McCarthy - Colorado must decide if each is worth extending.
This is Goodman's first year of arbitration and getting him into a long-term deal feels like a no-brainer. He slammed 41 home runs and drove in 88 RBI as he batted .245 in 2026. He made the All-Star Game for the second straight year and he's the best offensive player on the team. It's hard to find consistent power at his position.
McCarthy made just $1.525 million in 2026 and had a career year, as he slashed .334/.475/.809 with 15 home runs and 83 RBI. His arbitration bill is likely to go up. Colorado could decide to get McCarthy into a multi-year contract to get through his arbitration seasons and control his cost. The Rockies have already done this with outfielder Mickey Moniak .
Controlling costs is important for a small market team, especially one that could be sold once there's a new collective bargaining agreement.
Colorado Rockies designated hitter Kris Bryant. Credit: Robert Edwards-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Colorado has one looming albatross from a contract perspective and that's Kris Bryant. The one-time World Series champion hasn't played baseball since the beginning of the 2025 season due to a degenerative neck condition. But he continues to get paid.
Bryant is due to make $26 million in 2027 and won't become a free agent until 2029. There won't be any takers for him on the trade market and there are a few options for Colorado to get out of paying the deal.
The Los Angeles Angels found a way to restructure the final year of Anthony Rendon's contract, which was worth $38 million. They gave him a deferred payout over three to five years. Doing something similar with Bryant would give the franchise more financial flexibility. But the reality is, they cannot dump Bryant's salary. It's the Rockies issue to figure out.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/rockies/onsi as Every Major Contract Decision Facing the Colorado Rockies This Offseason .
